Dispute Resolution and Arbitration Commons^™

Psychological Barriers To Litigation Settlement: An Experimental Approach, Chris Guthrie, Russell Korobkin

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The traditional economic model of settlement breakdown -- as developed by Priest and Klein -- provides an important first step in understanding why some lawsuits settle and others go to trial. Rational miscalculation undoubtedly pushes some litigants into court who might otherwise reach out-of-court settlement. Absent miscalculation, however, some litigants still find themselves in court. We have presented experimental evidence suggesting that these litigants may proceed to trial because psychological barriers to value maximizing behavior impede their settlement efforts. Indeed, our research empirically grounds the hypothesis that psychological barriers are powerful causal agents of trials. The usefulness of this evidence …

Opening Offers And Out-Of-Court Settlement: A Little Moderation May Not Go A Long Way, Chris Guthrie, Russell Korobkin

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

When two litigants resolve a dispute through out-of-court settlement rather than trial, they realize joint gains of trade equal to the sum of the costs both parties would have incurred had they obtained a trial judgment minus the costs they incur reaching settlement. This opportunity for mutual gain causes most civil lawsuits to settle out-of-court. Yet, in spite of the opportunity for joint gain, negotiations fail in a significant number of lawsuits. One reason for this surprising result is that even when joint gains are substantial and obvious to the litigants, they still must agree on a method of dividing …

Stuck Between Interlocking Rings: Efforts To Resolve The Conflicting Demands Placed On Olympic National Governing Bodies, Marcia B. Nelson

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

As the monetary stakes in amateur athletics have increased so have the conflicts between athletes and the organizations that govern them. Caught in the middle of these conflicts are the Olympic National Governing Bodies as they try to implement the rulings of the International Olympic Committee and of the courts in their states. This Note surveys the Olympic organizational structure and the ability of United States athletes to seek relief in United States courts. Also, this Note examines the benefits and detriments of using arbitration to resolve disputes between amateur athletes and governing bodies. This Note concludes that the current …

Statistical Adjudication: Rights, Justice, And Utility In A World Of Process Scarcity, Robert G. Bone

Vanderbilt Law Review

The institution of adjudication is in a state of great upheaval to- day. Mounting case backlogs and the litigation challenge posed by mass torts are pressuring Congress and courts to experiment with novel adjudication techniques. Some of the results are well-known-case tracking, alternative dispute resolution, greater reliance on settlement, and tighter pretrial screening of cases. Taken together, these changes fore- shadow a major transformation in the practice and theory of adjudication.

This Article focuses on one particularly remarkable proposal for handling large-scale litigation: adjudication by sampling. This approach uses statistical methods to adjudicate a large population of similarly situated cases. …

International Transactions And Claims Involving Government Parties: Case Law Of The Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, Richard M. Mosk, Nils Mangard, Koorosh H. Ameli

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

International Transactions and Claims Involving Government Parties: Case Law of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal

By John A. Westberg

International Law Institute

Washington, D.C.: 1991. Pp. 412. $125.

=========================

Richard M. Mosk - reviewer

Nils Mangard - reviewer

Koorosh H. Ameli - reviewer

Contemporary Efforts To Guarantee Indigenous Rights Under International Law, Andre Lawrey

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article examines recent attempts to improve international standards governing the rights of indigenous peoples. In this context, Ms. Lawrey analyzes the Australian Government's 1988 commitment to negotiate a treaty with Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Ms. Lawrey discusses the strained relationship between international law and indigenous peoples. At present, indigenous groups are not guaranteed special rights under international law. Furthermore, traditional individual rights are inadequate to effectively protect indigenous land rights and the right to self-determination. Ms. Lawrey identifies developments in indigenous rights since World War II, including International Labor Organization Convention Number 107 (Convention 107) and …

Japan's East China Sea Ocean Boundaries: What Solutions Can A Confused Legal Environment Provide In A Complex Boundary Dispute?, Kendrick F. Royer

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Note addresses the ocean boundary delimitation conflict between Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea in the East China Sea. The author considers international law on boundary delimitation and concludes that the law is unclear on delimitations between states within four hundred nautical miles of one another. The International Court of Justice has held that equity is the norm to be applied to boundary delimitation disputes but it has not resolved the competition between the natural prolongation theory of delimitation and a theory based upon the Exclusive Economic Zone. The geology of the East China Sea brings this issue to …

