How to Resolve your Legal Issue Without the Courts
You Can Resolve Your Legal Problem Without Breaking the Bank!
When we have a legal problem, we often contact a lawyer and prepare to go to court. Bankruptcy, divorce, disputes about real estate, and employment disagreements are part of a long list of legal situations that the courts address. And we've done this for decades. But imagine a cheaper, faster way to resolve legal disputes—that's ADR.
ADR stands for Alternative Dispute Resolution. It is an alternative to the formal adversarial process of the courts to resolve legal conflicts. ADR includes any process other than having the judge or jury adjudicate a legal dispute. Modern alternative dispute resolution in the United States began with labor mediation and arbitration. It gained popularity in the early 20th Century with the passage of the Newland Act. That legislation created a permanent board of mediation and conciliation authorized to handle negotiation and contract interpretation disputes. Throughout the early part of the twentieth century, labor arbitration expanded to become the primary way disputes were handled.
Towards the middle of the century, ADR branched into other areas and by the late 1980’s Virginia had many community mediation centers. Courts began referring most cases to mediation. ADR continued to expand in 1990s when restorative justice programs began providing alternatives to the conventional criminal justice system. Today, we have many forms of ADR that can be more suitable and cheaper than going to court. The educated consumer will understand the opportunities that ADR plays in resolving their conflict before and after initiating a law suit.
In arbitration, the parties agree to have a neutral third party decide on factual and legal disputes and make a decision. Arbitration can be binding on the parties or can be a non-binding recommendation. Hi-Lo Arbitration is a type of arbitration where the parties agree to the minimum and maximum amount of an award BEFORE the arbitration occurs.
In mediation, the parties work with a third party to create a mutually acceptable resolution. Mediation is offered, and required, in many situations after a case is filed in Virginia's courts. Many people prefer to try mediation BEFORE they initiate a lawsuit to save on costs associated with litigation. There are several types of mediation, including evaluative, transformative, and facilitative.
In restorative justice, the victim of wrongdoing chooses to participate in a process focused on repairing the harm. The restorative justice process most frequently often used in American courts is a restorative justice dialogue. In a victim-offender conference, the victim of a crime may meet with the offender in a facilitated discussion to discuss the harm and what can be done to make things as right as possible.
In an early neutral case evaluation, a neutral attorney is engaged by the two parties to evaluate the case and provide their opinion on the outcome if the matter goes to trial. The parties can ignore the evaluation but may find it helpful in deciding what would be next.
In collaborative cases, the parties retain lawyers trained in conflict resolution. Other professionals, such as a financial expert, a conflict coach with a background in mental health, or a specialist who works with children, may also work on the case. Rather than hold a series of adversarial meetings, in collaborative practice, the parties and the professionals they’ve selected hold a series of meetings to arrive at a mutually agreeable solution.
Helpful Reminders about ADR:
When you have any legal problem, don't immediately "lawyer up." Research ADR options. Determine if the other party may be interested in ADR.
When working with a lawyer on a legal problem—be active in understanding the role of ADR. For example, suppose the court requires mediation. Participate in deciding who the mediator will be and the kind of mediation that may occur.
Understand and make educated decisions. Most estimates say that less than three percent of civil cases filed in the court system go to trial. However, many cases don't settle out of court until days or weeks before trial.
Consider ADR options periodically when engaged in a legal dispute, even after filing suit and even after ADR might fail.
To learn more about your options in ADR, sign up for a free meeting with Brenda.