SC looks to alternate dispute resolutions

The Supreme Court has noted that chronic pendency necessitates the need to explore new and out-of-the-box dispute resolution solutions. The court believes that alternate dispute resolution (ADR) is the way ahead.

"There are around 2.22 million (2,221,512) cases pending before all the courts in Pakistan. Out of these, 0.35 million (347,173) cases are pending in the Constitutional benches of the Supreme and High Courts. At the same time, the bulk of the pendency lies with the district Courts, amounting to 82% of such cases.

This translates into a backlog of just under 1.82 million (1,815,783) cases. This voluminous and chronic pendency necessitates exploring dispute resolution solutions.

"ADR is, therefore, the way ahead", says a seven-page judgment authored by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah while hearing a matter in which the parties agreed to mediation. The three-judge bench, led by Justice Shah, reiterated that "an ounce of mediation is worth a pound of arbitration and a ton of litigation".

"Our courts, more recently, have encouraged ADR. The courts should not only encourage meditating more and litigating less, but also exhibit a pro-meditation bias which connotes a predisposition within the legal system for the resolution of disputes through mediation rather than through litigation or other forms of dispute resolution."

He added that such bias does not favor one party over another, but rather prioritises mediation as the preferred method of dispute resolution.

"It is grounded in the belief that settlements are generally more efficient and satisfactory for all parties involved compared to outcomes determined by a court"

Justice Shah noted that mediation offers the best chance of a solution where both parties leave with dignity and satisfaction, as opposed to the all-or-nothing results of litigation.

The judgment said that from a global perspective, the value of mediation as a method of amicably resolving disputes has been recognised in various international legal instruments including the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, known as, the "Singapore Convention on Mediation".

"The Convention provides a uniform and efficient framework for the recognition and enforcement of mediated settlement agreements that resolve international, commercial disputes – akin to the framework that the 1958 New York Convention provides for arbitral awards.