By John Malpas
& Rachel Halliburton
Corporate counsel have welcomed the establishment of a new mediation panel by a group of leading mediators.
The Panel of Independent Mediators (Pim) has been set up as a rival to existing mediation bodies such as the Centre for Dispute Resolutions (Cedr) and The Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Group.
All of the seven men on the panel, who used to mediate for either Cedr or the ADR Group, rank among the most experienced commercial mediators in Britain – and include Clifford Chance's Tony Willis and Sergeant's Inn head of chambers Philip Naughton QC.
Susan Ward, chair of the Bar Association of Commerce Finance and Industry (Bacfi), said that she welcomed the move.
"I am pleased to see the emergence of new mediation groups as it provides more choice," she said.
"When companies get into disputes with clients they do not want to lose them, but litigation tends to create acrimony and bad feeling."
Paul Gilbert, chair of the Law Society's commerce and industry group, added: "Mediation has been around for some time, but it is definitely becoming more popular.
"I certainly think it is the way forward – most businesses hate litigation. They hate the waste of time and they hate the uncertainty.
"They hate having meetings with counsel and being told they have a very good case, but it depends on the judge."
Naughton said PIM would advertise its services by means of a brochure, and members would be referred cases on a rota basis.
Willis said the group boasted "a collection of know-how driven by real experience".
He said they had no bad feelings towards Cedr, but wanted to specialise in commercial work.
Earlier this month the largest ever dispute to go through ADR was settled. The Atlantic Computers litigation, which was mediated by Cedr, involved eight separate parties and claims of more than £850m.