CLDP, in partnership with the Public Institution Centers for Judicial and Prosecutorial Training of the Federation of BiH (FBiH) and Republika Srpska (RS), held workshops on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), which included Arbitration, Mediation, and Court Settlement, in both Sarajevo and Banja Luka. 18 FBiH and 15 RS judges and law clerks took part in the two-day programs,  which included presentations, case studies and exercises, and examples from real practice in US ADR related disputes. The goal was to introduce BiH judges to practices, rules, and procedures of using ADR as a means of adjudicating commercial cases, to minimize court costs, increase procedural efficiency, and reduce the adversarial process in court proceedings.

The workshop led to engaging and educational exchanges between the experts and FBiH judges especially in adopting effective court settlement strategies as well as how best to support the growth of mediation as an out of court dispute resolution mechanism. It was visible from the discussions that the FBiH judges are, to a certain extent, familiar with concepts of both mediation and arbitration. During the discussions the judges noted the following challenges that have impeded the development of ADR in FBiH and RS. The workshops were led by Federal Chief Judge Loretta Preska from the Southern District of New York (SDNY), and Federal Judge Sidney Stein also from the SDNY.

These programs are part of the FBiH and RS Judicial and Prosecutorial Centers’ annual curriculum and thus will incorporate BiH trainers and topics most relevant to BiH judges. Through CLDP’s ongoing program of judicial capacity building, BiH judges throughout FBiH and RS will gain the skills necessary to fairly, efficiently, and effectively adjudicate salient topics related to international commercial disputes.