Alternative Dispute Resolution

Mr. Donald Walker has been a practicing attorney in Michigan for 32 years, and is a long-standing expert in the three primary forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution, where legal disputes are decided outside of court: Arbitration, Mediation, and Facilitation.

Arbitration is a mechanism where the parties to a dispute refer it to a completely neutral person called an arbitrator, who decides the case based on each party’s oral (and often written) arguments and enters an “award” accordingly. It is a resolution technique in which this third party reviews the briefs, testimony, and other evidence in the case and imposes a decision that is legally binding upon both parties and enforceable in court.

 

Mediation is a voluntary and non-binding process in which two or more parties involved in a dispute work with an impartial party, the mediator, to generate their own solutions in settling their conflict. Unlike a judge or an arbitrator, whose decisions must ultimately favor one party, mediation is about finding a solution that works best for both parties.

Facilitation is a concept very similar to Mediation, but often involves disputes among a group or multiple parties. It utilizes a facilitator, who helps a collection of people understand their common objectives and assists them in achieving them without taking any particular position in the discussion. It is also non-binding, and completely voluntary.

For the past 11 years, Alternative Dispute Resolution has been the exclusive focus of Mr. Walker’s primary practice. In addition, he uses these skills in local government. He is on the Orion Township Board of Review, whereby he assists in deciding property tax appeals for local residents. In addition, he is a long-time member of the Orion Township Zoning Board of Appeals, where his decision making skills are also utilized with regard to property issues. He also sits on the Orion Township Planning Commission, where decisions are made with regard to the future of Orion Township—a place that he has called his home for the past 24 years.

 

His earlier practice consisted of insurance defense and corporate litigation for a variety of clients for approximately 20 years. During that time, he handled thousands of cases that were resolved prior to litigation, proceeded to arbitration, or were litigation and ultimately tried by a jury. Based upon those experiences, he began his full-time practice in these forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

 

Mr. Walker has presided as the neutral Arbitrator, Mediator, or Facilitator on thousands upon thousands of cases since 2001. Experience, intelligence, and temperament make him ideally suited for these types of processes.