ADR: Practice & Governance for States - A Practical Guidebook on Alternative Dispute Resolution for Policymakers 

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Coordinator of U.S. Assistance to Europe and Eurasia, CLDP partnered with a diverse team of ADR experts to develop an open-access, plain-language handbook for policymakers on alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Alternative Dispute Resolution: Practice & Governance for States (the Handbook) is meant to be a reference for policymakers and regulators on the purpose and design of ADR systems, the incorporation of ADR mechanisms into existing systems, and ways ADR can support policy goals.

The English-language version of the Handbook can be downloaded in full here. 

The Handbook is also available in Albanian, Arabic, Bosnian, Macedonian, Serbian and Ukrainian.

The Handbook was authored in 2025 by a diverse team of ADR experts, including government officials, lawyers, public policy experts, and academics. 

 Overview of Each Chapter

• Chapter 1: Historical Context, ADR Overview and What This Book Provides 
• Chapter 2: Stakeholders: Parties and Institutions Shaping ADR 

Highlights key individuals and institutions involved in mediation and arbitration (directly or indirectly), the various frameworks within which they mutually interact, and their respective rights and obligations. 

• Chapter 3: Mediation 

Provides a well-rounded insight into the purpose, principles, and practices of mediation as a dispute resolution mechanism, distinct from arbitration or litigation. 

• Chapter 4: Arbitration Overview

Focuses on international arbitration, focusing on the distinction between commercial and investment arbitration, the key instruments of consent to international arbitration, and the international legal framework. 

• Chapter 5: Arbitration Procedure and Practice 

Covers arbitration procedure and practice and discusses case management tools, milestones, and procedures, along with tested methods to ensure procedural efficiency and effectiveness.

• Chapter 6: Post-award, Post-agreement Procedures 

Addresses post-award and post-agreement procedures and provides a key analysis of the legal and procedural mechanisms for recognizing and enforcing international decisions and awards arising from ADR proceedings. 

• Chapter 7: A Roadmap to Designing Effective and Efficient ADR System 

Provides CLDP’s roadmap for designing and implementing effective and efficient ADR systems, highlighting that building an effective ADR system is not the result of a single reform but the cumulative impact of coordinated action across legal, judicial, institutional, educational, and cultural domains. 

• Appendix A: CLDP Road Map for Strengthening Judicial Support for ADR 
• Appendix B: CLDP Road Map for Designing Effective Independent ADR Institutions 

CLDP's ADR Road Maps: Strengthening Judicial Support for ADR and Designing Effective, Independent ADR Institutions

The Handbook includes two practical roadmaps which focus, respectively, on strengthening judicial support for ADR, and designing effective, independent ADR institutions. CLDP designed each roadmap to serve as both a diagnostic framework for judiciaries and ADR Centers to evaluate their current practices, as well as a step-by-step guide for judiciaries to enhance their effectiveness and support for ADR and for ADR Centers working to strengthen their capacity and international standing.

The judicial support roadmap, included as Appendix A to the Handbook, provides a practical reference tool for policymakers, judges, and court administrators and identifies six ways that the judiciary can support arbitration better and enhance the jurisdiction’s credibility and effectiveness. These range from creating specialized panels of judges with arbitration or commercial law expertise, to collaborating with arbitral institutions to improve transparency and align expectations. Appendix A also includes practical suggestions to implement each of these six institutional steps. 

The effective independent ADR institutions roadmap, included as Appendix B to the Handbook, is another practical reference tool for practitioners, policymakers and emerging ADR institutions.  It identifies seven key features underpinning effective independent ADR institutions. These range from focusing on case management excellence to increasing regional cooperation and international positioning. Again, Appendix B includes practical steps for each of the seven key features. 

CLDP's Technical Assistance Capabilities for ADR

The Commercial Law Development Program's highly skilled teams of attorney-advisors and international program specialists provide legal technical support to governments on the policy, legal and regulatory reforms related to ADR. These efforts help improve partner countries' competitiveness for foreign direct investment, while also improving judicial efficiency by decreasing judicial caseloads and assisting with implementing efficient, cost-effective means of resolving disputes in support of U.S. businesses abroad. 

CLDP's work often takes the form of one or more of the following initiatives: 

• Judicial and Government Official Training: Provide training to judges and other government officials on ADR proceedings, arbitration agreements, awards, tribunals and enforcement and international best practices 
• Drafting Assistance: Coordinate drafting sessions and provide comments and technical review of national legislation on mediation and arbitration 
• Court-Annexed ADR Programs: Assist with the establishment of court-annexed ADR programs in a variety of jurisdictions 
• ADR Center Capacity-Building: Engage with local private ADR centers in a variety of jurisdictions to build their capacity on business operations and development and case management 
• Practitioner Engagement: Provide training and practical toolkits and checklists for practitioners in a variety of jurisdictions who engage in international arbitration and mediation 
• Judicial Exchanges: Convene judicial exchanges between judges and experts from the United States and other model jurisdictions to assist in developing and sharing international best practices with counterpart judiciaries