The Truth About Alternative Dispute Resolution in Pakistan

Small and Medium Enterprises make up about 90% of businesses in Pakistan, employ 80% of the nation’s non-agro workforce and contribute towards 40% of country’s GDP. Unlike the large enterprise sector, one of the biggest challenges an SME has to struggle against is the financial constraints and risks involved with being in the sector that they belong to. And where you have constraints that involve contractual agreements and almost unlimited liability, spending 5 to 10 years in litigation is simply not an option.

Believe it or not, ‘contract enforcement in Pakistan’ involves an average of 47 procedures and up to 10 years in the legal system (Refer to Doing Business Report 2008). Because of the time lag involved the process of Dispute Resolution becomes a costly exercise. With more than 1.5 million cases backlogged in the Courts, formal Dispute Resolution becomes an inefficient mechanism that stunts growth in the local economy and discourages business in general.

As mentioned earlier, Alternative dispute resolution includes dispute resolution processes and techniques that are usually outside of the realm of the government judicial process. There are generally four types of ADR: negotiation, mediation, collaborative law and arbitration.

Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) offers companies an opportunity to apply the full force of the law efficiently and effectively. Whereas the system has no choice but to apply justice through the natural course of a clogged court schedule, a mediator is mutually agreed upon by all parties involved, to interact with one another and generate a solution which is recognized by the law under Section 89 A and Order X Rule 1A of the CPC.

A Mediator is an impartial professional trained to help disputed parties find solutions. The Mediator is skilled in unlocking these negotiations, keeping everyone focused on finding a solution. KCDR (Karachi Conflict Dispute Resolution) conducts trainings led by internationally accredited Mediators on a regular basis on alternate dispute resolution & mediation.