Judicial Gold Card

The Private Judges on our Roster of Judges have experience in a variety of alternative dispute resolution services.

Arbitrations:

The arbitrator decides cases based on the evidence presented by the parties but the procedure is more informal and usually less protracted than taking such a matter to trial. Trial court evidentiary rules need not be followed and the arbitrator has more freedom in choosing a remedy than the trial judge. Awards can be binding or non binding. If binding, arbitration awards are most often final: there is usually no appeal or right to object to the trial court over the award.

Mediation/Settlement Conferences:

Mediation is a process of settlement of a case used early in the dispute in order to not only resolve the dispute but to expend less resources prior to the resolution. In a strict mediation, the mediator uses facilitative techniques to enable the parties to negotiate with each other satisfactorily, but the mediator does not impose any solution and maintains strict impartiality. A settlement officer also seeks to achieve settlements but is often chosen for his or her experience in adjudicating the type of case the parties have so that this experience can be used to guide the parties to a reasonable settlement. Retired judges are often chosen for such assignments due to their experience on the bench in conducting settlement conferences and their knowledge of the settlement value of various kinds of cases.

Discovery, Accounting and Other References:

Under Code of Civil Procedure Sections 638 and 639, the parties can select a referee to determine all the issues in the case or certain designated ones including discovery and accounting disputes. The parties are given the right to select the referee they wish to adjudicate those issues. The referee, after hearing the evidence and argument, reports the appropriate decisions to the court. Any dissatisfied party can object to the report and the referee’s recommendations to the trial judge. In most instances, the trial judge adopts the recommendations of the referee. This procedure is often suggested or ordered by the trial judge when the matter is too time consuming to be handled in the ordinary course of the court’s business.

Temporary Judging:

Under Article VI, Section 21 of the California Constitution, the parties and counsel can stipulate to using a retired judge, who, on appointment by a presiding judge of a court, serves on the case just as if he or she was a sitting judge. The rules of evidence and procedure are applied, a judgment and statement of decision are issued, and the judgment may be appealed to the Court of Appeal.