Handbook

Legal education commonly focuses on the litigation process, case law, and the role of the courts as providers of justice. This fosters the assumption that litigation, or legal advice predicting the outcome of litigation, is the normal method of resolving disputes. In fact only a small proportion of disputes are resolved by litigation Instead, there is a growing dissatisfaction with the cost, speed and adversarial character of litigation, and a corresponding interest in alternative forms of dispute resolution. This course examines the legal and policy context of dispute resolution, and surveys and critiques a range of nonadversarial approaches to contemporary legal practice.

Main Topics

• Dispute resolution, and non-adversarial justice in modern legal practice;
• Understanding and analysing conflict;
• The dispute management continuum and the selection of dispute resolution methods;
• Overview of the primary dispute resolution processes, legal controversies and policy issues;
• Approaches to nonadversarial justice, such as restorative justice and collaborative practice;
• Professionalism, quality and regulation in contemporary practice.