BEYOND COVID-19: THE FUTURE OF DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Among the many impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic are the fundamental changes it has wrought on the administration of justice, particularly the ways and means of resolving disputes.
However, unlike the individual, social and economic changes enforced due to COVID-19 – the majority of which are likely to be reversed as soon it is deemed safe to do so – many dispute resolution practitioners believe the pandemic-driven alterations to how courts resolve disputes should not be rolled back, the preference being for them to become standard practice.
“The most immediately obvious change to dispute resolution practice is the switch from people being physically present at meetings to doing things remotely,” says Mark W. Friedman, a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton. “That spans the entire range of our work, from internal meetings about cases, to conferring with clients, to court and arbitration hearings, and even to conferences and other professional gatherings.”
Other changes, however, are less obvious. “For example, since evidentiary hearings may be more challenging, arbitrators may be taking more seriously preliminary legal issues that can be decided without witness evidence,” explains Mr Friedman. “Procedural conferences that had previously been conducted by phone may now take place by video, arguably allowing for more connectivity.”
Across the globe, COVID-19 is transforming dispute resolution. In Denmark, courts have been encouraged to work outside normal hours. “The focus has been to resolve critical cases that require physical attendance and handle those that are non-critical, remotely,” says Andrew Poole, dispute resolution consultant at Gorrissen Federspiel. “Courts have been encouraged to use video technology, if suitable, in hearings to facilitate the participation of individuals.
Oct-Dec 2020 issue
Fraser Tennant