APPENDIX A: CHARACTERISTICS OF ADR
AS INITIALLY CONCEIVED
Reproduced from ALRI CM 12.6, pp. 11-12
With the multi-option vision of the civil justice system gaining favour today, the
characteristics of the litigation (court) and non-litigation (non-court) dispute resolution
processes, identified in the chart below for discussion purposes, no longer operate in sharp
contrast to each other. The second column, headed non-li tigation (non-court) process
describes interest-based processes such a negotiation, mediation or collaborative law. In
contrast, as noted in chapter 4, arbitration is essentially a form of adjudication, although
non-bin ding arbitration is an option. Arbitration therefore straddles both columns.
LITIGATION (COURT) PROCESS
NON-LITIGATION (NON-COURT) PROCESS
Process is adversarial (win-lose)
Process is non-adversarial (cooperative,
collaborative) (win-win)
Process is court-controlled
Process is party-controlled
System is publicly provided
Assistance is privately engaged
Process fairly structured (although flexible
within institutionally-fixed limits)
Wide open choice of process from limitless
possibilities, able to accommodate wishes
of parties
One party sues, the other must respond or
stand in default
Voluntarily undertaken by both parties
Time limits imposed
Pace up to the parties
Result often uncertain, not readily
predictable
Result (usually) rests with parties
Progresses on a more or less lock-step
continuum
More an integration than a continuum
allows for seamless movement among ADR
processes on a single occasion, or
simultaneous application of various ADR
processes with respect to particular
elements of the dispute
Issues are framed in legal terms, using legal
concepts; the discussion is rights-based
Issues reflect the interests of the parties;
the discussion is interest-based
Remedies are limited to legal remedies
Remedies respond creatively to parties
interests
The record and proceedings (generally) are
open to members of the public
Proceedings (generally) are conducted in
private; shared information is confidential