Treaty Interpretation From A Negotiator's Perspective, Kenneth J. Vandevelde

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The international law of treaty interpretation is based on the perspective of an objective third party, such as a court, seeking to interpret an agreement after it has been negotiated. The result is a legal regime that attempts unnecessarily to apply a uniform approach to all treaty provisions and which places primary emphasis on resolving disputes rather than on enforcing the parties' intent. This approach takes insufficient account of the actual process of treaty negotiation, undercuts the legitimacy of the court's interpretation and potentially diminishes the effectiveness of treaties as a means of governing international relations. International law needs a …

Custom And Treaty: A Response To Professor Weisburd, Anthony D'Amato

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Arthur M. Weisburd's article, "Customary International Law: The Problem of Treaties", focuses on an important problem that has been relatively overlooked: whether current doctrinal scholarship accords too much weight to treaties as constitutive of customary practice. Few issues in international law are more important than the question of where an international rule comes from and how it is proved. Professor Weisburd has addressed a significant component of this basic question. Since he regards me as the leading offender among writers who overdetermine the value of treaties, I would like to take this opportunity to respond.

As a preliminary matter, I …

Product Liability Litigation With Risk Aversion, W. Kip Viscusi

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The recent law and economics literature has directed much energy toward identifying the various factors that determine whether parties will litigate or settle accident claims.' The substantive interest in this area rests in large measure on the obvious element of conflict in all these cases: the plaintiff is trying to obtain reimbursement for his losses from the defendant, which the defendant wishes to avoid paying. The strategic structure of their interaction is quite complex because the outcomes of bringing claims are heavily influenced by the costs, usually substantial, of both bargaining and litigating. The game between plaintiff and defendant is …

Remarks Of Professor Robert A. Friedlander, Professor Robert A. Friedlander

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Terrorism, in its essence, consists of common crimes: murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, arson and whatever other act of violence is utilized for terrorist ends and as terrorist means. Admittedly the world's democracies have not only failed to develop an acceptable definition for the global arena, they have also been unable to fashion a proper meaning for their own domestic statutes. We should never forget the symbiotic relationship which exists between terrorism and democracy. As the French political analyst, Jean Francois Ravel, has cogently remarked: "The main target of international terrorism is the idea of freedom as …

Deceptive Negotiating And High-Toned Morality, Walter W. Steele, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

Rising concern about the adequacy of the adversary system to deal with disputes quickly, fairly, and economically has led to increased interest in a broad range of alternate dispute resolution mechanisms such as arbitration and the use of mini-trials. Presently, however, negotiation between disputants or negotiation between counsel for disputants is the best understood and most often utilized alternative to litigation. In fact, negotiating prior to litigating is so pervasive that it might be thought of as an inherent part of the litigation process. From a lawyer's perspective, an advantage of negotiation over other forms of dispute resolution is that …

Removal Of General Partners: A Method Of Intrapartnership Dispute Resolution For Limited Partnerships, Janet L. Eifert

Vanderbilt Law Review

The term "limited partnership" denotes a business organization in which the liability of at least one partner, the "limited partner," for the debts and obligations of the partnership is limited to his contribution to the partnership, whereas the other members of the partnership, the "general partners," may incur unlimited personal liability. The limited partnership is currently used primarily as a public or private investment vehicle in oil and gas, mining,and real estate ventures. Limited partnerships recently have become more popular, primarily because they receive advantageous tax treatment and provide investors with the shelter of limited liability.

Although many scholars have …

Self-Help: Extrajudicial Rights, Privileges And Remedies In Contemporary American Society, Douglas I. Brandon, Melinda L. Cooper, Jeremy H. Greshin, Alvin L. Harris, James M. Head, Jr., Keith R. Jacques, Lea Wiggins

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Special Project examines the myriad forms of self-help currently available to persons in American society. It groups and discusses notable self-help rights, privileges, and remedies under topical classifications that parallel traditional jurisprudential categories. Parts H through VI of the Special Project sketch the legally fashioned contours and explore the legal, social, and political consequences of self-help methods in tort law, criminal law and law enforcement, commercial transactions, landlord-tenant relations,and family law matters. Part VII explores the attorney's role in the development and implementation of curative self-help procedures such as mediation. Special Project concludes by examining the function, mechanisms, and …

