Arbitration

Arbitration can be described as resolving disputes between people or groups by referring them to a third party, either agreed on by them or provided by law, who makes a judgment. Arbitration is a private process; however, unlike the other methods we have explored thus far, it is adjudicative. Adjudicative means making an official decision about a problem or dispute. The third party in the process is an arbitrator with the power to make a binding decision to determine the dispute’s outcome.

Litigation

Litigation is also an adjudicative process in a publicly financed and administrated court system with formalized rules and decisions made by a jury or judge. The decisions in this setting may be subject to appeal. Appeal is a hearing of a part or all the previously tried cases by a superior court, a request for a hearing, or the right to have such a hearing.

Self-Help

According to Professor Peter Robinson of Pepperdine University School of Law (Strauss Institute for Dispute Resolution), self-help is a unilateral action by one of the participants designed to affect a resolution. There is no requirement for communication between the parties or the intervention of a third party. Examples of this Alternative Dispute Resolution include but are not limited to, rumormongering, theft, striking, picketing, protesting, and violence or threats of violence.