Arb-med FAQ

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Arb-med FAQ

What is arb-med?

Arb-med is short for “arbitration-mediation”. Arb-med is a hybrid dispute resolution process that combines the benefits of arbitration and mediation, including speed, procedural flexibility, confidentiality, choice of decision maker, ease of access to the tribunal, continuity, finality, and enforceability of the outcome into one unified process.

The primary objective of arb-med is the informed good faith negotiation and settlement of the dispute by the parties, with the initial assistance and efficiency of the arbitrator’s information-gathering powers, in the context of a formal arbitration process that will immediately resume if the mediation that follows is not successful.

In addition, if the matter is able to be resolved at mediation, the parties may request the arbitral tribunal to record the terms of their settlement in an award on agreed terms which can then be enforced in the High Court as a judgment of that Court.

Arb-med allows parties to resolve their dispute in a manner that is private, efficient, flexible, cost effective, and certain. But arb-med provides the safety net (certainty) of a just, final and binding decision if mediation does not result in full settlement of the dispute.

If full settlement is not reached in mediation, the arbitrator who was acting as mediator will have been informed as to the issues in dispute and the facts of the case which can be carried over into the arbitration with potentially significant time and cost savings for the parties.

Arb-med is commonly used when parties want to try to resolve their dispute quickly and amicably through mediation, but want the certainty of a just, final and binding decision if they are unable to reach a settlement.

Arb-med is particularly useful in cases where important information may be held asymmetrically by the parties, for example, in relationship property disputes where one partner may have more knowledge of the relationship property they jointly own, where and how that property is held, and the value of that property.

The arb-med process is overseen by a neutral third party, who is (typically) the same person for both the arbitration and mediation stages. This allows for an efficient and streamlined process. If full settlement is not reached in mediation, the arbitrator who was acting as mediator will have been informed as to the issues in dispute and the facts of the case which can be carried over into the arbitration with potentially significant time and cost savings for the parties.

It is important to note that any arbitrator acting as a mediator may not communicate with the parties separately. The mediation process is restricted to only joint sessions with all parties present. This ensures the principles of natural justice are observed, and a just, final, and binding decision can be made if the mediation is unsuccessful and the arbitration is resumed.

Yes, if the mediation does not result in a full settlement of the dispute, the arbitrator’s decision on the dispute (called an award) is legally binding on the parties.

The ability to appeal the arbitration decision (called an award) in arb-med depends on the specific terms agreed upon by the parties. In general, however, arbitration awards are final and binding, and the ability to appeal an award is limited

The length of the arb-med process can vary depending on the complexity of the dispute and the willingness of the parties to reach a resolution.

Arb-med is generally quicker than traditional litigation or engaging in separate but successive arbitration and mediation processes.  The mediation phase can be adopted very early in the process, particularly if limited additional information is required to be provided/shared in advance of a joint mediation session. Most mediations are completed in one day. If a settlement is reached, that would be the end of the process unless an award on agreed terms was requested by both parties, but that can easily be dealt with by the mediator acting as the arbitrator in the day or days that follow. If a settlement is not reached, the arbitration process will immediately resume, but the parties will have the benefit of a much better understanding of the issues and the case they will have to answer in the arbitration.