Welcome to Oregon Law’s Appropriate Dispute Resolution Center!
The University of Oregon Appropriate Dispute Resolution (ADR) Center is an interdisciplinary program of the University of Oregon School of Law. The ADR Center is consistently ranked in the top ten dispute resolution programs in the country.
Conflict is inevitable; individuals, organizations, and communities are best positioned to succeed when they possess the skills to manage conflict effectively. The ADR Center offers research support and experiential learning opportunities to students so that they can develop and practice skills in real-life contexts. Our objective is to provide both a strong theoretical grounding in conflict theory and problem solving as well as a relevant, practical skillset in dispute resolution, negotiation and deals, and group decisionmaking.
Appropriate or alternative? ADR commonly stands for “alternative dispute resolution,” but here at Oregon we use the term “appropriate dispute resolution.” The word "alternative" typically means "alternative to litigation" and envisions a set of practices that exist outside the traditional legal system. We prefer "appropriate" because we recognize that litigation and other court-connected procedures may sometimes — though not always — be the best approach for disputants. At Oregon, we train our students to consider the breadth of dispute resolution options thoughtfully and analytically, keeping the client's needs and particular circumstances at the forefront of the analysis.
