Steven Schwartz and Ben Schwartz are Arbitration Lawyers who provide arbitration services in personal injury and other matters. Arbitration hearings may be conducted in our Wilmington, Delaware or Dover, Delaware offices. Types of cases that are appropriate for arbitration include automobile accident and premises (slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall) cases, employment, and commercial disputes where all parties are represented by counsel. We are available for both non-binding and binding arbitration hearings.
We are Arbitration Lawyers
Old Fashioned Rule 16.1-type Non-Binding Arbitration
We had a lot of fun handling small personal injury cases when Superior Court Civil Rule 16.1 was in effect. Under that rule, the discovery stayed and the case was referred for arbitration. In the “good old days” of Rule 16.1, we were battling our smaller cases out in arbitration every week or sitting as arbitrators in others’ cases, and most cases were resolved without a request for trial de novo. In our experience, it was fast, it was cheap and it worked.
You can still get an old fashioned Rule 16.1-type arbitration in your personal injury case through our arbitration service. Here’s how it works:
- Stipulate that your case will be submitted to us for non-binding arbitration. Download our form stipulation below or make your own.
- Let us know the names of all parties and witnesses. We will perform a conflict check and once that is cleared, a hearing will be scheduled.
- Submit your arbitration exhibits at least one week prior to the hearing. You may rely on the police report, medical records and doctors’ narratives and IME reports. Redact any references to insurance coverage. We don’t want to know how much coverage exists.
- We will issue an arbitration order by fax or email within five business days after the hearing. If you don’t agree with our assessment, simply report to the Court that the arbitration hearing did not resolve the case. You may then continue under your trial scheduling order. If no one “appeals”, then your case is resolved.
- We are available for non-binding arbitration before or after discovery is complete. It doesn’t matter much to us (so long as you don’t submit voluminous Answers to Interrogatories and deposition transcripts in your arbitration exhibits).
- Most arbitration hearings are expected to take an hour or less.
- This type of arbitration is very effective in cases where liability may not be contested, but damages must be assessed by a third-party neutral due to the parties’ inability to agree on a settlement figure.
Binding Arbitration
We are also available for binding arbitrations in personal injury, employment, and commercial cases. There are two types of binding arbitration that are popular:
- High-low. In a binding high-low arbitration, the parties agree ahead of time to the parameters of the arbitration award. For example, in a 100/70 binding high-low, the award will not be greater than $100,000 nor below $70,000. The parties usually choose not to advise the arbitrator of the parameters of the high-low agreement but confirm the Arbitrator’s Order to the agreement after it is rendered. The parties also may agree to submit the limits in a sealed envelope, with the understanding that the arbitrator will decide upon an award, then open the envelop and confirm the order if necessary. By doing so, counsel avoids having a disappointed client as a result of an order that is outside the range of what was expected.
- Baseball. In a binding baseball arbitration, the parties must submit two numbers to the arbitrator – the arbitration award the Plaintiff seeks, and the arbitration award the defendant would like to pay. The arbitrator may either award the Plaintiff’s number or award the Defendant’s number. In baseball arbitration, both parties have a good reason to submit reasonable figures, as the arbitrator will select the number closest to what he feels should be awarded.
To request arbitration or a fee quote, please contact Ben Schwartz directly.
STIPULATION TO NON-BINDING ARBITRATION – PDF
STIPULATION TO NON-BINDING ARBITRATION – MS WORD DOCUMENT
