29 August 2023
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Avoiding Tribunal hearings | New guidance on Alternative Dispute Resolution

To The Point
 

New Guidance on the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) has been published by the President of the Employment Tribunals (England and Wales only). It discusses four types of ADR available with the aim of saving costs (to both the parties and the Tribunal) and reducing the backlog in the Tribunal system.

ADR in this context refers to the confidential processes available to parties engaged in employment litigation to resolve their disputes without the need for a full judicial hearing.  

We discuss the four forms of ADR below:

1. ACAS Conciliation
2. Judicial Mediation
3. Judicial Assessment
4. Dispute Resolution Appointment

It is worth keeping in mind that the four forms of ADR are not exclusive of one another. For example, a judicial assessment could lead to a judicial mediation, and a dispute resolution appointment may be followed by a judicial mediation. And of course, ACAS discussions can be conducted in parallel. 

Our helpful short-form table setting out the key information can be found here.

Next steps

The Presidential Guidance is worth a read in full for those bringing or responding to claims in the Tribunal. You can access it here.

Our Employment team deal with litigation and ADR on a daily basis and would be delighted to discuss any of the issues raised in this article with you. 

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