Alternative Dispute Resolutions
Alternative Dispute Resolutions
Sometimes the best legal outcomes mean finding alternative dispute resolutions to resolve our clients’ cases. Our litigation attorneys have deep experience in the courtroom, as well as helping our clients resolve their disputes through arbitration and mediation.
Arbitration
Arbitration is an alternative to resolving a dispute in court with a judge or a jury – and can only happen when both parties agree to this process. We have represented clients before arbitrators in a variety of legal disputes. This broad experience provides in-depth legal support from attorneys you can depend on to thoughtfully and thoroughly guide you.
Mediation
When appropriate, we also help our clients with mediation – a widely used method for resolving disputes without going to trial. Mediation is a voluntary process that uses a trained and neutral third party to facilitate negotiations in order to resolve disputes and foster continued settlement discussions. The ultimate goal is to reach a result that both parties agree upon and sign in a settlement agreement. Whatever your legal goals or disputes, we’re ready to support your litigation needs and success from day one.
- Business Litigation
- Civil Rights
- Commercial Transportation
- Product Liability
- Professional Liability Defense
- Mass Tort and Mass Claim Litigation
- Oil and Gas
Negotiation Counsel
Negotiation Counsel at the Steidley & Neal firm helps companies negotiate prompt, reasonable, and humane settlements of claims involving serious accidents and other disputes. Litigation is often avoided altogether or substantially shortened. The practice combines state-of-the-art negotiation theory with genuine empathy and extensive experience in high-stakes negotiations.
The Negotiation Counsel usually becomes involved in a claim soon after the accident. The Negotiation Counsel also acts in a “fireman” role, in which longstanding litigation can be brought to a quick settlement and on reasonable terms.
Benefits of the Negotiation Counsel include:
- Settlements that occur months or years earlier than normal, resulting in early settlement discounts
- More humane treatment of people involved in serious accidents
- Customized win-win settlement packages
- Fewer suits filed, fewer letters of credit and lower insurance premiums
- Lower attorney and expert fees
- Less time and fewer resources devoted to depositions and electronic discovery
The Negotiation Counsel does not replace clients’ defense counsel. Defense counsel continues to manage the investigation, provide legal advice, and represent the client in litigation if a suit is filed. Negotiation Counsel creates a separate negotiation track. The division of labor between Negotiation Counsel and defense counsel allows the client to explore early settlement options without creating the impression that defense counsel lacks the ability and willingness to zealously prosecute the litigation if necessary.
The Negotiation Counsel has lengthy face-to-face meetings with claimants and their counsel, expresses genuine sympathy for tragic losses, and identifies hidden interests and obstacles. Acting in cooperation with the client and defense counsel, the Negotiation Counsel develops a customized settlement package, schedules mediation months or years earlier than normal, and secures a reasonable agreement that includes an early settlement discount. Thus, the work of the Negotiation Counsel goes far beyond normal empathetic claims handling.
