In our ongoing series of posts about arbitration, an increasingly popular form of private dispute resolution across the United States. This week, we will discuss another prevalent system for resolving legal disputes outside of the public court system, mediation. Although arbitration and mediation both use independent third-parties to resolve legal disagreements, there are many differences between the two forms of alternative dispute resolution. Arbitration is a privatized version of a trial. In arbitration, the parties present evidence and testimony to persuade the arbitrator that they are entitled to certain relief under the law. Mediation, on the other hand, is essentially an ongoing settlement negotiation. A mediator does not decide which…
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Fourth Circuit: Arbitration Agreement in Employee Handbook Not Binding
A recent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that a North Carolina employee suing under federal and North Carolina law for wage and hour violations was not required to participate in arbitration despite an arbitration clause in her employee handbook.[1] The Fourth Circuit acknowledged that North Carolina law would ordinarily bind the employee via implied consent to the clause, but she signed an acknowledgement form upon receipt of the handbook that expressly stated the handbook provisions did not constitute a binding contract. Rose Lorenzo, an employee of Prime Communications, LP, managed a…
