ADR Vs. ODR In Modern Dispute Resolution
- IJLLR Journal
- Aug 30
- 2 min read
Nachiketh R Reddy, B.A.LL.B. (Hons.), LLM, Advocate, High Court of Karnataka, Bengaluru
ABSTRACT
This article takes a practitioner’s view of how ADR has matured, and how ODR has come of age. The core claim is simple: technology has not rewritten dispute resolution; it has widened its reach. Using the familiar building blocks of negotiation, mediation, conciliation, and arbitration, the paper shows how online processes preserve what matters in practice: party autonomy, procedural fairness, confidentiality, and enforceability, while removing costs and geography from the equation.
Set against India’s persistent case backlog and the post pandemic shift to remote hearings, the analysis explains where ODR genuinely adds value: faster timetables, easier access to specialist neutrals, and workable cross border participation. It also treats the hard problems head on: the integrity of consent online, identity verification, cybersecurity, the digital divide, and the documentary rigour needed to turn online outcomes into enforceable rights.
What this really means for counsel and tribunals is a calibration exercise. The paper offers criteria for choosing the right process and format (in person, online, or hybrid), guidance on seat and governing law where proceedings are virtual, and practical guardrails: secure platforms, clear protocol on electronic signatures and exhibits, auditable consent records, and minimum due process guarantees for remote testimony. It reads the prevailing instruments, including arbitration statutes, the New York Convention, and contemporary mediation frameworks, through a technology neutral lens, showing that ODR can sit comfortably within existing law.
The conclusion is pragmatic: ADR and ODR are not rivals. Used intelligently, they are complementary tools that deliver quicker, cheaper, and still reliable outcomes. The task for practitioners is to design processes that keep the virtues of the hearing room while harnessing the advantages of the screen.
