I use this form to make disclosures in AAA-administered arbitrations and mediations. I use a substantially similar form in private or court-annexed mediations and arbitrations and arbitrations administered by FINRA DR. Phil Cutler March 2013 Arbitrator [Mediator] Disclosures of Philip E. Cutler Consistent with the [CODE OF ETHICS FOR ARBITRATORS IN COMMERCIAL DISPUTES (AAA and ABA), the Disclosure Guidelines for…
Private Arbitration Agreement
While arbitration is a recognized dispute resolution process – particularly in the business-to-business context – it is fundamentally a creature of contractual agreement among the parties and a written agreement to arbitrate is required. See, e.g., RCW 7.04A.060. The agreement to arbitrate may be entered into pre-dispute or after a dispute has arisen. The following presumes that the parties did not agree to arbitration in their original dealings but, now that a dispute has arisen, have decided to use arbitration – rather than the courts – to resolve it. As arbitration is contractual, it is vitally important that all necessary parties sign the agreement to arbitrate, as only parties will be bound by the result. Either pre-dispute or post-dispute the parties have a choice: arbitrate using the services of a neutral administering organization that appoints the arbitrator(s) and manages the process, or privately, on an ad hoc basis, with the parties or the arbitrator(s) managing the process. Both scenarios are addressed in the following materials. As with drafting pre-dispute dispute resolution clauses, it is vitally important that counsel understand the arbitration process and craft a clause that sets up an appropriate framework for resolving the dispute.
USAGE NOTE: I use an agreement like this in all private mediations. Private Mediation Agreement
USAGE NOTES: I use this form to make disclosures in AAA-administered arbitrations. I use a substantially similar form in private arbitrations and arbitrations administered by FINRA DR. Arbitrator Disclosure Template
USAGE NOTE: I commonly attach an exhibit like this to subpoenas (either for discovery of for the Hearing) I issue to third-parties in AAA-administered arbitrations. I may use a similar form in NASD-administered arbitrations and in private arbitrations. Enforcement of an arbitrator-issued subpoena to a third-party is the province of the courts, not the arbitrator. Exhibit to Third-Party Subpoenas
Below is my suggested format for an agreed mediation plan to be filed in those King County cases slected for the Early Mediation Pilot Program. A Word version is available here: Agreed Mediation Plan ****************************** SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON FOR KING COUNTY CAPTION AGREED MEDIATION PLAN COME NOW the parties to this case, by and through their attorneys of record,…
USAGE NOTE: The below represents the general form and content of the order I normally enter in AAA-administered arbitrations – where I am the sole arbitrator – following the initial preliminary hearing with the parties/counsel. It should be read in conjunction with the agenda letter and agenda I send out prior to the initial preliminary hearing. I use a substantially…
USAGE NOTE: I ask all persons who participate in a private mediation (whether in person or by telephone) to sign a document such as the below. I will provide a copy of the fully signed agreement to all participants. Mediation Confidentiality Agreement