JAMS Announces Updated Arbitration Rules

July 9, 2014

Irvine, Calif. – In an effort to provide attorneys and their clients with the most up-to-date rules that suit the needs of their cases, JAMS is proud to announce it has revised its Comprehensive, Streamlined and Employment Arbitration Rules and Procedures, which became effective July 1. Changes to the three sets of rules incorporate the latest developments and trends in arbitration. They also touch on various parts of the arbitration process, such as the addition of new emergency relief procedures, and updates to existing rules for expedited procedures, hearing protocols and an appeal procedure.

“The new JAMS Rules are the latest demonstration that JAMS offers attorneys and their clients an exceptional arbitration process that aims to be efficient and cost effective,” said Chris Poole, JAMS president and CEO. “Our Rules continue to lead the market, and our skilled and respected arbitrators provide the highest quality of dispute resolution service on a global scale.”  

One of the most important changes is the addition of new Emergency Relief Procedures in the Comprehensive Arbitration Rules (Rule 2), which allow for the quick appointment of an Emergency Arbitrator to hear and resolve requests for emergency relief prior to the appointment of the case Arbitrator.

“The new JAMS Emergency Relief Procedures offer parties another option when they need to get a certain aspect of the case resolved quickly,” said Richard Chernick, vice president and managing director of the JAMS Arbitration Practice. “In most cases, appointment of an Emergency Arbitrator will be done within 24 hours of receipt of the request.”

In addition, the Rules were revised to permit hearings to be conducted via video-conference as well as telephonically. The updated Rules now allow parties to agree to use the JAMS Optional Arbitration Appeal Procedure at any time. The revision removes the previous requirement that parties had to agree to the Optional Appeal Procedures prior to the final award.

The Expedited Procedures were also amended to clarify that any party may request application of them. When parties utilizing JAMS Comprehensive Arbitration Rules elect to use these procedures, they agree to the voluntary and informal exchange of all non-privileged documents and other information relevant to the dispute.

Following are links to the summaries of revisions for the Comprehensive, Streamlined and Employment Arbitration Rules and Procedures.

About JAMS

Founded in 1979, JAMS is the largest private provider of mediation and arbitration services worldwide. With Resolution Centers nationwide and abroad, JAMS and its nearly 300 exclusive neutrals are responsible for resolving thousands of the world’s important cases. JAMS may be reached at 800-352-5267.