Mediate Michigan

Parties in legal matters ranging from divorce and child custody to business contracts are increasingly opting for alternative dispute resolution to settle their differences. Proponents of this model note that conflicts can be settled more quickly and amicably — especially important when children are involved — but also in a way that gives both parties more control over the outcome, and at far less cost.

A judgment of the court — whether on a divorce settlement, child custody, breach of contract, or ownership of a business — is final. And that can be a frightening thought for parties on both sides of a dispute.

“You’re handing these issues over to a third party who, in the best of circumstances, is going to have a day or two in trial to understand all the aspects of a business that may have been going on for 100 years or a marriage that has gone on for 30 years,” said Carla Newton, an attorney with Robinson Donovan, P.C. in Springfield.

“No matter how studious or attentive or learned the judge may be,” she added, “he doesn’t understand as much as the parties themselves about all the details and nuances of the needs of a child or the management of a business. When you use alternative dispute resolution, you’re making your own determination how the issues are going to be resolved.”

Alternative dispute resolution, or ADR, is a growing niche in the legal world that bypasses litigation before a judge and instead encourages parties to work out issues themselves, typically with the help of one or more neutral parties.

via BusinessWest.