Disputes are normal.
Sometimes we don’t see eye-to-eye with other people on a whole range of issues – mostly we can agree to to disagree. However, when a dispute stop you achieving your goals, harms your relationships or health or damages your business it needs to be resolved.
All disputes happen in the context of a relationship – a commercial dispute is one where the primary purpose of the relationship is economic. Relationships of this kind include buyer-seller, employer-employee, principal-contractor, client-professional, company-shareholder, organisation-member and business-customer. We can help with these.
Disputes between family members, friends, housemates, neighbors and countries are not commercial even when they involve money. There are good people who can help you with these but we aren’t those people.
• decide that you can live with things staying the way they are – it might rankle but sometimes letting go is the least worst option
• negotiating and trying to find an outcome that works for everyone – this is always a good first step
• facilitative dispute resolution – processes like mediation or an Ombudsman where a neutral third-party will try to help you reach an agreement
• determinative dispute resolution – processes like arbitration, adjudication, courts and tribunals where a neutral third-party will impose a decision on the parties
What type of dispute resolution is best for you depends on the nature of the relationship and the dispute and may be constrained by legal circumstances like a contract or the industry you are operating in.
You shouldn’t – you should contact both of us. Your lawyer is expert in the law, we are expert in dispute resolution.
Your lawyer has capabilities that we don’t have. No the least of which is that they can give you legal advice and we can’t. Your lawyer is vital for helping you understand what your legal rights are in relation to the dispute and the wider relationship. In addition, if your dispute resolution method takes you to a court you would be well advised to have a lawyer represent you.
Our expertise lies in looking at the dispute in ways that go beyond who has what legal rights and how can they be enforced. We’re looking for outcomes that resolve the dispute and preserve the relationship – nothing ends a friendship like a Solicitor’s demand letter or a Statement of Claim.
It may be that your best option is litigation is your best option and, if so, you should follow your lawyer’s advice. However, if your best option is mediation, arbitration or adjudication, our advice can prove invaluable.
Start where we did – much of the material in this FAQ is adapted from the YOUR GUIDE TO DISPUTE RESOLUTION (© Commonwealth of Australia 2012 CC BY 3.0 AU).
After that, take a look at the information available from Resolution Institute.
Or contact us, we’re always happy to talk.
