So much data, too little time and money. That’s been RSI’s takeaway from courts as we’ve worked with them in Illinois and beyond to develop and improve their ADR programs. We’ve been told one of two things: “We’d love to track our program, but we don’t have anyone who can enter the data.” Or, “We’ve got a whole lot of data, just no way to enter it.” It’s a dilemma we know is difficult to overcome even as we encourage courts to maintain monitoring systems and conduct evaluations so they can keep tabs on how well their program is doing and remain accountable to funders and the public. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘court programs’
How Do You Deal with the Dilemma of Data Tracking?
Jennifer Shack, February 6th, 2012Check out the New Draft Guidelines for Child Protection Mediation
Jennifer Shack, November 30th, 2011Child Protection Mediation is a growing area of ADR with a track record of positive effects for families brought into the child welfare system. Now, new comprehensive guidelines have been created to help programs ensure that they abide by best practices. The draft Guidelines for Child Protection Mediation were developed by the Child Welfare Collaborative Decision Making Network (CWCDMN), which is a combined effort of the Association for Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ), the Werner Institute for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution at Creighton University School of Law, and the National Center for State Courts (NCSC).
For my part, I’m pleased to see monitoring and evaluation included in the guidelines, as well as very specific guidance on mediator training. The guidelines are open for comment until January 24, 2012. If you work in the child welfare system, I encourage you to take a look and send in your comments.
Delaware Arbitration Program Sued as Unconstitutional
Jennifer Shack, October 27th, 2011Via Art Hinshaw at ADR Prof Blog, the judges in Delaware’s Chancery Court are being sued by the Delaware Coalition for Open Government for operating a private arbitration system. The crux of the lawsuit is that the court’s arbitration program for business disputes, in which sitting judges act as private arbitrators, is essentially a way for court proceedings to be held outside of public view. According to the complaint, this is a violation of the presumptive right to access to judicial proceedings and documents as guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitution.
Read more about it here.
Florida Looks to End Mandatory Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation
Jennifer Shack, October 25th, 2011A Florida judicial committee has called for the end of mandatory mediation in Florida. As reported in the Palm Beach Post on Friday, statistics from the circuits show that statewide only 3.6% of all cases referred to mediation reached agreement from March 2010-March 2011. The committee cited obstacles such as “homeowner mistrust of the mediation program and lender resistance” for the program’s poor performance.
This leads to the question of why mandatory mediation is working so much better in Philadelphia, where 70% of all homeowners referred to mediation participate in the process, and 33% leave with an agreement. Only 16% of participating cases end with a sheriff’s sale. Perhaps Florida should look north before scrapping their program.
