Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

Binding arbitration has received much more attention than non-binding. Steven Bennett, a practitioner who frequently writes about arbitration, remedies this imbalance. Here, he discusses how non-binding arbitration works and the advantages of this process. He distinguishes between private and court-referred processes and discusses how to design the process. He also addresses enforceability and the effect of a non-binding award.

When practitioners think of arbitration, they usually mean a process that results in a final, binding and enforceable award, which serves as an alternative to litigating in court. But there are many circumstances where a process that is not as binding as arbitration may be useful to parties involved in a dispute. Non-binding arbitration may be what the circumstances demand. However, this process rarely receives much attention. This article attempts to fill that gap.