Alternative Dispute Resolution on the agenda at UCC event

10 Mar 2020

UCC School of Law, in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Ireland, were delighted to host an event on 3 March examining the role of arbitration and mediation in resolving disputes.

‘ADR 20/20’ saw two guests speak to the audience of legal practitioners, alternative dispute resolution professionals, and students for twenty minutes each on a topic related to alternative dispute resolution. Mr Michael McGrath (Senior Counsel/ F.C.I. Arb) discussed ‘court involvement in the arbitration process’ and Ms Alison Kelleher (Partner, Comyn Kelleher Tobin/ CEDR Mediator) considered ‘mediation from the practitioner’s perspective’.

We were also joined on the evening by Her Honour Judge Helen Boyle, who chaired the event. Her Honour Judge Boyle is an esteemed alumnus of the UCC School of Law, and we were delighted to welcome her back to her alma mater.

This event was kindly supported by the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. The School of Law was recently successful in a funding application to the National Forum for a project “Experiential Learning for Dispute Resolution”, which seeks to develop a skills-based Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) curriculum in the School.

Dr Mary Tumelty, Lecturer at the UCC School of Law, is the principal investigator of the Experiential Learning for Dispute Resolution project, and co-organised the recent event with Ms Meg Burke BL, F.C.I. Arb. Commenting on the success of ADR 20/20, she said:

“It was a pleasure to host this event in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Ireland. I think the strong attendance reflects the importance of alternative dispute resolution, which in recent decades has been increasingly integrated into the civil justice framework in Ireland, and indeed, internationally. I would like to thank Her Honour Judge Boyle for chairing the event, and to the speakers for their engaging and informative presentations.”

Ms Meg Burke is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and a Barrister-at-Law. Ms Burke is also involved in the Experiential Learning for Dispute Resolution project in the School, and co-organised ADR 20/20 with Dr Tumelty. She commented:

 “It is clear from both speakers’ presentations that there are ever increasing opportunities for practitioners to avail of alternative options such as Arbitration or Meditation in resolving a dispute. Such alternatives can often be deployed in situations where traditional litigation may not facilitate all of the parties’ needs. On occasion, ADR may not need to be an alternative at all, but can be adopted or even advised as part of the Court process. “