Seeking to resolve personal or business related disputes through a time and cost-effective process?

In the present article, we are going to provide a general insight about the various alternative dispute resolution processes that could be invoked by the parties in any dispute that may arise among them. going through a dispute or conflict.

Despite the fact that the majority business owners tend to resort to court to resolve their disputes, such impulsive action could be due to the lack of awareness and trust between the disputing parties about other ways to do so. However, there exists a more time and cost-effective process which can be referred to as “Alternative Dispute Resolution”. Through this process, the disputing parties can attain their rights through cost and time effectively. 

The legal attorney of the disputing parties plays an important role in each of the following aspects of the dispute resolution method:

1.    Avoidance: It’s applicable when there is a delay or default from one party in fulfilling some of the contractual obligations. In this case, the legal attorney will provide his client with a legal opinion about the legality or illegality of such delay or default according to the circumstances of each case and therefore guide him to the best approach to resolve the matter which could be either by proceeding with a legal action or by avoiding any conflict as the case may be. In this respect, we highly recommend people to consult their lawyers regularly before they take any action which might weaken their positions in the future.

2.    Negotiation: It’s applicable when the “parties themselves” try to negotiate their perspective in order to reach an amicable settlement based on the recommendation of their legal attorney; As in some cases, the disputing parties prefer not to interfere their legal department into the dispute to keep it simple. Thus, this latter will guide them from the background on how to conduct the negotiation meeting based on their rights.

3.    Mediation: It’s applicable when the parties failed to reach any progress in their negotiations. Thus, they resort to a “third party” to assist them with the most difficult aspects to close the deal-making from an expertise perspective as he will generally be more skilled in reconciling divergent views and achieving agreement on the way forward. By asking the legal attorney to play the role of a mediator to resolve the matter, the client must trust his legal attorney that he will reserve his rights and interest at all times by reaching a win-win situation.

4.    Arbitration: It’s applicable when both parties agree in writing, either in their original contract or in an arbitration contract, to settle the dispute that may arise out of the contract by arbitration. In this case, a “third party” will have the power to decide the dispute by rendering an arbitral award that shall have res-judicata effect. An exequatur shall be obtained accordingly to proceed with the execution of such award. In other words, the arbitral award will have the same effect as a judicial judgment and will not be subject in principle to any appeal unless otherwise agreed. In this aspect, the legal attorney will play the same role as in the court but before a private party and with more flexible procedures.

5.    Litigation: It’s the traditional way adapted by the parties in which they submit their dispute to the competent court to decide it judicially which is often the longest process.

6.    Power: It’s applicable when one party is stronger than the other party in terms of contract and able to force his decision over the latter according to their relationship. In this case, the legal attorney will show that party his power according to the applicable law and the terms of the contract.

After enumerating the 6 aspects of dispute resolution along with a short brief of each of them, We would like to draw the attention of the reader that in case a disputing party opts to resolve a conflict through an alternative dispute resolving process, they must be fully aware of their rights and obligations when resolving a dispute. This will ensure the disputing parties retain their full legal rights.

In this regard, the lawyer must ensure that their clients rights and interests are a top priority. This is due to the fact that the lawyer plays a major role in demonstrating and highlighting the recommended strategy to overcome any dispute that is faced by their client. .

In this article, we would like to highlight the process of “Mediation”, which holds a great deal of advantages, such as: 

-  the disputing parties save money: as they are exempted from paying the court fees as well as they pay lower legal fees for the attorney due to the shortness of process of settlement in comparison with the fees during the court proceedings.

- the disputing parties could reach their rights more time effectively:  as the saying goes “Time is money”. For this reason, it would more likely be considered as a loss for one party in some circumstances in the event of getting paid after one year or more irrespective of being the winning party.

-the disputing parties would avoid the possibility of unenforceability of the judgments due to the absence of any assets by that time.

-The disputing parties would avoid draining their energy and time by the court proceedings.

-The disputing parties would be able to maintain their business relationship between each other as well as with other business entities which would maintain their reputation in the market. In this regard, we would say that any individual or business entity is susceptible to go through ups and down during their business and that should not lead to consider any default in the performance of contractual obligations as a final penalty.

However, it is important to know that the best approach to resolve a dispute shall be determined on case-by-case along with the good faith of the disputing parties.

Furthermore, it’s worth mentioning that according to some surveys conducted in UK, only 4% of the disputes are settled by litigation whereas the remaining are settled by alternative dispute resolution processes.

In conclusion, the lawyers must look for a long-term relationship with their clients, that’s why it is his duty to advise the clients on the best approach that ensures their satisfaction and achieve the best possible outcome.