To me, the adversarial system has always seemed to be inefficient way to settle a disagreement.
Nothing illustrates the failure of the court system better than a divorce case.
The parties are probably in the worst emotional states of their lives, the kids are being shuffled from one parent to the other, the same income available for one household now must support two, and two attorneys must be paid a handsome fee to act as gladiator for each side, either in settlement conference or in court. However, for me the euphoria lasted only a moment. I found myself feeling empty and confused, like I participated in an event where everyone lost. Hurt feelings simply did not go away. The role of the judge is to make a decision, which has nothing to do with how a person feels.