COURT‐CONNECTED ADR—A TIME OF CRISIS, A TIME OF CHANGE

Abstract

The report, which is based on the conference titled The Future of Court ADR: Mediation and Beyond co‐sponsored by AFCC, RSI and Marquette and hosted by Marquette, examines the status of court ADR programs—both in the family context as well as the general, civil, one—and challenges faced by them, the primary challenge being the lack of appropriate institutional support needed to run high‐quality court ADR programs. The report attempts to help with cross‐fertilization between these at times disconnected groups, emphasizing new ADR options as they relate to the ever‐evolving use of the mediation process and other Hybrid ADR processes. The report outlines the conference participants' ideas for the future of court‐connected ADR.Key Points for the Family Court Community: The main challenge faced by court‐connected ADR programs is how to balance between efficiency, fairness and justice. Currently, the overall trend is to over‐emphasize efficiency at the expense of fairness and justice. ADR programs should include ADR interventions that maximize self‐determination but also provide other ADR interventions that might be more directive and potentially coercive but also more appropriate in some instances. Where self‐determination is diminished, whether within the ADR process itself or in the manner in which the parties enter into the ADR process, ADR programs and the courts that manage such programs have a duty to ensure that the ADR interventions provide for fairness protections and ensure a just result.