Online ADR 101

You will learn the concept of ADR and its evolution from ancient roots to modern global practice.

How to design ADR processes that are flexible, culturally attuned, and enforceable, with clear stakeholder buy-in?

Arbitration offers a private, expert-led alternative to litigation, with variants like high-low and baseball arbitration enabling risk control. Collaborative arbitration offers a promising alternative for disputes where efficiency, cost control, and relationship preservation are priorities. Learn how to design and use arbitration variants to unlock the power of arbitration.

In this lesson, you will acquire key insights into how best to navigate construction adjudication process being a mandatory interim step before arbitration and upcoming changes in Hong Kong (2025).

Expert Determination offers a confidential, flexible and tailored approach to technical dispute such as Intellectual Property (IP) dispute and often results in focused outcomes. Experts decide only on the specific technical/financial issue (e.g., "What is the fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory ('FRAND') rate for this patent?").

An Ombudsperson is a neutral, independent, and confidential resource that helps resolve disputes informally. Originating in Scandinavia, Ombudspersons, as Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes nowadays are commonly found in organizations, governments, universities, and corporations.

The Med-Arb/Arb-Med and Arb-Med-Arb processes can be powerful hybrid ADR processes, particularly for international businesses seeking efficient, enforceable outcomes. It encourages amicable settlements while providing a legal safety net through arbitration. 

Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) helps parties evaluate strengths and weaknesses and encourages settlement. It is particularly useful when parties need an objective reality check early in the court or arbitration proceedings.

Mediation enables the parties to resume, or sometimes to begin, negotiations. The presence of a mediator changes the dynamics of the negotiation. The mediator brings negotiating, problem-solving and communication skills to the process, and deploys them from a position of independence and neutrality, making progress possible.

An Executive Tribunal or Mini-trial is a structured ADR dispute resolution process where senior executives from opposing parties, assisted by a neutral advisor, hear summarized arguments and then negotiate a settlement.

Conciliation is a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) where a neutral third party, called a conciliator, facilitates communication, identifies issues, and proposes solutions to help the parties resolve their conflict amicably.

Interest-based negotiation transforms conflicts into opportunities for joint problem-solving. While it demands more effort than positional haggling, it leads to stronger agreements and preserved relationships.