Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

The Hon. Howell Heflin is a retired U.S. senator from the state of  Alabama. Following is an excerpt of the Frank E.A. Sander Lecture delivered by Heflin at last year’s American Bar Association annual meeting on Aug. 2.

As court caseloads continue to rise, compounded by the dramatic increase in criminal- case filings, priorities given to the disposition of criminal cases and the complexity of mass torts, courts should be encouraged to consider and pursue dispute-resolution services for certain mass-claims cases which do not, per se, require the involvement of a trial judge.