UK: Arbitration and ADR in employment disputes

The Employment Lawyers' Association (ELA)  has established an Arbitration and ADR Group to consider the level of interest in arbitration to resolve employment disputes and the scope for its greater use in the future, along with early neutral evaluation, mediation and other forms of ADR.

The working group, established by the ELA's Legislative & Policy Committeee,  is co-chaired by Peter Frost (Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills) and Paul Goulding QC (Blackstone Chambers). The group's terms of reference are:

1.    To explore the scope for the greater use of arbitration and ADR (including early neutral evaluation and mediation) as a means of resolving employment disputes.

2.   To consider taking steps to facilitate the greater use of arbitration and ADR in employment disputes (including drafting standard arbitration rules for employment claims).

3.   To liaise with other professional associations of lawyers regarding the use of arbitration and ADR in employment disputes (including the European Employment Lawyers Association, the International Bar Association, and the American Bar Association).

4.   To report to the ELA's Management Committee and members on the work of the workking group, and recommend training and other steps to encourage and facilitate greater use of arbitration and ADR in employment disputes.  

We will report on developments from the working group  in due course,   For background on the current use of mediation in employment disputes, see our ADR Practical Guide: Mediating employment and workplace disputes.