Abstract

Provisions for binding arbitration of disputes are now employed in virtually all kinds of contracts, making arbitration a wide-ranging surrogate for civil litigation. It has also subjected arbitration to unprecedented strains and unparalleled criticism. Once promoted as a means of avoiding the contention, cost and expense of court trial, binding arbitration is now described in similar terms-"judicialized," formal, costly, time-consuming, and subject to hardball advocacy. While "courtlike" arbitration has alienated many business users, others strive to make arbitration even more ...