For Judges

We have complied some key information for judges and courts interested in using more alternative dispute resolution or starting a special program in their court.

Programs

Parents are Forever Family Mediation Program

Los Padres de Familia son Para Siempre, Mediacion de Familia

This program is a collaboration of the Supreme Court of Alabama and the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution. It provides families with family mediation when there are children, a family income under $60,000, and the judge orders parents to mediate a parenting and financial plan for their family.

- More information on the Family Mediation Program -

Foreclosure Prevention Mortgage Modification Mediation Program

Alabama has been one of the hardest hit states with respect to foreclosures. The Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution Inc., has been offering a FREE foreclosure mortgage modification mediation program to Homeowners.

This program has been so successful that in 2016 it was renewed for Phase II.

- More information on the Foreclosure Prevention Mortgage Modification Mediation Program -

More on Mediation

Advantages of Mediation

The courts are full of cases that could have been resolved before coming to trial if only the parties could have calmly discused their differences and worked it out.

Read about the advantages of using mediation to resolve disputes.

Alabama Mandatory Mediation Act

The Act, which was effective May 17, 1996 defines situations in which mediation is mandatory under Alabama law.

Read the Alabama Mandatory Mediation Act.

Judges Mediation Bench Book: A Resource for Alabama Trial Judges (2nd Edition)

This handy Judge’s Mediation Bench Book puts all the law, court rules, code of ethics, forms, and information about mediation in one place so you know about the process and can take advantage of it. This 2nd edition of the Alabama Judges' Mediation Bench Book, was updated and published in 2016. It is available for download as a PDF file. Download the Judges Mediation Bench Book.

Private Judges

The Alabama Private Judge Act authorized the appointment of former or retired judges to serve as private judges in certain district and circuit court cases. - More -

Arbitrators

Arbitration agreements, are often found in pre-printed consumer contracts. They require parties to the contract to resolve disputes in binding arbitration, rather than in court before a judge and/or jury. - More -

Mediators

Mediation is a confidential, informal process during which an impartial third party, the mediator, assists disputing parties in reaching a mutually acceptable agreement regarding their dispute.

General Mediation offers a path to resolving many disputes. - More -
Family Mediation offers divorce and family mediation for parenting, divorce and post-divorce issues. - More -
Forclosure Prevention and Mortgage Modification Mediation offers specially-trained mediators to assist Alabama citizens with foreclosure and mortgage problems by mediating between the homeowner and the mortgage holder. - More -

Keeping your Information Safe

In keeping with industry standards, we have implemented a Secure Certificate on our website. You may see a lock symbol, a green color or the https:// protocol in the address bar. These indicate that you are accessing the real ACDR website and that the website encrypts transmitted data for additional protection.

SPAM

Due to a high volume of spam, if you receive any communication from an entity purporting to be or representing the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution, please verify by contacting the Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution at (334) 356-3802.

Identity thieves continually develop new ways to try to find out your personal information. Some common tip-offs that an email is phony are typos, grammatical mistakes, awkward language, missing words, extra spaces, and other signs that the email was written unprofessionally. Such emails might also ask you to look at an attachment or click a link and then give your personal information on a Web page or in a form. Or the sender’s email address might look suspicious. However, attackers are getting better at creating phony emails that look legitimate, so if you feel at all uncomfortable about an email that claims to be from the Center contact us.

Alabama Center for Dispute Resolution