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Edited by Eric Rise,
University of Delaware
   
   
Alternative Dispute Resolution in Civil Justice Systems
   

Roger E. Hartley
       
   

Studying a single court system in Georgia, Hartley examines the effect of mediation in civil trial courts

Hartley examines the introduction of alternative dispute resolution (e.g., mediation) in a court system in Georgia. Attorneys supported the introduction of mediation to consolidate control of the legal process and to add it to their practices. They also used mediation to settle some cases more quickly. Mediation gave judges flexibility to weed out minor cases and process others more quickly. However, these changes were not so great as to put a dent in settlement or trial rates, and Hartley concludes that while changes in court procedures have effects, researchers need to examine the behavior of actors in depth in order to discover these effects.

Table of Contents

  1. Trial Courts
  2. Research Framework and Study Site
  3. Civil Justice in Mountain County
  4. Civil Mediation in Mountain County
  5. The Impact of Mediation on Case Processing in Mountain County
  6. Mediation, Civil Justice, and Court Actors
  7. Conclusion

    8. References
    Appendices
    Index
       
  Roger E. Hartley is Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson. He earned his Ph.D. in 1999 from the University of Georgia.
       
    xii, 272 pages. Index, bibliography. ISBN 1-931202-36-2.
$70. Published.