“The Early Settlement Mediation program has been a tremendous help to the courts in Oklahoma, providing mediation services to parties in conflict and giving them an opportunity to resolve their disputes in a peaceable manner. The volunteer mediators are quite skilled, and they do a great job of guiding the disputing parties through the mediation process. In most cases, the mediators are successful in helping the parties reach a resolution to their disputes.”

-Justice M. John Kane IV

The Alternative Dispute Resolution System, an Oklahoma Supreme Court Administrative Office of the Courts program, is recognized as having one of the top community-based, court-connected statewide conflict resolution programs in the nation. It was presented with the Golden Hammer Award from former U.S. Vice President Al Gore for making our communities and government more efficient.

Through 13 regional Early Settlement Mediation program centers, all 77 counties in Oklahoma have free mediation services available to all who wish to negotiate interpersonal matters. In fiscal year 2024, the Early Settlement Mediation program received 5,835 requests for mediation services and mediated over 4,100 cases, with an average resolution rate of over 70%.

In 1983, a group of legislators, including Sen. John McCune IV and Sen. Robert Henry, worked to get the Dispute Resolution Act, 12 O.S. 1801 et seq., passed by the Oklahoma Legislature and signed into law by the governor. The act stated that mediation services be designed “to provide to all citizens of this state convenient access to dispute resolution proceedings which are fair, effective, inexpensive and expeditious.” Many states across the country had passed similar legislation to provide an out-of-court opportunity for disputing parties to resolve their conflicts using a neutral mediator. In 1985, the Legislature authorized that $2 out of every civil case court filing would be used to fund the newly established program, in addition to a $5 fee from each party wanting to use the service on cases not filed in court (note that in 2016, the Legislature passed and the governor signed new legislation that increased the fee to $7 and did away with the $5 per-party fee for noncourt cases).

The Supreme Court of Oklahoma adopted the rules and procedures for the Dispute Resolution Act, 12 O.S. 1801 et seq., in 1986, providing guidelines for the establishment of dispute resolution centers.

A 15-member Dispute Resolution Advisory Board, appointed by the Supreme Court of Oklahoma, serves in an advisory role to the administrative director of the courts, who oversees the Alternative Dispute Resolution System. The state director of the Alternative Dispute Resolution System manages the program operations, which are based out of the Administrative Office of the Courts. Annual renewable grants are awarded to the sponsoring agencies by the administrative director of the courts, which provide funding for the regional Early Settlement Mediation program expenses. Program sponsors include regional universities and county governments.

The types of cases resolved by mediation through Early Settlement include, but are not limited to, small claims/civil, child custody, divorce, adult guardianship, child permanency, parent/school, real estate and neighbors. They may involve money, property, personal relationships, harassment, neighborhood disturbances, child permanency or other matters.

In 1996, the Oklahoma Supreme Court approved the implementation of family and divorce mediation through the Early Settlement Mediation program. Statistics, over time, have shown that three out of five marriages in Oklahoma end in divorce, and Oklahoma ranked as high as second in the nation for divorce rate. Family and divorce mediation requires more office time for case management, as each party must complete a pre-mediation interview to screen for potential domestic violence. Volunteer mediators are required to complete an additional 40-hour training to gain certification in these – many times – highly emotional cases. Parties have found mediation to be an empowering process and gives them the opportunity to resolve the case without the judge getting involved. In fiscal year 2024, there were over 2,100 family cases mediated by Early Settlement, with an average settlement rate of 74%.

Early Settlement mediators are community volunteers from all different walks of life who have completed specialized mediation training, have been observed mediating by the program director or certified volunteer mediator and are certified by the administrative director of the courts. Volunteer mediators assist the parties in negotiating and resolving their own problems. There are over 300 active volunteer mediators statewide.

Although mediation is an out-of-court process, in many cases, attorneys are still involved and provide an invaluable service to their clients. The work attorneys do in preparation for mediation or trial, if the case doesn’t settle, is helpful on all fronts. While mediation is not a process where the attorneys do depositions on the other side, the role of the attorney is being present and available to advise their client and, in some cases, provide additional information that helps give the mediator a clearer picture of issues being discussed. Many times, cases are settled with the attorney(s) advising the clients of what’s in their best interest when offers are put on the table. Ultimately, it’s up to the client to decide if the negotiated agreement is in their best interest versus going before the judge for a trial.

There are still a lot of people who attempt to represent themselves when conflicts arise. Mediation provides a good venue for pro se parties to sit down and, with the aid of the mediator, work through the issues in dispute. Early Settlement mediators encourage parties throughout the process that they have the right to retain or visit with an attorney. In advanced mediations – such as family mediations, where the parties reach an agreement – the agreement is written onto a memorandum of understanding, which is an unsigned form. The parties are encouraged to have an attorney review the memorandum of understanding before they file it as an agreed settlement.

The Child Permanency Mediation program is also used in our juvenile court system when a child (or children) has been in the state’s care and, in many cases, there is not a consensus recommendation on what is in the best interest of the child or children. It is an informal meeting facilitated by a neutral mediator, including all the people most closely connected with the case. Everyone is given an opportunity to speak and share concerns as well as possible solutions to the issues. The volunteer mediator encourages everyone to think about the options on the table and work for what is in the best interest of the child(ren). If an agreement is reached, it will be presented to the court for approval.

The Alternative Dispute Resolution System also has mediation services available for state employees through the state agency mediation programs. Many state agencies embrace the opportunity to have mediation available when conflicts arise, such as a supervisor-employee dispute.

The Civil Service Division of the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services has a mediation program available for all state agencies to refer cases using a neutral volunteer mediator from another outside agency. Cases that are resolved using mediation prevent parties, in many cases, from having to appear for a due process hearing. This program is widely used by most state agencies.

All three Oklahoma law schools participate in a student extern program offered through the local Early Settlement programs. The law students are required to complete specialized mediation training and become certified during the course of the externship. Over 500 law students have participated since the externship program was established in 2010.

The OBA and the Alternative Dispute Resolution System partnered for many years to offer peer mediation to Oklahoma schools. In 2021, the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program expanded the program statewide. Through the program, students are taught to use mediation as a positive force that can lessen the detrimental effects of conflict while increasing a student’s social skills and promoting a positive self-image. This is a free program that is available to all Oklahoma schools.

For more information on the Early Settlement Mediation program, visit adrs.oscn.net.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Phil Johnson has been with the Alternative Dispute Resolution System for 28 years, serving the last eight years as the state director.