What policies do arbitrators use for party cancellations? Do they differ for certain types of cases (e.g., commercial, construction, employment, international)?  What is a reasonable cancellation fee time period, if any?

What are your thoughts?

Have you ever heard a powerful and convincing analogy made by counsel during an arbitration proceeding? If yes, please explain why it was an effective analogy. What are the elements of a strong analogy in such proceedings?

What are your thoughts?

What is the best way for an arbitrator to raise issues of civility (or lack thereof) on the tribunal? If two arbitrators have issues with the third? When should the problem be raised with the administering arbitral institution?  What if it is an ad hoc arbitration? 

What are your thoughts? 

Should there be limitations on arbitrators handling cases with repeat filers (e.g., disputes between same employer v. different employees or same company v. different vendors)? Does disclosure remedy perceived conflicts of interest, or in the alternative, should there be a cap on the number of cases an arbitrator can handle with the repeat filer? If a cap, what is the best avenue to implement -- e.g., within rules of arbitrator ethics or institutional limitations?

What are your thoughts? 

In a parallel track arbitration-mediation, what kinds of communications or coordination are appropriate, if any, between the arbitrator and mediator, while recognizing that confidential mediation discussions should not be disclosed? What can the parties or the arbitrator do to assist the mediator in scheduling and structuring mediation sessions to optimize the chances of a successful settlement? Should parallel track arbitration-mediations be encouraged by arbitral institutions or arbitrators? Should they be the norm?

What are your thoughts? 

Well before the time that the proof in an arbitration is closed, how can counsel help the Tribunal make a well-informed award? What are the best practices? What should be avoided?

What are your thoughts?

What are the major pitfalls with respect to handling multi-party and multi-contract arbitration disputes? What are the best practices for a Tribunal facing these type of disputes? What should the Tribunal and parties avoid doing?

What are your thoughts?

Some ADR institutions provide a certain percentage of diverse candidates on all arbitration lists. What percentage of diverse candidates do you think is the correct percentage and why? How should diversity be defined in the ADR space? 

What are your thoughts?

How do we spark a grassroots movement that encourages the public to choose dispute resolution first—before turning to the courtroom—and why is this important?

What are your thoughts? 

(Guest post by Gary Doernhoefer / ADR Notable)

An arbitrator is presiding over an arbitration in which one side is represented by attorneys from  “big law” firm. Those attorneys work out of the New York office.  “Big law” firm is sponsoring an in-person CLE of interest to the arbitrator. It will take place in the New York offices while the hearing is ongoing.  May the arbitrator attend that CLE? Should he/she? Would the answers be different if the CLE took place in a different city office from the location from which the attorneys work? If the arbitrator decides to attend, should he/she first make a disclosure to the parties in the arbitration of his upcoming attendance?

What are your thoughts?