Mediation vs Arbitration: What is the Difference?

Mediation vs Arbitration

Mediation and arbitration are both found within the alternative dispute resolution sphere because they offer ways to resolve disputes outside of the traditional litigation process.  However, the procedures are very different.  Each system presents its own benefits and challenges, and neither system is truly superior to the other.  Understanding how and when to use each …

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Fairness and Neutrality in Mediation

Fairness and Neutrality

Allen Brent smirked across the negotiating table at Sheila. “You know, Ms. Baker, you haven’t got a snowball’s chance of winning. I’m authorized to offer you three months’ salary and a waiver of costs in return for complete dismissal, No more.” “Three months! That’s unfair. Renee got a year! And she didn’t have my medical …

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Transformative Moments in Commercial Mediation

Transformative Moments in Commercial Mediation

Mediation is a dynamic process. This can mean stepping back, leaning out, and adopting a process that empowers the parties to set their own agenda and seek outcomes that may greatly vary from the objectives set forth in the briefs by lawyers who are trained as advocates more than problem-solvers. In disputes where distributive bargaining …

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Making The Most of Appellate Mediation Opportunities

Appellate Mediation

I’ve been doing appellate mediation since the program began, and I’ve been genuinely surprised by the success rate. At the program’s inception, I anticipated a significantly lower success rate than I’ve had with non-appellate mediations — but it’s about 70%, which isn’t much lower than my rate for other matters. While my approach to conducting …

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Defining Partiality

Defining Partiality

How to define partiality? Within the alternative dispute resolution sphere, the word partiality, or more commonly impartiality, is used often, but for some new to the field, it can be difficult to define.  I t often feels like a type of action that would normally be easily identifiable, but in the world of alternative dispute …

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Bad Fences Make Bad Neighbors

Bad Fences Make Bad Neighbors

By Dan Simon “They’re just sore losers,” Myrna said. She had called me to ask whether I’d mediate between her and her neighbors, who were complaining about a fence she’d built and various other things. She’d won in arbitration, but the Smiths didn’t like the arbitrator’s decision, so they sued her in state court. The …

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How to Fire an Employee without Getting Sued

Fire an Employee - ADR Times

By Eric M. Epstein, Esq. I’ve practiced employment law for more than 35 years, representing both employees and employers. I‘ve also been selected as an Arbitrator in more than 50 employment arbitrations. As a result of this experience, I have come to recognize common factors that often precipitate wrongful termination cases.  While there’s no way …

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Odds of Winning Summary Judgment

Odds of winning summary judgment

The cost of moving, the odds of winning, and the risks of losing. Summary judgment is a pre-trial, usually late-discovery or post-discovery motion in which the moving party or parties seek a ruling that the admissible evidence shows there is “no triable issue of material fact” in dispute, judgment, and therefore no reason for a …

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Personal Injury Case Checklist

Personal Injury Case Checklist

What is a personal injury case? A personal injury claim does not require physical injuries. Personal injury refers to a defendant’s failure to exercise care in a way that results in injury to another person or their property.  Have you been involved in an accident? Follow the personal injury checklists below. They will help you …

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Consumer Arbitration

Consumer Arbitration

For many consumers in the United States, buying a product or service that does not work out could result in a person wondering how consumer arbitration works.  For many years, courts have upheld forcing disputes into arbitration when a consumer contract, which a consumer often signs and accepts simply by purchasing an item, designates that …

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