Abstrakt

We are pleased to inform you that a national conference “Perspectives of evolution of Alternative Dispute Resolution” was held at the Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Lodz on 26th of November 2010. The meeting was convened which attracted the attention of academics, law practitioners (judges, attorneys, law advisors, arbitrators, mediators) and students. A forum was organized by The First Department of Civil Procedure and Civil and Commercial Law Student Organization affiliated with the Department. The conference was structured around two basic ADR methods – arbitration and mediation. The first panel was dedicated to resolving dispute by negotiations led by impartial third person. The first speaker was dr Rafał Morek (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Law), who referred to the place of mediation in modern judicial systems. He distinguished different types of mediation and described the scope of mediators’ duties. Krzysztof Kacprzak (judge, president of the District Court in Lodz) outlined the main problems in relation to directing parties to mediation. He dealt with admissibility of complex settlements – in case of several disputes arising between the same parties. The panelist pointed out that mediation centres should disclose more information about mediators’ experience. Sylwester Pieckowski (attorney, President of the Polish Arbitration Association) talked about resolving commercial disputes by way of mediation. The speaker described the role of professional lawyers in mediation. Furthermore, he analysed statistics concerning quantity of settlements and mediation proceedings resulting from courts’ decisions. Finally, the speaker mentioned the problem of mediation costs. Grzegorz Frączek (University of Silesia in Katowice, Faculty of Law) shared his experience connected with presiding over a mediation centre. The panelist referred to the practice of appointing two mediators in family disputes. Moreover, he defined sufficient time limit for the proceedings. The second panel – concerning arbitration – was opened with an absorbing lecture given by Guy de Foresta, the arbitrator at the ICC in Paris. The speaker highlighted that parties operating in different legal systems are more likely to agree to resolve potential disputes before the court of arbitration. He also underlined that the key issue in the increasing attractiveness of ADR is the organizational efficiency of arbitration institutions. The following speaker was Elżbieta Bogucka, acting on behalf of Piotr Nowaczyk (president of the Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce). She presented a comparison of major arbitration institutions in Europe. Andrzej Kąkolecki (legal advisor, arbitrator at the ICC in Paris and the Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce) emphasised the role of arbitrators and importance of the choice of arbitration institutions. The speaker enumerated the attributes that should characterize arbitrators and described the risks related to the so-called „black arbitration” – forbidden practices e.g. exerting pressure in the course of arbitration proceedings. The summarizing panel was initiated by Professor Andrzej Szumański (president of the Lewiatan Court of Arbitration) who commented on the rules of the Court of Arbitration at the Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan. The speaker provided a deep insight into a fast-track procedure. He explained that the arbitration court should regularly update its rules in accordance with the needs of the parties. This way, arbitration can be a competitive alternative to the judicial system. Professor Wojciech Katner (judge of the Supreme Court) emphasized the significant role of arbitration agreements. The panelist highlighted the concept of arbitrability of a dispute and analyzed Supreme Court’s rulings concerning the matter. The conference created an opportunity to share experience and debate the future development and popularization of arbitration and mediation. We do believe that the issues raised have contributed to better understanding of the phenomenon of ADR and elimination of obstacles deterring further development of these institutions.