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pay mediator fees, attorney’s fees, and costs of acquiring a
meeting room, the shorter duration of a mediation hearing leads
to lower overall costs to resolve the dispute.^163 Moreover, many
private organizations and state courts offer free mediation
services.^164 Once the parties reach a settlement, the terms are
memorialized in a signed writing and become an enforceable
legal contract.^165
- Arbitration
Like mediation, arbitration is confidential.^166 Unlike
mediation, however, arbitration is a more formal adjudicatory
process in which an impartial third party considers evidence
submitted by the parties to make a legally binding and
enforceable decision.^167 Before an arbitration hearing, parties can
jointly agree on an informal or formal discovery process.^168 In
general, evidential and procedural rules in arbitration are more
flexible than in litigation.^169 At the hearing, parties may present
evidence as in a court of law, including witness testimony and
REV. 513, 522–23 (2010) (discussing how, in a federal civil case, the pretrial
discovery process and motion practice can delay trial for more than two
years).
(^163) See FitzGibbon, supra note 158, at 717.
(^164) For example, the New York Peace Institute is a nonprofit organization
that offers free mediation services. See Facts About Mediation, N.Y. PEACE
INST., http://www.nypeace.org/mediation-services/ (last visited Apr. 6,
2013). The New York City Civil Court also offers free court-connected
mediation. See Resolving Your Case Through Mediation in Civil Court of the
City of New York, N.Y. STATE UNIFIED COURT SYS. (Mar. 16, 2010),
http://www.courts.state.ny.us/courts/nyc/civil/pdfs/mediation.pdf [hereinafter
Resolving Your Case].
(^165) See FitzGibbon, supra note 158, at 702.
(^166) Frederick L. Sullivan, Accepting Evolution in Workplace Justice: The
Need for Congress to Mandate Arbitration, 26 W. NEW ENG. L. REV. 281,
311 (2004).
(^167) RISKIN ET AL., supra note 152, at 369–70.
(^168) See ADR Frequently Asked Questions, JAMS, http://www.jams
adr.com/adr-faqs/ (last visited Apr. 6, 2013).
(^169) See Russell D. Feingold, Mandatory Arbitration: What Process Is
Due?, 39 HARV. J. ON LEGIS. 281, 283 (2002).