The world of dispute resolution
 If you negotiate intensely yet without force, you can effectively resolve conflict yet
without harm to the
other.
~~ Shauna Ries, LCSW
Mediation and Arbitration are types or categories of dispute resolution commonly used in North America and in many regions around the world. Dispute or conflict resolution has deep historical roots beginning with tribal cultures in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. These categories and techniques have become more formalized as professionals seek to practice these techniques in the twentieth and twenty first centuries. IADR training focuses on the categories of mediation and arbitration which intersect with many other categories of dispute resolution such as negotiation and facilitation.
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The world of dispute resolution
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 Mediation and Arbitration
Historically, litigation, the formal process of settling civil disputes through the means of the judicial system, has been the dispute resolution process of choice in the United States. In this process, many people choose to hire lawyers for representation making litigation an expensive dispute resolution process. More and more, disputants are seeking what is refered to as Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes.
Mediation and arbitration are being employed as alternatives to litigation, providing unique opportunities for parties to resolve disputes while saving time and money. Indeed, a comparison of mediation, arbitration, and litigation highlights the advantages of the former in place of much more costly and risky court battles. IADR offers training in mediation and arbitration; however, there are very distinct differences between them.
The Profession of Mediation
Mediation is a formal process of negotiation which uses a third-party neutral (the mediator) who has limited or no authoritative decision-making power and works to:
- Facilitate communication between parties who are involved in a conflict or dispute.
- Help disputants arrive at a mutually acceptable solution to their conflict. establishes ground rules for the process
- Recognize the needs and wants of each party
- Assist the people involved to focus on workable solutions to the underlying issues of the dispute.
These discussions are usually conducted in a negotiation process called Interest-based or Principled Negotiation. Mediators tend to use varying approaches or orientations. Although IADR does not endorse one approach over another, the IADR method is largely one of stage mediation with a problem solving focus.
The Profession of Arbitration
 Arbitration is the private, judicial determination of a dispute, by an independent third party. Arbitration is used in a variety of settings from labor disputes to divorce settlements. There tend to be varying classifications of arbitration based on the setting in which it is used. The steps of formal arbitration are often linear and predictable.
In advance of the arbitration, the parties agree to be bound by the arbitrator's decision. Cases that are arbitrated are generally resolved faster than conventional lawsuits due to less bureaucracy and court congestion. In arbitration, witnesses are placed under oath and written evidence is submitted, but the technical rules of procedure followed by a court do not apply. An arbitration hearing may involve the use of an individual arbitrator or a tribunal. A tribunal may consist of any number of arbitrators though some legal systems insist on an odd number for obvious reasons of wishing to avoid a tie.
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