Join us for ODR 2022 in Dublin or online! NCTDR’s 21^st annual International Online Dispute Resolution Forum offers an exciting program on cutting edge ODR developments. Registration for in-person is open and free registration for online participation is available thanks to our sponsors (use Discount Code: NCTDR2022). Time Zone Alert: Program times are for Dublin.

The Republic of India became the first national government to issue a whole-of-government comprehensive policy on online dispute resolution. ODR Principles (National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution) and ODR Standards (International Council for Online Dispute Resolution) are referenced and incorporated.

On November 25, 2021, Hangzhou Internet Court officially launched the country’s first cross-border trade judicial dispute resolution platform. The platform concentrates on accepting disputes such as cross-border digital trade and Internet intellectual property rights under the jurisdiction of the Hangzhou Internet Court. Through a set of diversified and three-dimensional dispute resolution channels and systems, it connects mediation and arbitration, etc., as recognized by APEC’s 21 member economies. “Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Cross-border E-commerce (B2B) Online Dispute Resolution Cooperation Framework” and “Model Procedure Rules” to achieve online “one-stop” resolution of various disputes such as mediation, arbitration, notarization, and litigation, and help strengthen cross-border The establishment of a judicial coordination mechanism serves to ensure the healthy development of the digital economy, contributes “Hangzhou Wisdom” and exports “Chinese experience” to global Internet governance. [Translation assistance by Google Translate and Michael Fang.] https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/crvdccLsqZGwz4jAfOpi6w

China’s first judicial ODR platform is a further step forward after the launch of the first online arbitration platform. In February, 2021, the Guangzhou Arbitration Commission launched a cross-border ODR platform for MSMEs in the APEC member economies.  http://en.moj.gov.cn/2021-02/04/c_587662.htm

(h/t Michael Fang)

Thanks to all the presenters, participants, and sponsors of our 23rd annual Cyberweek, the longest-running and largest online conference focused on Online Dispute Resolution. Videos of the rich mix of panel presentations, tech demos, and engaged discussions about the impact of COVID on tech usage, the growth of ODR in new sectors, and implications for the future are archived on the program agenda.

Hosted by the National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution (NCTDR)

https://umass-amherst.zoom.us/j/99162728496

Presentations
Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Dispute Resolution: The Age of AI-DR (Orna Rabinovich-Einy and Ethan Katsh)

Application of the General Data Protection Regulation and Cybersecurity Requirements to Digital Dispute Resolution (Kathleen Paisley)

Online Dispute Resolution Data Security (Chris Draper)

Smart Contracts and Blockchain (Brandon Malone)

This is part of the Authors Webinar Series celebrating the launch of Online Dispute Resolution—Theory and Practice: A Treatise on Technology and Dispute Resolution 2^nd edition

ODR & AI                                                     Oct 13 @ noon EDST

ODR Impact on Practice Areas                       Nov 1 @ 10am EDST

Ethics, Culture & Equity in ODR                    Nov 2 @ 10am EDST

ODR, Courts & Justice Systems                      Nov 3 @ 10am EDST

State of Play of ODR Globally Part I              Nov 4 @ 8am EDST

State of Play of ODR Globally Part II             Nov 5 @ 2pm EDST 

Book Launch Panel Discussion: Sept 22 @ noon EDST
https://umass-amherst.zoom.us/j/97499531967

Editors Panel Discussion
Ethan Katsh, Dir., NCTDR & co-author, Digital Justice: Technology and the Internet of Disputes (2017, OUP)
Daniel Rainey, Fellow, NCTDR & Principal, Holistic Solutions, Inc.
Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Fellow, NCTDR & Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law at Cairo University, Egypt & Founding Partner of Zulficar & Partners

Chapter Authors Webinar Series
ODR & AI Oct 13 @ noon EDST
ODR Impact on Practice Areas Nov 1 @ 10am EDST
Ethics, Culture & Equity in ODR Nov 2 @ 10am EDST
ODR, Courts & Justice Systems Nov 3 @ 10am EDST
State of Play of ODR Globally Part I Nov 4 @ 8am EDST
State of Play of ODR Globally Part II Nov 5 @ 2pm EDST
Announcements to follow with access links

Rainey, D., Katsh, E., and Wahab, M. (eds.), Online Dispute Resolution: Theory and Practice, Second Edition.  The Hague: Eleven International Publishing, 2021.

