National Mediators & Arbitrators Association Launches “One Stop Shop” Website for Litigation Firms and Corporate Counsel

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (NADN) is a new national association whose membership consists of mediators and arbitrators distinguished by their hands-on experience in the field of civil and commercial conflict resolution. NADN was established in 2009 following a conference of the committees of 5 regional ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) associations from Florida, California, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee. As of August 2010, the association has over 600 top-tier ADR attorneys and judges confirmed as charter members across more than 40 states, making it the largest online roster of experienced neutrals in the nation. Membership to the Academy is by invitation-only, with a strict peer-nomination vote and extensive client interview vetting procedure, intended to ensure that only the top 5% of qualifying practitioners in any state are invited to join the “ADR All-Stars” roster.

“All of our attorney-mediators are able to assist corporate counsel with pre-suit mediations. We also have over 80 and counting of the nation’s most experienced commercial arbitrators, all of whom are available to oversee arbitrations directly between in-house counsel, if the matter demands a binding decision.”

The Academy’s newly launched website at www.NADN.org is certain to make life easier for litigators, corporate counsel, legal staff or business owners - anyone, in fact, who wishes to avoid the ever-escalating cost of litigation. NADN.org allows visitors direct access to the panel of experienced ADR attorneys and charges no referral or administration fees whatsoever. Nor does the Academy take any percentage of the neutrals’ mediation or arbitration fees - a traditional industry-wide surcharge which often gets passed on to the parties in terms of elevated rates.

“Most long-standing ADR organizations charge corporations thousands of dollars in fees simply for access to a list such as ours,” commented Darren Lee, Executive Director of NADN. “We believe that companies should seriously consider whether such ‘payments to the middle-man’ are money well-spent. Our approach has been quite different. Firstly, we sort the wheat from the chaif - identifying the mediation or arbitration attorneys who are most widely in-demand amongst litigators within each state. Secondly, we’ve invited these experienced neutrals to join the Academy and publish their bios, case expertise and calendars online. Then we stand back and get out of the way - allowing direct contact with the members through the website, keeping costs to a minimum for all parties.”

Website visitors are able to quickly find a suitable neutral by identifying their preferred state, dispute type or other preferences. They can then review a roster of the most highly-rated local neutrals, all of whom welcome direct enquiries. A large majority of members also publish their availability calendars online for the benefit of clients, allowing visitors to “call-or-click” to make direct contact with the members’ office staff.

“Since the launch of the Florida chapter of NADN in 2006, we’ve heard from literally hundreds of firms saying how useful they find the websites, particularly the online-calendaring functionality,” said Mr. Lee. “We’ve made it very simple for visitors to make direct contact with resolution experts on our roster, using the Neutral Search tool. More than 22,000 attorneys, counsel and legal staff have scheduled their mediation appointments online with our charter members across Florida, California, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee over the last 2 years.”

Likely due to the current economy, an increasing number of corporations are seeking to mediate or arbitrate disputes, rather than launching expensive litigation. “All of our attorney-mediators are able to assist corporate counsel with pre-suit mediations. We also have over 80 and counting of the nation’s most experienced commercial arbitrators, all of whom are available to oversee arbitrations directly between in-house counsel, if the matter demands a binding decision.”

The Academy is set to expand the roster of recognized neutrals into 2011, including formal new chapters already underway in several states including Texas, Illinois, New York and Washington.

For further info regarding the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals, please contact Darren Lee, Exec. Director ([e-mail]) or visit www.NADN.org/about