About three-quarters say they don't use mediation because opposing parties in disputes are unwilling to consider it. Many corporate lawyers worry about arbitration because discovery isn't required in the process and arbitrators are not confined to standard legal rules, such as those governing the admissibility of evidence. In their forecasts of the future, our respondents expect that the use of mediation will continue to grow in a wide variety of disputes, but on balance they do not expect arbitration usage to grow further except in employment and commercial disputes. Respondents in general have a more favorable view of mediation than of arbitration and believe mediation has more widespread applicability and is more likely to save time and money. They have more reservations about the use of arbitration in part because of their concerns about arbitrators and the arbitration process, but believe it may be a very useful tool in targeted situations.
Respondents appear to be especially concerned about the qualifications of arbitrators.
Almost half say they lack confidence in arbitrators, while close to 30 percent say there is a shortage of qualified arbitrators. Corporate respondents told us there is no lack of people who are willing to serve as ADR neutrals, but, rather, there is a shortage of qualified and experienced neutrals. This lack of confidence in neutrals has two primary origins. First, there is a significant concern in the corporate community about who the mediators are and where they come from. Nearly all of our respondents indicated some skepticism about the neutral community's ability to respond to the growing demand for their services.