Online Dispute Resolution (ODR): What is it, and is it the Way Forward?

Julio César Betancourt, Head of Research & Academic Affairs at the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and Elina Zlatanska, Research Assistant at Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, have published an interesting article entitled, Online Dispute Resolution (ODR): What is it, and is it the Way Forward?, 79 International Journal of Arbitration, Mediation and Dispute Management, Issue 3, 2013.  In their publication, the authors discuss the role and future of online arbitration, mediation, and other dispute resolution mechanisms.

Here is the Abstract:

This article provides a concise explanation of the notion of “dispute resolution” in cyberspace. It reviews some of the recent studies on the use of Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), especially the use of e-negotiation, e-mediation and e-arbitration, considers the issues concerning the intricacies of settling and resolving disputes in cyberspace and concludes that the idea of banishing offline dispute settlement and dispute resolution methods — in the near future — is extremely unlikely ever to come true.

The article is available for download from the Social Science Research Network.  We would love to hear your thoughts on this timely issue!