(Getty Images)
Article provided by Donald Smith, Riley Bennett Egloff LLP
Many Accredited Businesses (“ABs”) associated with Better Business Bureau of Central Indiana, Inc. (“BBB”) have benefited from BBB’s dispute resolution services to resolve differences with consumers or businesses through conciliation. Conciliation is a process by which the parties discuss their positions and potential resolutions with BBB personnel. BBB acts as a “go-between” and explores the potential settlement options with the parties. The ultimate decision on whether to settle rests solely with the parties. If the parties can reach an agreement on a resolution, the conciliation has been successful.
But what happens if the conciliation fails because the parties do not reach a mutual agreement to resolve their dispute or do not want to participate in conciliation? Is the next step “court?” Not necessarily. An alternative to court is another dispute resolution service offered by BBB—arbitration—which is offered by BBB free of charge. In arbitration, the parties present their dispute with evidence and argument to a neutral third party known as an arbitrator. The arbitrator listens to the witnesses, reviews evidence, and decides on the case's merits like a judge would do. The arbitrator's decision is binding on the parties. Contrasted with a court case, arbitration is generally considered to be advantageous because it is less expensive (especially compared to a jury trial), it is less “formal” than going to court, it provides for a quicker resolution, and it is “confidential” (meaning the proceeding is not a matter of public record). Arbitration may be required of an AB under the accreditation agreement.
BBB recommends that its ABs include binding arbitration in their contract if no satisfactory resolution to their issue is reached. ABs should contact BBB to use its dispute resolution services, up to and including binding arbitration. Doing so would likely be less expensive and provide a quicker dispute resolution.
For more information, please visit BBB Handling and Dispute Resolution.