The Need To Utilize International Arbitration, Gerald Aksen

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

I have been asked to discuss how to convince United States businessmen of the need for utilizing international arbitration. Basically, however, there is a realistic need for this well recognized form of alternative dispute settlement. Primarily, international arbitration affords companies the ability to avoid the uncertainties and complexities of foreign litigation. I found it interesting that Professor Vagts used the word "paradox" in referring to the existence of both the lack of effective treaties on the enforcement of foreign judgments and the host of treaties on the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards. Why is it a paradox? International arbitration was …

The Pitfalls Of International Commercial Arbitration, James M. Rhodes, Lisa Sloan

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The purpose of this Article is to examine the pitfalls of international arbitration on a broad scale. These pitfalls can be roughly grouped into two categories: (1) those endemic to the process of dispute resolution by a "private extra-judicial tribunal which derives its power from the agreement of the parties,"2 including difficulties unforeseen in the drafting of the agreement that add delay, complications, and expense to the proceedings; and (2) those related to using the rules of a particular institution. Ideally, planning and skillful drafting can eliminate both types of pitfalls and preserve the advantages of arbitration over other available …

Negotiation Techniques For Warranty And Enforcement Clauses In International Licensing Agreements, Brian G. Brunsvold

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The pre-negotiation planning procedure shows that information for the planning steps is needed from marketing and production personnel, lawyers, researchers, engineers, management, and a licensing specialist. A licensor usually cannot afford to have all of these personnel present at the negotiating sessions. A licensing negotiation proceeds most efficiently when the negotiating team includes people who are familiar with marketing the licensed product and experienced in the technical details of the subject matter to be licensed. A lawyer is also necessary to provide legal advice during negotiations and draft or review the negotiated agreement. There are some situations in which an …

Book Review, Nicholas A. Sims

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

It is a pleasure to welcome a well-written book on arms control, and one, moreover, that has grown out of the exigencies of an undergraduate course and is designed to meet the needs of students. Because INTERNATIONAL ARMS CONTROL: ISSUES AND AGREEMENTS was the work of several hands, its lucidity and consistency are the more admirable. Comprehensive in scope, it goes just far enough in setting arms control in its various contexts (political, military, cultural, and ethical) without straying out of bounds. It raises a multitude of questions without pretending to answer them all. I found it refreshing to read …

The Law Of The Sea Conference: Dispute Settlement In Perspective, John K. Gamble, Jr.

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

On March 15, 1976, the Third United Nations Law of the Sea Conference reconvened in New York City. The task of this Conference, drafting a new and comprehensive law of the sea treaty, is enormous. At the very least the new treaty will modify many of the traditional patterns for use and control of hydrospace. There is no doubt that coastal states will achieve the right to exercise control over all resources within 200 nautical miles of their coasts. If this contingency is not implemented by treaty, then it will be reached by unilateral claims to these zones. Agreeing on …

International Law And Conflict Resolution: Palestinian Claims And The Arab States, J. L. Taulbee, David P. Forsythe

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Over the last few years there has been a revival of interest in international law as a mechanism for conflict resolution. These same years have seen a demonstration of the undeveloped state of international law, particularly concerning intrastate conflicts. The wide disagreement about questions of fact, legal consequence, and world order implications of internal war is a telling commentary on the current problems of applying legal standards to such conflicts. A major part of the disagreement can be explained in terms of the specific problems relating to fact determination and authoritative interpretation engendered by the nature of the environment in …

The Lawyer And The Private Legal Process, L. Ray Patterson, Elliott E. Cheatham

Vanderbilt Law Review

Private law--particular rules created for and applied to particular individuals to govern their relationships with each other--is a marked characteristic of society. People in a nation of free enterprise with a developing, malleable economy must have the freedom and the power to shape their legal relations with one another through the use of rules of law suited to their goals. Most of this law--contracts, wills, and trusts--has only temporary effect. The terms are limited, and all of it is for a private, rather than a public purpose. The limited scope of private law, however, is not a good measure of …

The Use Of Arbitration In The Settlement Of Bilateral Air Rights Disputes, Ross T. Dicker

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In the field of aviation, world transportation is bound together by a highly complex and sophisticated arrangement in which each country designates a single carrier to carry its flag to foreign-countries. The United States has not followed this practice of designating one line as the nation's flag carrier and has twenty "international" carriers which transport passengers, cargo, and mail to foreign countries. Each one of these carriers is a private business concern, competing in most cases with another American carrier covering the same route, and in all cases with the air carrier of the country to which it flies. In …

