Arbitration Tips-N-Tools (TNT): Round 7

by Linda Michler, Amy Schmitz
February 2021

In this round of Arbitration Tips-N-Tools, Professor Amy Schmitz asks some of the leading arbitration practitioners about drafting Arbitration Clauses, especially in a digital world and faced with the complexities of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Round 7: What are your 3 top tips and/or tools with respect to drafting Stepped Processes in an Online Environment – especially in the digital era and complexities of Covid?

Linda A. Michler -

Step 1 – Before determining any processes in a two–step mediation and arbitration (med-arb) start with contemplating whether it is a good idea for you as the ADR professional to assume the role of mediator and then as arbitrator. Think carefully about the inherent drawbacks. For a more detailed analysis of this issue, see here.

Stay tuned for more Arbitration TNT by Prof. Amy Schmitz coming your way next week.....

Biography

Linda Michler

Linda A. Michler is an arbitrator and mediator and may be reached at 412.854.4315/ 412. 480.1731 or on-line at www.nadn.org/linda-michler She is licensed in PA, NY and NC and is a member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals and is on the roster of the American Health Law Association’s Dispute Resolution Service, CPR’s Employment Disputes, Mass Claims, Franchise, Banking, Accounting and Financial Services Panels, FINRA’s Neutral rosters, and the American Arbitration Association’s neutrals for mediation and arbitration including bankruptcy, landlord-tenant/real estate, and disaster panels. She is the Publications Chair for the American Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution Section’s Arbitration Committee.

Professor Amy Schmitz joined the University of Missouri School of Law and the Center for Dispute Resolution as the Elwood L. Thomas Missouri Endowed Professor of Law in 2016. Previously she was a Professor at the University of Colorado School of Law for over 16 years. Prior to teaching, Professor Schmitz practiced law with large law firms in Seattle and Minneapolis, and served as a law clerk for the U. S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit. Professor Schmitz teaches courses in Contracts, Lawyering, Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), AI, Data Analytics and the Law, Arbitration, International Arbitration, and Consumer Law. She has been heavily involved in ODR teaching and research for a long time and is a Fellow of the National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution, as well as the Co-Chair of the ABA Technology Committee of the Dispute Resolution Section and the ODR Task Force. She serves on the Association of American Law Schools Executive Committee on Commercial and Consumer Law, was an External Scientific Fellow of the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg, and is a researcher with the ACT Project exploring AI and ODR. Professor Schmitz has published over 50 articles in law journals and books, and a book, The New Handshake: Online Dispute Resolution and the Future of Consumer Protection, with Colin Rule.