The Hon. Christopher Finlayson QC’s insights as the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations “Many of the disputes arise because of personality differences and poor interpersonal relationships. I often quote former Northern Ireland Secretary Willy Whitelaw who would lament about meeting Catholics and Protestants in Belfast. He concluded some of them couldn’t even agree on what day it was.” With humorous and insightful commentary from his experience as the former Attorney General of New Zealand and Minister for Treaty of [...]

Innovation in Cross-cultural Dispute Resolution The ADC’s First Nations Panel was launched in Sydney on 10 August 2018. In celebration of the new Panel, we were honoured by the Welcome to Country extended by Nathan Moran, CEO, Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council. To mark the Panel’s launch and its significance, Aboriginal Elder and a Board Member of Deerubbin Local Aboriginal Land Council, Graham Davis-King, also generously extended his congratulations and engaged attendees in song and ceremony. Mr Moran later presented [...]

Professor Peta Spender, Deputy Dean of ANU Law School Statistically, more people will go to their health or welfare advisers than a private lawyer for legal advice.1 As Professor Peta Spender, Deputy Dean of ANU Law School, pointed out in her presentation at ADC’s Innovate, Mediate and Thrive! Symposium, this certainly raises doubts about the accessibility of the civil justice system currently. Highlighting a number of key innovations in the civil ADR space, Professor Spender’s presentation left no doubts as [...]

  The Australian Disputes Centre announces the launch of its First Nations’ Mediation Panel. “This Panel of specialist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dispute resolvers builds on ADC’s work within the community and brings additional focus and resources to the significant opportunities for culturally appropriate dispute resolution” says CEO, Deborah Lockhart. In assisting disputing parties to resolve their issues, the Australian Disputes Centre has been appointing arbitrators, mediators and experts from its independent Panels over many decades, and more recently [...]

The Global Data Trends and Regional Differences preliminary report from the Global Pound Conference (GPC) Series has something to say about Australia: it’s ripe for an alternative dispute resolution revolution. The report drew input from a global cast of stakeholders in international dispute resolution. In the aggregate, its results were not surprising, highlighting a global focus on efficiency, collaboration, and pre-dispute and mixed-mode dispute resolution protocols. Within the report, Oceania, consisting of Australia and New Zealand, stood out. The report [...]

Back to the Future of Cross-Border Contracts: What 60 years of the New York Convention means for the commerce of today and the conflicts of tomorrow. The New York Convention is a global instrument, but its effects are felt on a local level, and its scope of operation is defined by the flows of international trade. ACICA’s Symposium on Underwriting Cross-Border Contracts, celebrated the New York Convention’s 60th birthday by addressing the domestic and international role of the Convention. The [...]

  Dear Friends and Colleagues, I would like to add the voice of the Australian Disputes Centre to the many tributes made to Sir Laurence Street over the past week. After a stellar legal career, Sir Laurence opted to use his knowledge of the law, his connections and his authority to help the early years of ADR in this country. What is now a commonplace approach to the management of commercial disputes, was at the time regarded as revolutionary, and [...]

by Judge Kevin S Burke Download the full Suggestion HERE

The Hon. Justice Robert McClelland 8 February 2018 Firstly I’d like to begin by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of the land on which we meet today. I would also like to pay my respects to Elders past and present. Secondly, I would like to thank the ADC for inviting me to speak here today on the topic of reasonableness and how reasonableness is a fundamental aspect of a lawyers’ duty to the court and the administration of justice. Speaking at [...]

The Hon. Chief Justice Wayne Martin I am greatly honoured to have been invited to give the inaugural annual ADR address, which I understand is to be presented annually by the Australian Disputes Centre. I thank Deborah Lockhart, the CEO of the Centre, and her team, for the considerable effort that they have put into the organisation of this event. The national approach and operation of the Centre is evident in its choice of Perth as the venue for this [...]