Table of Contents

Foreword (Richard Susskind)

Chapter 1 Online Dispute Resolution (ODR): A Look at History (Ethan Katsh)

Chapter 2 Ethical Principles and Standards for Online Dispute Resolution (Leah Wing and Daniel Rainey)

Chapter 3 Lessons from Online Dispute Resolution for Dispute System (Orna Rabinovich-Einy and Ethan Katsh)

Chapter 4 The Human Touch in ODR: Trust, Empathy, and Social Intuition in Online Negotiation and Mediation (Noam Ebner)

Chapter 5 ODR and the Justice System (Larry W. Bridgesmith)

Chapter 6 ODR Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities: We Must Do Better (David Allen Larson)

Chapter 7 Online Dispute Resolution Data Security (Chris Draper)

Chapter 8 ODR and Cultural Components of Dispute Engagement (Daniel Rainey and Alma Abdul-Hadi Jadallah)

Chapter 9 ODR for E-Commerce: Legal Standards and Developments in Asia and Europe (Pablo Cortés, Aura Esther Vilalta and Chittu Nagarajan)

Chapter 10 Online Dispute Resolution in US Courts Looking Back and Going Forward (Paul Embley and Lise Embley)

Chapter 11 ODR and Social Justice: Technology Not Tricknology (Benjamin G. Davis)

Chapter 12 Online Dispute Resolution and Ombudsmanship, Observations on the Use of ODR by Ombudsman Practitioners (Dr. Frank Fowlie, Dr. Clare Fowler and Herb Waye and MALT)

Chapter 13 The Wake-Up to the Virtual Space in Arbitration (Mirèze Philippe and Mohamed Abdel Wahab)

Chapter 14 ODR and Negotiation (Michael Wolf)

Chapter 15 ODR and Mediation (Noam Ebner and Daniel Rainey)

Chapter 16 ODR and Peacetech (Colin Rule)

Chapter 17 Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Dispute Resolution – The Age of AI-DR (Orna Rabinovich-Einy and Ethan Katsh)

Chapter 18 Application of the General Data Protection Regulation and Cybersecurity Requirements to Digital Dispute Resolution (Kathleen Paisley)

Chapter 19 Smart Contracts and Blockchain (Brandon Malone)

Chapter 20 ODR in Canada (Karim Benyekhlef and Nicolas Vermeys)

Chapter 21 ODR and Innovation in the United States (Amy J. Schmitz and Janet Martinez)

Chapter 22 Mediation and ODR in Latin America and Argentina (Alberto Elisavetsky and María Victoria Marun)

Chapter 23 ODR in Europe (Marta Poblet and Graham Ross)

Chapter 24 Online Dispute Resolution and Africa (Ayodele Musibau Kusamotu)

Chapter 25 Online Dispute Resolution in China: Today and Future (Anyu Lee)

The COVID-19 pandemic  saw courts that are normally resistant to change trying to quickly adapt to physical closure of buildings.  As Professor Elizabeth Thornburg writes in her new article Observing Online Courts: Lessons from the Pandemic, “[o]ur normally hidebound courts are moving online with surprising speed.” This development provided an opportunity for Professor Thornburg and her students to spend several months observing a variety of court processes. For those interested in the recent rapid institutional adaptation of technology, this is an important foundational work.

A new smartphone application for consumer disputes was just launched allowing consumers to easily file a complaint and access dispute resolution services. It covers all businesses and consumers worldwide and is supported by a back end multi-level administration and case management system. ADR4ALL enables consumers to upload documents and view the status of their case at any time through their smartphone. Developed by ADR Point and its director, NCTDR Fellow, Petros Zourdoumis, it is co-funded by the European Union. ADR4ALL app is functional in both operating systems (Android and iOS) and it is available for free.

A Panel Discussion and Book Launch Celebration honoring Dispute Systems Design: Preventing, Managing, and Resolving Conflict (2020) was hosted by the National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution on July 29, 2020 featuring co-authors Lisa Blomgen Amsler, (Indiana University), Janet K. Martinez, (Stanford University), and Stephanie E. Smith, (Stanford University) and panelists Carrie Menkel-Meadow, (UC Irvine & Georgetown University), Larry Susskind, (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Ayelet Sela, (Bar Ilan University) and Colin Rule, (Mediate.com). Hosts included Leah Wing, Co-director, (National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution (NCTDR) and U. of MA Amherst), Orna Rabinovich, (NCTDR Fellow and U. of Haifa), and Ethan Katsh (Director, NCTDR). You can watch the engagement with these leading ADR and ODR thought leaders here:

During the global COVID-19 pandemic, and at a time when social distancing is required to save lives, technology has been vital to human connection. This turn in society has forced even the most reluctant practitioners and overburdened institutions to rely on technology to assist in the handling of disputes. Suddenly, online dispute resolution is at the forefront of conversations about providing access to justice and repair of human relationships from courts to alternative dispute resolution. The National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution, birthplace of online dispute resolution over twenty years ago, is enthusiastic about this upsurge in its use. And as we stand in solidarity against state brutality, we think it now more important than ever for all of us to work for racial equality and all forms of human rights, further innovating the use of technology in the name of access to justice for all.