Georgia Arbitration (Alternative Dispute Resolution)
Many people in the Atlanta area turn exclusively to the courts to resolve business disputes and overlook arbitration as a means of effective alternative dispute resolution. Arbitration can be an effective means of dispute resolution, especially for parties who desire a fast resolution on a complex issue. The Official Code of Georgia, which generally states the laws of Georgia, contains a section laying out the necessary procedures for arbitration in Georgia. This section is generally referred to as the Georgia Arbitration Code, and is located at O.C.G.A. §9-9-1, et seq.
Arbitration, though very similar to the court system, can provide parties involved in business disputes with some unique advantages. First, it is the parties who dictate how they want the arbitration to proceed by designing their own timelines. Unlike in the Georgia court system, where it typically takes at least a year (or sometimes much longer) for a case to proceed to trial, the parties to an arbitration can schedule a final arbitration hearing within a few months after initiating the arbitration process. This is why many business contracts specify that arbitration is the required form of dispute resolution if a conflict arises. The caveat to this faster resolution is that unlike the court system – which is funded by taxpayer dollars and where parties need only pay nominal filing fees – arbitration associations are typically private business enterprises that require the parties to pay for the time of the arbitrator, who typically bills at a rate of several hundred dollars per hour.
Another advantage to arbitration is that the parties can select an arbitrator who has specialized training or experience in a technical or specialized area of the law. This is in marked contrast to the court system where judges, though generally knowledgeable on the law, may not have any pertinent experience related to a complex business matter, such as construction, intellectual property or employment. When parties use the court system, it is also important to note that they have no say in which judge is ultimately appointed to oversee their cases, while in arbitration, the parties typically collaborate in choosing a specific arbitrator.
