215.230.4900

Benefits of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Bucks County

Posted on August 28, 2013 by bwadmin

Reply

Whether court-appointed or by the choice of one or both parties, mediation and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) can help those involved with contract problems resolve legal disputes in a way that can end up being fair to both sides. At a time when many contracts and legally binding documents require it as the first or only step for parties to solve any problems, it can be easy to forget that ADR provides many benefits as an alternative to litigation in Bucks County.

When It is Required as a First Step

Many contracts now require both parties to engage in mediation and/or arbitration before, or in many cases instead of, any other legal actions. When these documents require proceedings to take place in Pennsylvania, then Bucks County alternate dispute resolution practitioners can help would-be litigants come to a settlement or a compromise. The reasons for including an arbitration clause usually revolve around cost, although some companies also use it to limit the possibility of class action lawsuits which can be costly for defendants while providing relatively small settlements for any plaintiffs.

Examining Mediation Clauses in Contracts

Posted on July 25, 2012 by bwadmin

2

Most lawyers reject, instinctively, mediation clauses in contracts. We believe that the well-settled rules of contract law as augmented by the applicable rules of procedure are the sure and safe means to fully protect a client when a contract goes bad and litigation becomes inevitable.

Unlike arbitration, mediation is non-binding, until its end product – a settlement agreement is reached. Only then does it become binding and enforceable. It is that uncertainty, its unbinding attributes, which causes attorneys to be hesitant, if not hostile, to the mediation process. This includes the attorneys in Doylestown at Benner & Wild.

Simplistically, mediation is structured negotiation. Its goal is to help parties resolve that dispute. Litigation has the same goal. The difference is that litigation represents the failure of negotiation because the litigants effectively admit that they cannot agree to a means to settle their differences and look to a judge and/or jury to settle the case for them.