Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

Now in its fourth year, the Dispute Avoidance and Resolution Task Force (DART) is expanding the scope of its activities in its continuing efforts to "promote awareness, understanding and use of private dispute resolution techniques" throughout the construction industry.

That its efforts are successful is reflected in the evolution of the industry as a whole, said Thomas J. Stipanowich, professor of law at the University of Kentucky, and counsel at Stites & Harbison in Louisville and Lexington. "Long a laboratory for refinement of out-of-court techniques such as arbitration and jobsite adjudication by design professionals, the building industry is giving greater attention to techniques in which third parties assist in spurring settlement, either by mediating between disputants or by offering a non-binding evaluation of issues."

Speaking at a DART conference Oct. 16-19 at the University of Kentucky, Stipanowich also pointed out that partnering techniques and new approaches to risk management are addressing the roots of construction conflict.