What are the advantages of the civil court system?
A legallyqualifiedjudge
A bindingjudgement is made
There is an appealprocess
Legalfunding is available
Judicialprecedent ensures fairness and consistency
What are the disadvantages of the civil court system?
Expensive
Slow and complex
Open to the public
Formal and inflexible
Adversarial in nature
Intimidating
Can ruin goodrelations
No technicalexpertise
What must a claimant consider before taking court action?
The likelihood of winning
The Defendant's ability to paydamages
What are the four main types of ADR?
Negotiation
Mediation
Conciliation
Arbitration
What is negotiation?
Negotiation involves the dispute between the parties themselves. It involves an offer and an acceptance. E.g - returning faulty goods to a shop
What are the advantages of negotiation?
Completely private
Quick resolution
Maintains goodrelationships
Informal
What are the disadvantages of negotiation?
Involving solicitors can make it costly
Settlements aren't always agreed on and the matter still goes to court
There is wasted time and money
People think they do not get asmuch as they would if they wenttocourt
What is mediation?
Mediation is a voluntary, confidential process which uses an independentthird party to assist the parties in coming to theirown agreed solution
What is the independent third party in mediation called?
The 'mediator'
What are the advantages of mediation?
Faster and cheaper than court action
More confidential and flexible
Less formal
Not adversarial so avoids loss of goodrelations
Both parties have control of the outcome
The mediator is agreed upon by bothparties and is completely independent
What are the disadvantages of mediation?
It can take 3 - 5 days compared to 1 day in court
There is noguarantee the matter will be resolved
The finaldecision is not automatically binding (not legallyenforceable)
If a party feels "forced" into it a half-hearteddecision may be reached
Legalfunding is not always available
What is conciliation?
Conciliation is a similar process to mediation where an impartial third party will suggest grounds for compromise to the two parties to aid them in coming to an agreement
What is the impartial third party in conciliation called?
The 'conciliator'
What is arbitration?
Arbitration is the most formal from of ADR, where a neutral third partybinds the parties to the terms of a decision
What is the neutral third party in arbitration called?
The 'arbitrator'
What are the advantages of arbitration?
Faster and cheaper than court action
Parties can choose who their arbitrator is - legal/technicalexpert
The procedure is less formal and more flexible
The decision is binding (legallyenforceable) on the parties
The process is very clear to the parties
Which statute protects the process of arbitration?
The Arbitration Act 1996
What are the disadvantages of arbitration?
It is the most similar to a courthearing - sometimes expensive and slow
A non-lawyer arbitrator would not know how to solve any unexpectedlegal issues