Dispute Resolution Section

Letter to COSAC on Proposed Amendments to Rule 8.3
September 2019: This letter provides the Section’s recommendations regarding certain amendments proposed by the NYSBA Committee on Standards of Attorney Conduct (COSAC) to Rule 8.3 of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct. In particular, we recommend that the commentary expressly state that the rule does not affect the obligation of a mediator to maintain the confidentiality of mediation proceedings.

Letter to NYS Courts re: Presumptive ADR Initiative
August 2019: This letter offers the Executive Committee’s considered suggestions and recommendations regarding the New York State Unified Court Systems’ Presumptive ADR Initiative, which was announced on May 14, 2019 by Chief Judge Janet DiFiore and Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks. The letter was limited to the implementation of presumptive mediation, and among the subjects we addressed are the need for competent, well trained mediators; informing parties about mediation and other relevant court-annexed mediation programs; the need to ensure that mediators are properly compensated; selection of court-appointed mediators; and collection of data on program outcomes.

Letter to COSAC on Proposed Amendments to Rules 2.4 and 7.2
July 2019: This letter provides the Section’s recommendations regarding certain amendments proposed by the NYSBA Committee on Standards of Attorney Conduct (COSAC) to Rules 2.4 and 7.2 of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct. In particular, we recommend clarifications to the respective commentaries in light of the operation of the mediation privilege and the designation of arbitrators and mediators as experienced in the ADR field by organizations such as the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, the Center for Effective Dispute Resolution, and the International Mediation Institute.

Report on Pre-Dispute Arbitration of Employment Claims
June 2019: This report describes the characteristics of employment arbitration and the relevant legislation and resolutions, discusses both the advantages and disadvantages of arbitrating employment claims relative to court litigation, and considers ways to resolve or mitigate the concerns that have been raised.

New York Law in International Matters
The increasingly global business community requires accurate and comprehensive information on choice of laws, procedures and legal systems to govern agreements, selection of the best forum in which to resolve their disputes, and the most efficient and equitable means of that dispute resolution. New York, as a global financial and commercial capital, plays a critical role in all these choices.

Report on the Dodd-Frank Act
April 2011, The Section approved comments to be submitted to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau with respect to the study of arbitration mandated by the Dodd Frank Act. The Section takes no position as to the appropriate treatment of consumer disputes, but strongly supports a thorough examination of dispute resolution processes to ensure that they are in the public interest and fair to consumers. The Section’s comments identify issues that it is urged should be considered by the Bureau in its study.

Report on the Uniform Collaborative Law Act
January 2011: The Dispute Resolution Section of the New York State Bar Association (“NYSBA”) submits this Report on the Uniform Collaborative Law Act and Uniform Collaborative Law Rules (referred to herein collectively as the “UCLA”) promulgated by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (“NCCUSL”) for the purpose of standardizing for those states choosing to adopt it the form of dispute resolution known as Collaborative Law.

Through the Eyes of New York Litigators
The Mediation Committee of the State Bar Dispute Resolution Section and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee of the New York City Bar surveyed New York civil itigators to explore their views on mediation.

Guidelines for the Arbitrator’s Conduct of the Pre-Hearing Phase of International Arbitrations
November 2010: International Arbitration is a substantial practice in New York. Many international contracts provide for applicability of New York law, and such contracts often specify New York as a venue for international arbitration. However, there has been concern in recent years that the choice of New York as the site of an international arbitration might prompt the arbitral tribunal to depart from normal international practice by imposing American style discovery on the parties. It is the view of the international arbitration bar in New York that these concerns are not justified.

Final Report on Mediator Quality 
May 2010: This report examines the issue of mediator quality/credentialing and makes recommendations for specific action steps for adoption by the Section.

Report on the Arbitration Fairness Act 
April 2009: The Dispute Resolution Section of the New York State Bar Association (“the DR Section”) urges Congress to carefully review arbitration bills introduced in Congress to ensure that they do not interfere with general commercial arbitration. This most particularly applies in the international context where arbitration is often the only practicable choice for dispute resolution.

Report on Arbitration Discovery in Domestic Commercial Cases 
April 2009: As discovery proceedings have exploded in civil actions in the United States, there has been a trend to inject into arbitration expensive elements that had traditionally been reserved for litigation — interrogatories; requests to admit; dispositive motions; lengthy depositions; and massive requests for documents, including electronic data. This has particularly been the case as the use of arbitration has grown for the largest, most complex commercial cases.