Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

Those who promoted arbitration of labor-management disputes understandably argued that arbitrators would have expertise that judges could hardly be expected to possess. Such expertise was presumed to give us the kind of insight that would make our decisions reasonable and realistic. But the argument for arbitration went much further. It was said that arbitration, contrasted with litigation, would be less formal, less time-consuming, and less costly.

Anyone who served as a labor-management arbitrator in the 10-20 year period following World War II would probably concede that those benefits were realized.

However, in my opinion, there is at least one development that has caused the typical labor-management arbitration to become more formal, more time-consuming, and more costly. I refer to the frequent use by the parties of outside attorneys. (By “outside,” I mean lawyers retained from a law firm to represent one side or the other.)