MEDIATION AND ARBITRATION: COMPARATIVE APPROACHES

Abstract

The contemporary Indian law system increasingly takes an interest in the concept of alternative dispute resolution, especially, the utilization of such a practice as mediation and arbitration as the viable and cost-effective alternatives to the traditional litigation (Pablo, 2024). These changes do indicate the growing awareness regarding the advantages such practices would have at unloading the judicial system and providing more flexible solutions to resolving a dispute to both individuals and companies (Mujtaba and Garner, 2024). The entry of mediation and arbitration within the system of the Indian law is an innovative concept that has assisted the country to transform into a centre of dispute resolutions at the global arena. The latter changes are testable by such law changes as the Arbitration and Conciliation act of 1996 and the recent Mediation act of 2023 (Clammer and Byrne, 2021)(Aadya, 2024). All the mentioned reforms are aiming at simplifying the dispute resolution process, raising the enforceability of awards, and, in general, making India a new favorite in the field of domestic and international commercial arbitration (Dhingra, 2020). A comparative study of mediation and arbitration in India will be examined in this chapter as per its peculiar features, procedure inconsistencies and its variable role in delivering various cases of legal disputes. It will also explore the assumptions of these alternative dispute resolution methods that are voluntary and adjudicative (Akhtar et al., 2023). This difference is necessary as a means of being capable of observing how both techniques help resolve issues in ways that are simultaneously as fast and amicable as it will be and constrained balance between the necessity of finalization and the autonomy of the parties involved in the conflict (Akhtar et al., 2023). In mediation, the priority is in offering mutual solutions via the aid of a third party without beingary, unlike in arbitration which is more formal adjudicatory process whereby an arbiter is required to make giving a binding decision mandatory. They both aspire to provide useful dispute resolution in non-judicial environments (Pablo, 2024). In the following passages, the discussion under the set of laws that govern these means in India will venture into reconsidering its effect on various areas, commercially, family, and the public law controversies. This discussion will indicate the issues and opportunities that are associated with their application that can give insights into best practice and possible areas of improvement.