Alternative Dispute Resolution
May 30, 2009
Good on-line resources on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) on the site of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). Good job.
Positive and negative aspects of using Arbitration as a way to resolve contractual disputes retained our attention.
In the video lecture by Ms. Catherine Kessedjian, an law professor in Paris and New York, an arbitrator and an experienced law professional, there are a lot of instructive points.
Some are quite counter intuitive. Our selection for the negative aspects:
- The arbitral procedure is NOT shorter than in a national court.
- The arbitral procedure is A LOT MORE EXPENSIVE than a national court. Notably, because in the national procedure the parties do not pay the judge. Also, the workload and the cost of the legal advisers is much higher since the Arbitrator “knows nothing”, unlike a national judge.
- A mistake with the choice of the arbitrator is possible and can be fatal: the appointed arbitrator may not understand the subject. Especially so, in the ad hoc arbitration.
- An arbitration court can not impose to the 3rd parties: for instance, can not order to
freeze a bank account. A national court can.