Benefits of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) gives parties in dispute the opportunity to work through disputed issues with the help of a neutral third party. It is generally faster and less expensive than going to court.

When used appropriately, ADR can:

• Save a lot of time by allowing resolution in weeks or months, compared to court, which can take years.
• Save a lot of money, including fees for lawyers and experts, and work time lost.
• Put the parties in control (instead of their lawyers or the court) by giving them an opportunity to tell their side of the story and have a say in the final decision.
• Focus on the issues that are important to the people in dispute instead of just their legal rights and obligations
• Help the people involved come up with flexible and creative options by exploring what each of them wants to achieve and why.
• Preserve relationships by helping people co-operate instead of creating one winner and one loser.
• Produce good results, for example settlement rates of up to 85%.
• Reduce stress from court appearances, time and cost.
• Keep private disputes private - only people who are invited can attend an ADR session, unlike court, where the proceedings are usually on the public record and others, including the media, can attend.
• Lead to more flexible remedies than court, for example by making agreements that a court could not enforce or order (for example a change in the policy or practice of a business).
• Be satisfying to the participants, who often report a high degree of satisfaction with ADR processes.
• Give more people access to justice, because people who cannot afford court or legal fees can still access a dispute resolution mechanism.