New guidance: Employers set to use alternative dispute resolution more

The Presidential Guidance highlights Acas ADR, judicial mediation, judicial assessment and dispute resolution appointments as potential ADR options.

Acas ADR can be asked for at any stage during legal proceedings, while judicial mediation can be entered into by confidential agreement between the parties and is used most often in longer cases of three or more days. A mediation judge will not, however, indicate each party’s prospects of winning. Judicial assessment is also entered into by agreement and is confidential, but on a judicial assessment, the judge will impartially evaluate each party’s prospects of winning and suggest remedies. An assessment can be used in any type of claim, however long and complex.

Dispute resolution appointments are a more recent option in which the presiding judge in existing proceedings can, after exchange of witness statements, require the parties to submit to an informed evaluation of the strength of their case, taking some two to three hours – although the parties cannot be forced to settle their claim. This is often appropriate for complex disputes heard over six days or more, such as many whistleblowing or discrimination claims.

There are three protocols in the appendices to the guidance, explaining how judicial mediation, judicial assessment and dispute resolution appointments work.

Operative date

• Now

Recommendation

• Employers should download the Presidential Guidance and protocols from the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary website and factor ADR options into their employment dispute strategies and processes.