Unlike litigation however, the parties have input into the design of the arbitration process they are going to use. For example, there typically are no discoveries. These cases are not part of the civil justice system in Ontario, and in this sense are truly alternative to litigation. There are different ways in which the arbitrator or arbitrators is selected. If there is a panel rather than a single arbitrator, majority and minority decisions may be rendered.
Arbitration can have a number of advantages over traditional litigation.
Secondly, because the parties set their own procedural rules, they can tailor the process to their particular dispute. They can limit pleadings, discovery, number of witnesses, and time for examination, cross-examination, and oral argument. Therefore the parties can get a decision within months, weeks or sometimes days of the dispute arising. With this control over the process, the parties can drastically decrease their costs and the time that they need to devote to resolving the dispute. Just as importantly, a quick resolution can avoid problems such as secondary disputes over the mitigation of damages, the loss of evidence, failure of memory of witnesses, and other complications that can arise when a trial takes place long after the events that caused the dispute.