Upon receipt of the response from the Neutral, the Chair and Secretary shall review the response to determine if the complaint shall proceed to a hearing or be dismissed. If the Chair and Secretary decide to dismiss the complaint, they shall notify the complaining party and the Neutral the complaint is dismissed and the matter is closed. If the Chair and Secretary determine a hearing should be held, they shall follow the steps set forth below:
- The Chair shall promptly send the written complaint, response, and any supporting documents to the Committee on Standards for Neutrals (the “CSN”).
- The CSN shall promptly set a hearing and notify the Complaining Party and Neutral of the hearing date, time, and location.
- The CSN shall complete the hearing within ninety (90) days from the date the CSN receives the complaint, response, and supporting documents from the Chair.
- The hearing shall be private and not open to the public. The Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure and the Alabama Rules of Evidence shall not apply in the hearing; however, they may serve as guides for the CSN.
- The Complaining Party has the burden to reasonably satisfy the CSN the Neutral violated a provision of the Ethical Codes.
- The Complaining Party and the Neutral may bring a lawyer or one support person to the hearing. Additionally, the Complaining Party and the Neutral may bring witnesses to testify on his or her behalf.
- Both parties shall participate in the hearing in good faith. If the Complaining Party fails to appear at the hearing, the CSN shall dismiss the complaint. If the Neutral fails to appear, the CSN may proceed on the evidence before it.
- The hearing shall be transcribed or otherwise recorded. The record of the hearing shall include: the complaint, the response to the complaint, all non-privileged or non-confidential correspondence to or from the Center, the Commission, or CSN relating to the complaint, and the transcript or the recording of the hearing. The CSN or Center will provide the Complaining Party or Neutral a copy of the transcript or recording at his or her expense.
- Within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of the hearing, the CSN shall make written findings and inform the Complaining Party, the Neutral, the Chair, and the Secretary of those written findings.
- If the CSN determines the Neutral violated any provision of the applicable ethical code(s), the CSN may impose public or confidential discipline on the Neutral as outlined below.
- Whether the Neutral’s conduct was intentional or inadvertent;
- Whether the Neutral’s conduct was intentional, but done in ignorance of the applicable ethical code provision(s); and,
- The protection of the public and the rehabilitation of the Neutral.
- Require additional ethical or substantive training to remain on the Center’s roster of neutrals;
- Suspend or remove the Neutral from the Center’s roster of neutrals;
- If the Neutral is registered on the Center’s roster as a domestic relations mediator, in addition to other areas of mediation, and the complaint arose from a domestic relations mediation, suspend or remove the Neutral as a domestic relations mediator;
- Restrict the type of cases the Neutral can mediate or arbitrate in the future; and/or
- Such other or additional discipline as the CSN determines to be appropriate, including, but not limited to, a private reprimand.
- Either party may appeal a decision by the CSN within thirty (30) days from the date of the CSN decision.
- The appeal shall be heard by a quorum of the Commission and shall be decided on the record of the hearing before the CSN. No member of the CSN can hear the appeal.
- The Commission will not substitute its judgment for the judgment of the CSN on the weight of the evidence or finding(s) of facts.
- The Commission may reverse or modify the CSN’s decision on substance or discipline if a quorum of the Commission determines the CSN decision is: (i) beyond the authority of the CSN; (ii) clearly erroneous; (iii) arbitrary or capricious; or (iv) an abuse of discretion.
- The decision of the Commission is final and shall be delivered to the parties within thirty (30) days of the meeting on the appeal.
Private Judges
The Alabama Private Judge Act authorized the appointment of former or retired judges to serve as private judges in certain district and circuit court cases. - More -
Arbitrators
Arbitration agreements, are often found in pre-printed consumer contracts. They require parties to the contract to resolve disputes in binding arbitration, rather than in court before a judge and/or jury. - More -
Mediators
Mediation is a confidential, informal process during which an impartial third party, the mediator, assists disputing parties in reaching a mutually acceptable agreement regarding their dispute.
- General Mediation offers a path to resolving many disputes. - More -
- Family Mediation offers divorce and family mediation for parenting, divorce and post-divorce issues. - More -
- Forclosure Prevention and Mortgage Modification Mediation offers specially-trained mediators to assist Alabama citizens with foreclosure and mortgage problems by mediating between the homeowner and the mortgage holder. - More -
Keeping your Information Safe
In keeping with industry standards, we have implemented a Secure Certificate on our website. You may see a lock symbol, a green color or the https:// protocol in the address bar. These indicate that you are accessing the real ACDR website and that the website encrypts transmitted data for additional protection.
SPAM
Due to a high volume of spam, if you receive any communication from an entity purporting to be or representing the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution, please verify by contacting the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution at (334) 356-3802.
Identity thieves continually develop new ways to try to find out your personal information. Some common tip-offs that an email is phony are typos, grammatical mistakes, awkward language, missing words, extra spaces, and other signs that the email was written unprofessionally. Such emails might also ask you to look at an attachment or click a link and then give your personal information on a Web page or in a form. Or the sender’s email address might look suspicious. However, attackers are getting better at creating phony emails that look legitimate, so if you feel at all uncomfortable about an email that claims to be from the Center contact us.
Let's Get Social!
Did you know we're on Facebook?
Visit our page at facebook.com/alabamaadr and Like us to keep up with the latest news and happenings at the Alabama Center For Dispute Resolution!
We're also on X!
While we don't have a lot of "fast-breaking news," we also havean X account to keep you up on the latest. Follow us @AlabamaADR at x.com/alabamaadr
And we have a YouTube channel!
It contains videos and links to videos related to our favorite topics. mediation, negotiation, arbitration, restorative justice. Visit Alabama Dispute Resolution Center on YouTube.
WHO WE ARE
Alabama CDR is the state office of dispute resolution. At the Center, we work with the courts, the Alabama State Bar, state agencies, schools, community mediation initiatives, and businesses to promote early and peaceful resolution of disputes. We are the administrative arm of the Alabama Supreme Court Commission on Dispute Resolution.
