Focus ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
ADR has lost its ‘alternative’ way
Let’s return to the ‘win/win’ formula from the ‘mostly okay/mostly okay’
Linda Ippolito
What happened to the “alternative” in “alterna- tive dispute resolution?”
Even the promise of collaborative family practice and circle
processes in criminal and youth
justice are at risk of institutionalization and the formulaic application that follows.
After post-graduate studies in
ADR and now nearing the end of
a PhD in conflict resolution, I
have come to the conclusion—
without taking away the good
work of so many of my colleagues—that, at best, what we
are practising within the legal
profession is “PDR” — parallel dispute resolution. It is certainly not
“alternative,” and that is a real pity.
We have “normalized” ADR,
made it marketable, accessible
and understandable to our clients
as an “alternative” to court. We
have recast it in our own image,
adapted it to our mindset and for
our purposes rather than
expanding ourselves outward to
meet it. Instead of taking the
opportunity to open ourselves up
to the larger world of conflict
resolution, we have taken these
practices and adapted them to fit
into the legal box. And thus, it has
become PDR. It has been institutionalized and formularized within
ERIC1513 / DREAMSTIME.COM
the profession, and annexed by the
courts as a form of triage and way
to lessen the burden of an ever-expanding docket.
But judges, retired judges and
lawyers are not, by default, compe-
tent ADR practitioners. Unless we
have received specific training—
and not just a weekend course—
we have limited competencies in
this area. ADR-related courses
have only recently appeared in law
school curricula; veteran lawyers
have received whatever ADR edu-
cation we have by way of continu-
ing education, seminars, or osmo-
sis. Sadly, this does not equate to
the necessary in-depth knowledge
of conflict resolution and analysis
needed to practice ADR other
than in the most rudimentary way.
Chartered Arbitrators
Chartered Mediators
Over 1,800 Members across Canada
Find a Professional
1-877-475-4353
