Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is the method by which legal conflicts and disputes are resolved privately other than through the litigation in public courts,

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Introduction:

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a collection of processes used for the purpose of resolving conflict or disputes informally and confidentially. ADR provides alternatives to traditional processes. ADR has gained widespread acceptance among both the general public and the legal profession in recent years.

Definition of Alternative Dispute Resolution:

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is a informal dispute resolution processes in which the parties meet with a professional third party who helps them resolve their dispute in a way that is less formal and often more consensual than is done in the courts.

According to GLOSSARY Law Dictionary- The term ADR describes is a method used to resolve disputes out of court, including negotiation, conciliation, mediation and the many types of arbitration.

In the case of Hilmond Investments v. CIBC 1996 135 DLR 4^th 471 the Court of Appeal observed that: ADR is the method by which legal conflicts and disputes are resolved privately other than through the litigation in public courts, usually through one of two forms: mediation or arbitration.

To me, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a real, practical and traditional approach outside the court of justice system uses common sense of the common people of the society with the guidance of the experts, respects community beliefs & values, acts to preserve peace and harmony among the parties and resolves disputes with assistance of neutral persons.

Advantages of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR):

The practical advantages of ADR are proven all over the world and the importance of ADR is increasing day by bay.  Parties often seek to resolve their disputes through ADR proceeding. There are some potential advantages of using ADR are as follows:

1. Specific Settlement:

Any dispute settled by any from of ADR ends with harmony. In a trial, there is typically a winner and a loser. The loser is not likely to be happy, and even the winner may not be completely satisfied with the outcome. ADR can help the parties find win-win solutions and achieve their real goals.

2. Informal Procedure:

ADR process is less informal. It is often emphasized that ADR is informal process to dispute resolution compared to formal legal system. ADR process is informal in the sense that rules of procedure are flexible, without formal pleadings, extensive written documentation, or rules of evidence etc.

3. Speedy disposal of dispute:

ADR save time of the parties to the dispute. Since ADR follows informal procedure so the parties to the dispute can get there remedy earlier often in a matter of months, even weeks, while bringing a lawsuit to trial can take a year or more.

4. Cheap Process:

ADR follows informal procedure, ADR save money and help people of varying strata of the society to get remedy. Where as cases are resolved in ordinary court of law involve huge some of money initially attorney fees, court fee, and expert fees.

5. Access to Justice:

ADR significantly creates access to justice for such disadvantaged group of person who would not get justice in ordinary court of law. This is also evident in the international and regional instruments of human rights.

6. Assistance to Ordinary Legal System:

All over the world the ordinary court of law are facing terrible problems due to unlimited number of cases. ADR is an alternative step to help the ordinary court of law to dissolve dispute and it also supports and complements court reform.

7. Privacy:

Privacy is a basic human rights and the reasonable expectation of every person. People do not want to take the issue before the court easily because of a common mistake perception that good people do not go to the court. In ADR process the parties and there representative remain present strict privacy is tried to maintained under all circumstance.

Limitation of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR):

1. Legal Framework:

The main limitation of ADR is that it can not define, refine, establish and promote a legal framework. The promoters also never intended to do so.

2. Abuse of Human Rights:

In certain situations one party is able to dominate the other i.e. one is rich and other is poor, there is always a chance that the judges in ADR will favor the rich party rather the poor .Thus there is a chance of human rights.

3. Non-binding effect:

The settlement of dispute outside the court i.e. though ADR, parties has the chance go to the court with same cause of action or with appeal. ADR are not legally binding, making any award difficult to enforce.

4. No System of Precedent:

 It is not easy to predict the outcome of a dispute decided through ADR as there is no system of precedent.

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