Alternative Dispute Resolution

The system for resolving legal disputes through the long, expensive and traumatic process of a court trial is not always the best method for resolving disputes. More and more people are turning to mediation, arbitration and other alternative avenues for dispute resolution.

Mediation is an informal, voluntary and confidential process of dispute resolution where a neutral third party assists or facilitates a resolution agreed to between the parties.

In Arbitration, the parties hire a person knowledgeable in the area of their dispute to listen to their evidence and render a decision to resolve their dispute.

With alternative dispute resolution services, the parties or the court can appoint a knowledgeable person to act as a Special Master to hear evidence and render a Report to the court which is then accepted in whole or in part by the trial Judge to resolve a dispute.

Another method used to resolve dispute without trial is that the parties will hire a knowledgeable person to render a formal Early Neutral Evaluation of their dispute, set forth in a written report to the parties which analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of their respective cases and states the evaluator's opinion about the probable outcome if the case goes to trial.

All of these methods are designed to bring about a resolution to legal disputes in a quicker, less expensive and far less traumatic fashion than a resolution through the traditional trial-verdict-appeal method. We are committed to engaging in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to resolve disputes whenever possible. Three of our attorneys are often hired to serve as mediators, arbitrators or special masters: James Ryan has served as a mediator in many Trust & Estate disputes; Charles L. Arnold has served as a mediator and arbitrator in Elder Law and Trust & Estate disputes; and James E. McDougall has served as a mediator, arbitrator and special master in numerous family law, elder law and civil disputes.

If you are in need of arbitration or dispute mediation services in the Phoenix area, you can give our offices a call at 602-277-2010 or email us at info@frgalaw.com.