Commercial Arbitration In Federal Courts, James F. Nooney

Vanderbilt Law Review

With increasing frequency attorneys are confronted with disputes arising under commercial contracts which contain arbitration agreements. Before the attorney can advise the client as to his legal position and recommend a course of conduct, he must interpret the effect of the arbitration agreement. Often the first question for the attorney is whether the client (or, in turn, the opposing party) can be forced to arbitrate. The answer depends upon whether agreements to arbitrate future disputes are enforceable under the law applicable to the transaction. Where both parties to the contract are citizens of the same state, the answer is readily …

Peace-Keeping And Peace-Making--The Un In The Middle East, Robert D. Kamenshine

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

A UN official, commenting on the designation of Swedish diplomat Gunnar Jarring as the Security Council's representative to work for a Middle East peace, observed that both Ralph Bunche and Lester B. Pearson had already received Nobel Prizes for bringing peace to this region. If anything is to be learned from the most recent Middle East conflict, it is that a cessation of hostilities cannot be equated with a peace; that a true peace involves the resolution of basic conflicts of interests.

Almost from its very inception, the United Nations has been deeply involved in Middle East problems. Just over …

Developments In Space Law, Albert Gore

Vanderbilt Law Review

A democratic society could not long endure without the voluntary support of its citizens of application of legal proceedings for settlement of disputes. Perhaps few take the time to consider the extent to which our daily lives are affected by the judicial machinery which a free people have established. Here I refer not merely to the deterrent effect of criminal laws by which we deal with offenses against society. I refer also to our system for the legal settlement of controversies arising between individuals. After all, without our courts and our lawyers, questions involving tort and breach of contract would …

The Uniform Statute Of Limitations On Foreign Claims Act, David H. Vernon

Vanderbilt Law Review

In July, 1957, the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws approved a Uniform Statute of Limitations on Foreign Claims Act.1 Section 2, its only substantive provision, reads as follows: Section 2. [Periods of Limitation on Foreign Claims.] The period of limitation applicable to a claim accruing outside of this state shall be either that prescribed by the law of the place where the claim accrued or by the law of this state, whichever first bars the claim. As promulgated, the Conference proposal amounts to a limited borrowing statute calling for the application of the law of the place …

Restitution -- 1958 Tennessee Survey, William Wicker

Vanderbilt Law Review

Civil remedies may be grouped under three classifications: torts, contracts, and restitution. The plaintiff's objective in a tort action is a recovery for his loss which resulted from the defendant's wrongful act, the measure of recovery being the amount of that loss expressed in dollars. The plaintiff's objective in a contract action is a recovery for a breach of the defendant's promise, the measure of recovery being the net addition to the plaintiff's estate which would have resulted had defendant performed his promise. Restitution is a giving back of what has been taken away unjustly. The plaintiff's objective in a …

Drafting Of Grievance And Arbitration Articles Of Collective Bargaining Agreements, Charles A. Reynard

Vanderbilt Law Review

When the parties to collective bargaining negotiations formulate the provisions of their contract relating to grievances and arbitration, they are establishing the basic system of private administrative law that will govern the plant community for the period of the agreement. This is obviously a task that involves more than mere words and phrases. The maturity of their relationship, their respective understandings of the place of collective bargaining in our industrial society, the size and nature of the plant, and innumerable other considerations will substantially influence the choice of language and procedures adopted in the framing of these provisions. Because of …

Vacation Of Awards For Fraud, Bias, Misconduct And Partiality, Alan H. Rothstein

Vanderbilt Law Review

The role of the arbitration process in today's society is to supplant the often laborious and time consuming procedures of the courts with a more informal process wherein the parties to a controversy, by agreement, give one or more individuals effective power to render a decision on a particular matter, or on future controversies as they arise. In order that the grant of the power be effective, and that a resulting award be obeyed, the courts will generally enforce a properly made award without examination of the underlying issues or evidence of the controversy developed during the arbitration. Judicial prescriptions …

Book Notes, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Law Review

The Law of Torts By Fowler V. Harper and Fleming James, Jr. Boston: Little Brown & Co., 1956. Pp. xiv, 2062. $60.00.

This treatise is a valuable and significant contribution to Tort law.It is composed of two volumes of text and a third volume containing tables of cases, statutes and articles, and an index.

========================================

Management Rights and the Arbitration Process

Edited by Jean T. McKelvey. Washington: Bureau of National Affairs, 1956. Pp. viii,237. $3.50. This is a collection of the papers delivered at the Ninth Annual Meeting of the National Academy of Arbitrators held in January,1956. They include treatments …