But Allan Stitt, a partner with the Toronto law firm of Stitt Feld Handy Houston, who is a specialist on ADR systems, says the influx of lawyers into the mediation system was just a phase that ADR went through. Stitt, a co-author of a recent report that spurred the Harris government into supporting ADR, says more lay people are taking training to become mediators and to set up ADR programs. Stitt's firm conducts training seminars across the country. The business of training has just exploded.
Some students focus on mediation skills such as negotiation.
Others are more interested in studying rights-based arbitration. The demand isn't just from lawyers. About 60 to 70 per cent of our clients used to be lawyers, but that's dropped to 25 per cent. We get people from human resources departments, government, business people, union management, even people who want to get along better with their neighbours or their spouses. Lawyers want to be able to better represent their clients when mandatory ADR comes in.