Interns, Shaksham Parajuli (centre) and Dean Cosgrove (bottom right), ADC Associates (Helen, Christelle and Isabella) & CEO (Deborah) Brian Wu "My internship has allowed me to pursue my interest in dispute resolution by contributing to the ADC's role in promoting ADR in Australia. I have developed my research and communication skills by getting involved in a range of tasks including writing articles and researching opportunities for the ADC to expand its ADR services." [...]

Stephano Salani I.  Introduction Negotiations and dispute resolution require quick thinking and strategic reactions to developing situations, dynamic relationships, and power shifting.  The mindset of a negotiator in such a dynamically evolving situation has been frequently defined in a binary manner.  A negotiator may be considered to take either a competitive/distributive approach or be considered to take a collaborative/integrative approach.[1]  Scholars have suggested that the determination of which approach to take should be governed by the relationship of the [...]

by Stephano Salani From left to right: Jeremy Gormly SC, Tom Howe QC, The Hon. Ruth McColl AO, Michael Kingston, Australian Government Solicitor On November 2021, the Australian Dispute Resolution Advisory Council Inc. (ADRAC) published its Final Report: Conciliation: connecting the dots. The report is the culmination of seven years of work. ADRAC’s research on conciliation in Australia was first published in its October 2019 Discussion Paper, Conciliation: a discussion paper, after almost three years of research. In the 2019 [...]

by Kaira Pinheiro Introduction Disputes Boards (‘DBs’) are permanent panels set up to accompany the performance of a contract, and assist in avoiding or overcoming disagreements and disputes throughout the contractual process.[1] DBs establish a process not only to avoid disputes before they arise, but also a further process for the resolution of those disputes after they arise.[2] DBs functions range from identifying disagreements and informally assisting parties to resolve such matters, as well as determining disputes through formal [...]

By Ayushi Thakur* As a carpenter uses all tools in their toolkit to complete a project successfully, a negotiator has a suite of skills and processes available to them for advancing negotiations to a successful conclusion. When COP26 formed in Glasgow to negotiate further climate action we watched the range of tools used. Would the organisers use the Indaba negotiation process, as they had done to reach the 2015 Paris Agreement, or would they try something else? COP26 did [...]

By Stephano Salani* A notable highlight of Arbitration Week was the final panel discussion: Arbitration and Dispute Resolution in the Space Sector. Panellists from Lipman Karas delved into the exciting topic of Australia’s emerging space industry, the unique nature of space sector disputes, and arbitration’s growing role in dispute resolution in this sector. The panel covered an array of issues such as industry developments, the frequency and types of disputes that arise, the range of issues space-related contracts should [...]

By Stephano Salani* Australian Arbitration Week 2021 flew by - beginning on Monday, 18 October with the International Arbitration Conference and finished with Arbitration and Dispute Resolution in the Space Sector on Friday, 22 October after covering numerous cutting-edge issues along the week. Some of the major themes that resonated throughout the week included issues arising from the obviously relevant COVID-19 pandemic as well as developing topics such as arbitration in environmental sectors, energy and renewable sectors, and changes [...]

As of October 6th 2021, 89% of New South Wales residents and 83% of Victorian residents have had their first COVID-19 vaccination.[1] With two of Australia’s most populous states scheduled to exit lockdown by December, face-to-face Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) sessions will once again be an option for many Australians. The question for practitioners is whether clients will return to traditional ADR post-lockdown, or is Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) here to stay? Our special rapporteur on the impact of COVID-19 explores [...]

The Hon. Justice Julie Ward 4th Annual ADR Address of the Supreme Court of NSW Rapporteur - Aaron Zou The Hon. Justice Julie Ward, Chief Judge of Equity in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, presented ADC’s 4th Annual ADR address of the Supreme Court of NSW last Thursday, 30th September. Having spent the majority of the year in lockdown and in virtual hearings, Justice Ward’s annual address was topically on the future of Online Dispute Resolution [...]