Adam Noakes (LLM '20), "Mandatory Early Mediation, A Vision For Civil Lawsuits Worldwide" -- Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution (forthcoming)

Pepperdine Caruso Law Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution alumnus Adam Noakes (LLM '20) will have his article, "Mandatory Early Mediation, A Vision For Civil Lawsuits Worldwide" (SSRN), published in Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution [36 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 3 (2020)]. The article advocates establishing a mandatory early mediation program with an easy opt-out for all civil lawsuits worldwide.

Abstract of "Mandatory Early Mediation, A Vision For Civil Lawsuits Worldwide"

Each year millions upon millions of civil lawsuits are filed worldwide. Court systems appear overworked, often having a significant backlog of cases that can take years to reach resolution. In addition, litigation costs are often prohibitive. This article advocates establishing a mandatory early mediation program with an easy opt-out for all civil lawsuits worldwide. Mandatory programs in the U.S. and Italy are examined within the article. The data suggests early mandatory mediation would likely increase access to justice, reduce costs (to litigants and court systems), conserve judicial and government resources, reduce time to final adjudication, increase satisfaction of the legal system, and promote effective and efficient case resolution. Each legal system is unique and additional research and scholarship is necessary to help develop and ensure successful implementation of early mandatory mediation programs, however, mandatory schemes should include the following three basic characteristics to be most successful: 1) the mandatory mediation requirement should occur early in the litigation process; 2) the mandatory mediation requirement should provide the first (introductory) session at little to no charge to the participants; and 3) the mandatory mediation requirement should provide for an easy opt-out by either party for any reason without repercussions or sanctions.