A History of Alternative Dispute Resolution: The Story of a Political, Social, and Cultural Movement

By Jerome T. Barrett and Joseph Barrett

A History of Alternative Dispute Resolution offers a comprehensive review of the various types of peaceful practices for resolving conflicts. Written by Jerome Barrett—a longtime practitioner, innovator, and leading historian in the field of ADR—and his son Joseph Barrett, this volume traces the evolution of the ADR process and offers an overview of the precursors to ADR, including negotiation, arbitration, and mediation. The authors explore the colorful beginnings of ADR using illustrative examples from prehistoric Shaman through the European Law Merchant. In addition, the book offers the historical context for the use of ADR in the arenas of diplomacy and business.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wiley
• Release date: Oct 19, 2004
• ISBN: 9780787975425

Jerome T. Barrett

John O'Dowd is a consultant and facilitator specializing in industrial and employee relations. Much of his work lies in helping employers and trade unions to work together to develop better industrial relations and to develop effective ways of handling change together in the workplace. Through John O'Dowd Consultants Ltd (www.johnodowd.com) he provides a range of consulting, training, facilitation and mediation services to employers and trade unions. His website is www.johnodowd.com. He brings to his work a deep practical and theoretical understanding of industrial relations and organisational change. From 1997 to 1999 he was Joint Director of the National Centre for Partnership, based in the Department of the Taoiseach. In that role he was responsible for the promotion and facilitation of partnership in a range of organizations across the public sector, including health boards, local authorities, commercial state companies, universities, government departments and others. He developed the first standardised training materials for newly formed partnership groups in the public sector. He published Employee Partnership in Ireland (Oak Tree Press) in 1998 and Organisational Change through Partnership: Promise, Performance and Prospects for Irish Firms (The Liffey Press, Dublin in 2010. He was Assistant General Secretary of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland from 1980 to 1988. He was General Secretary, Civil and Public Service Union from 1988 to 1997. During that time he was also a member of the Executive Council of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and took part in the negotiation of national programmes. He is a graduate of University College Dublin (UCD). He has a BA in English and French, a Higher Diploma in Education, and a PhD. He also holds an MBA from the Open University Business School. He blogs on industrial relations and organisational change at http://johnodowdconsultants.wordpress.com/

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