Participants must be accountable to each other, and to the agreements reached on design. There must be a means to follow up commitments and to monitor expectations in realizing the overall objectives in designing and introducing the process. Following up on commitments builds confidence in, and connections to, the process. The credibility of the process significantly depends on follow-up to make adjustments and celebrate successes. The goal is to develop a range of choices - a wider framework of alternatives from which informed choices can be made to enter a process, or to leave it.
Voluntary participation is the hallmark of a consensus process.
Much of the power of the process flows from its voluntary nature. Giving choices is giving power. In preparing spaces and means for voluntary participation, participants must be constantly vigilant to ensure freedom from dominating and inappropriate pressures. Litigation remains an important way of making churches and governments accountable and may suit the needs and circumstances of some survivors, even though many feel the traditional litigation model may be inherently damaging due to its adversarial nature and may create results that prevent or block restoration. Any survivor in an ADR process may choose to leave the process and pursue a claim through the courts at any time unless otherwise agreed.