Encourage, Facilitate & Endorse amicable and if not possible alternative dispute resolution to facilitate business transactions and significantly improve business environment
OUR MISSION
The Russian full-scale military aggression against Ukraine, resulted in the suffering of dozens of millions of Ukrainians, devastation of the country’s economy, and physical infrastructure. Envisioned reconstruction of Ukraine will require mobilization of significant public and private investments. One of the important obstacles which may be a constrain in the business engagement in the rebuilding of Ukraine is ineffective conflict resolution mechanism which is engraved by the ineffective and often bias judiciary. To address this deficit European Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ECADR) is being created as an international (American, Norwegian, Polish, Swiss) and Ukrainian effort to set up mechanisms supporting development of the fair, efficient and objective business-related alternative dispute resolution mechanism.
Core Values
DEVELOPMENT
Development, implementation and continuing improvements of the innovative concepts, mechanisms, tools and practices of the Alternative Dispute Resolution through negotiation, mediation, arbitration and conciliation.
APPLICATION
Application of new technologies, especially digital, into the practice of Alternative Dispute Resolution.
EDUCATION
Teaching, training, supporting, and educating key stakeholders about the benefits of the alternative dispute resolutions.
OUR PROCESS
1) The parties commitment to settle the potential dispute in an amicable way. If the commitment is not upheld by either party it will then be subject to the Alternative Dispute Resolution and financial penalties.
2) The parties agree to settle the dispute based on the ECADR location law system. If the dispute resolution isn’t met in an amicable way, this commitment will be subject to namely Polish & EU law and financial penalties.
3) Collection of insurance and eventually the fixed deposit fee as a guarantee of the commitments outlined in steps 1 & 2
Digital Innovations for Alternative Dispute Resolution in V4 Countries and Ukraine
(DIGARD V4U)
The project is co–financed by the governments of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through Visegrad Grants from the International Visegrad Fund. The mission of the fund is to advance ideas for sustainable regional cooperation in Central Europe
Planned project duration: 01/11/2024–30/04/2026
The International Visegrad Fund is an international donor organization established by the governments of the Visegrad Group (V4) countries (the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). Its aim is to support closer understanding and cooperation among people in the V4 region, as well as between the V4 region and other countries and regions, particularly in the non-EU neighborhood of the Eastern Partnership countries and in the Western Balkans. The fund fosters the development of civil society by financing joint grant projects and by awarding university scholarships and artist residencies.
Project context:
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), as mediation, arbitration, and negotiation, has significantly progressed in V4 with technological advancements. ICT, big data, or AI brings opportunities, while the conditions in each country and sector on adoption, diffusion and advancement of digital innovation significantly vary. The ADR professionals need advancement of digital capabilities, e.g. skilled operation and exploitation of the digitized knowledge to ease/support their entrepreneurship, networking, and services for clients. Innovative formats of communication between the arbitration institution and the parties, cybersecurity, speeding up and simplification of procedural rules, use of online platforms do not come into use easily.
Professionals face digital literacy, privacy concerns, and the digital divide.
Professionals face digital literacy, privacy concerns, and the digital divide.
The project aims to develop a ready–to–apply awareness on digital innovations of the V4 and Ukrainian actors of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) via analysis of the existing practices, benchmarking necessary competencies and designing and pilot–testing of the online course in English and Ukrainian. It will support Ukraine in its judicial transformations, will share and enrich V4 experience via developing a set of research–based educational tools and materials and their wide promotion. It is a cross–sectoral effort of ADR, digital innovations and educational professionals towards the unique and up–to–date topic relevant for each partner country. The lack of understanding of best practices and availability of suitable technology impacts the scope of collaboration between ADR and IT sectors.
Project target groups
ADR organisations (organisation operating ADR), organisations wanting to establish their own ADR in V4 and Ukraine; ADR professionals as individuals interested in their professional advancement and future–to–be ADR professionals.
Legal practitioners and students in the target countries.
Digital sector professionals and organisations working in innovations who would like to cooperate with the ADR sector or already provide their digital services/solutions.
(indirect beneficiaries) National and local justice bodies engaged in dispute, legal matters on the ADR, both of public and non–governmental nature/
(indirect beneficiaries) Potential consumers of the ADR providers services.
First Working Meeting and Study Visit of the DIGARD V4U Visegrad Project Consortium Held in Krakow
On 21-22 November 2024, a first working meeting of the project ‘Digital Innovations for Alternative Dispute Resolution in the Visegrad Countries and Ukraine’ (DIGARD V4U), co-financed by the governments of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through the Visegrad Grants of the International Visegrad Fund, was held in Krakow, Poland. It was hosted by the partner organisation ‘European Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution’ (ECADR) and was aimed o equip the teams with evidence of the current situation in the ADR sector and provide the opportunity to interact with the practitioners. This will help to design a general framework for the future desk research.
The meeting was combined with a study visit where the SET University, which is the coordinator of the project, has invited an ADR expert from Ukraine – Ms. Alla Chaika, a leading professional of the Ukrainian National Office for Intellectual Property and Innovation (IP office). This gave her an opportunity to meet the colleagues practicing ADR in Visegrad countries, discuss the current state-of-the-art and exchange with the recommendations for the coming desk research within the DIGARD V4U project.
For the reference: the aim of the project is to raise awareness of digital innovations in Ukraine and the Visegrad countries in the field of alternative dispute resolution by analysing existing practices, benchmarking the required competencies, and developing and piloting an online course in English and Ukrainian. The project supports Ukraine in reforming its judicial system, disseminate and enrich the Visegrad experience by developing research-based educational tools and materials and disseminating them widely. More about the project.
The DIGARD V4U project is co-financed by the governments of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through Visegrad Grants from the International Visegrad Fund. The mission of the fund is to advance ideas for sustainable regional cooperation in Central Europe.
Consortium
ECADR emphasizes innovation in negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and conciliation, leveraging cutting-edge digital technologies. Crucial to the the project are education, training and research which are central to the ECADR’s mission. The foundation’s scope extends to assisting victims of disasters, conflicts, and wars locally and globally, supporting economic development, entrepreneurship, and innovation. As an end-user and supporting partner, ECARD cooperates closely with the S€DCE€.
SET is a private nonprofit higher education institution and is among the top-providers of digital innovation and entrepreneurial education in Ukraine. It operates in a blended format, closely cooperating with IT business companies and startups to bring up-to-date agile knowledge and practice to its learners. The strategic educational areas are cybersecurity, AI, blockchain, DeepTech, innovations, and startups. Another strategic focus of interest is bringing science closer to market.
CHES has experience from various international projects mainly focusing on quality assurance of education, digitally enhanced learning and digital innovations. CHES key staff is also experienced in design thinking methodology and obtained EURASHE Star Award for Digitalization 2023. It was a leader of an IVF project focused on developing entrepreneurial skills in which cooperated with CU.
Corvinus University, a higher education institution, is focused on business, management and social sciences. In the Communication and Media BA, MA and PhD programmes, the staff gained experience in teaching Negotiation Techniques, Communication Dynamics, Network Communication under the topic of digital-based communication and disputes resolution.
EISI is a NGO dedicated to the intersection of technology, law, and the information society. Its background in Internet law, intellectual property rights, and alternative domain dispute resolution positions it as a valuable contributor to the project. EISI established in 2017 the Arbitration Center for Alternative Domain Dispute Resolution (ADR Center), which is still the only ADR Center in Slovakia authorized to arbitrate disputes from the .sk domain.