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This study examined the legal issues of public employee labor relations in the United States. Included in this study is a review of relevant case law as it pertains to collective bargaining in the public sector. In addition to reviewing the case law, this study researched the statutory language of each state for public sector collective bargaining. The study includes a review, analysis, and summary of the state and federal laws for public sector collective bargaining. The collective bargaining process in the United States is designed to resolve disputes between two parties, the employer and the employee. The resolution of these disputes often depends on the relative bargaining power of each party. The private sector has a collective bargaining process that has been well established since the passage of the National Labor Relations Act in 1935 and the Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947. The federal laws that have been implemented in the last fifty years, to include the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, the American with Disabilities Act of 1990, among others, cover the scope of almost all of the private sector collective bargaining (Oberer, 1994). The public sector contains 50 different state laws and several federal laws defining the scope of collective bargaining for public employees. The bargaining process in the public sector takes place in the context of the political arena. This political influence, which is unique in each state and at each level of government, provides additional steps to the bargaining process that further differentiate public sector bargaining from private (Valletta, 1985). This study provides conclusions on certain aspects of public sector collective bargaining that lead to dispute resolution and contract negotiation to include fact-finding procedures, mediation, arbitration, and strike policies, in the current state of the law. Recommendations are made to public officials, policy makers, and other stakeholders for the future of public employee labor relations in the United States.

The construction industry has been plagued with an increasing number of claims and high litigation costs. How do we reduce conflict and litigation in the construction process? On one hand, leaders of the construction industry in the United States (US) focused their efforts on improving alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. For instance, the American Society of Civil Engineers has introduced the Dispute Review Board (DRB) as a complementary provision to standard US construction practices. The establishment of the DRB to solve construction disputes on the job, avoid claims, and reduce project costs has proven considerable success. On the other hand, construction industry leaders in the United Kingdom (UK) have focused some of their efforts on improving general contract conditions. The Council of the Institution of Civil Engineers of the UK has introduced the New Engineering Contract (NEC) to the construction industry as an alternative to presently used contracts. The NEC proposes to be an innovative, non-adversarial mechanism to resolve disputes on the job, avoid and reduce claims, and to assuage rising litigation costs in the construction industry. It too has proven considerable success in its efforts. This research concentrates on the DRB and the NEC as attempts by construction leaders to modernize and improve construction practices. In summary, the research compares the success stories of the DRB and the NEC as approaches to combating the adversarial nature, increasing number of disputes and rising litigation costs in the construction industry. The main conclusions ascertained in this research are as follows. Despite coming from similar business environments, construction industry leaders in the US and the UK embarked on different methods to address the issues plaguing the industry and to improve construction practices. Both in the US and the UK, construction leaders were mostly influenced to proactively seek and implement change in construction practices by experts from within the engineering and construction industry vanguard. The undertaking of these changes have shown similar success stories and the results have produced substantial impacts on the construction process. In conclusion, the efforts of construction leaders to implement the DRB and the NEC have provided effective mechanisms in improving communication and relations, and managing disputes in a timely fashion at the job site level. / Master of Science

Corruption, and in particular the bribery of public officials, causes great harm to society, especially in countries with economies in transition and in developing countries. Pervasive corruption affects both citizens and businesses. This phenomenon, unfortunately, has also affected the practice of international investment arbitration, where the arbitration tribunal, in the course of resolving disputes between an investor and the state, has to deal with facts of possible corruption (giving a bribe, bribing the public officials, and so on) on the part of investors during the entry into the state market, which, undoubtedly, does not correspond to the legal norms of almost any state. This fact is used by states (as a rule, respondents in investment arbitration) as a tool to exclude the jurisdiction of the investment arbitration tribunal. In this paper, an in-depth analysis of the legal mechanisms for excluding the jurisdiction of the arbitration tribunal in connection with investor corruption will be provided, as well as a number of high-profile investment arbitration cases in which the arbitration tribunal ruled that there was no jurisdiction due to corrupt actions of the investor during the investment process will be examined.

There is a divide between the fields of Conflict Resolution (CR) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) that impacts on the transfer of knowledge and skills. This is the central hypothesis investigated and confirmed through analysis of the literatures of the two fields, the responses to a questionnaire to practitioners, and autoethnographic interrogation. A generational analysis of authors is combined with the results of a (N=28) questionnaire with practitioners from both fields. This delineates the divide in the theory and literature as well as how those operating in each field identify, conceptualise mediation and what they read. The autoethnography explores the fundamental impact of on conflict role definitions generally and the mediator specifically. It then looks at the impact of crossing the ADR/CR divide on mediation practice, highlighting the necessity for practitioners of a ‘both and’ approach to skills/ knowledge and attitude/qualities. This leads to the consideration of a framework for mediator competence across the ADR/CR divide. The interaction of the mediators’ normative project and the ability of parties to self-determine is explored practically and ethically. This highlights a range of issues with expectations mediation and mediators and foregrounds the impact on the mediator of the mediator role. It ends with a call for further research using innovative methodologies, such as autoethnography, that illuminate mediation as a relational process.

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Mediation of special education disputes varies between states. This study addressed the ways in which the practices and methods of evaluation differ between five states: Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New Jersey. This includes such factors as provision of services, alternative dispute resolution procedures, mediation style, and mediator training. Data were examined regarding mediation rates, rates of agreement, and the types of students/issues involved. The research focused on the ways the states used participant feedback to assess their own performance. Extant data from two states, Iowa and Minnesota, were examined to determine which factors impacted overall evaluation of the mediation process and satisfaction with the outcome. States were similar regarding the provision of services, although the agency overseeing mediation differed. Methods of alternative dispute resolution varied greatly, and were strongly tied to the perspective of each state. Large differences were found between states relating to mediation usage and agreement rates. Content analyses were conducted on the survey instruments. The greatest number of questions addressed the impact on the relationship between participants, followed by fairness of the process, and then skills of the mediator. Overall, participants were satisfied with the mediation process. Satisfaction with the outcome was moderate to high, but diminished over time. There were no significant differences in satisfaction ratings between parents and school officials in either state, but individuals who reached a resolution were most satisfied with the mediation process. The ability to discuss and understand the important issues was the largest predictor of satisfaction. Improved communication in the long term was strongly related to satisfaction, but improved communication within the mediation session was not. Additionally, Iowa parents felt more satisfied when they were better able to understand their own perspective and their views were considered before any solutions or agreements were made. Iowa school officials were more satisfied when they were better able to understand the parents' perspective. In Minnesota, an improved relationship with the other party predicted greater satisfaction with the mediation outcome for the school officials, but not parents. Mediator skills and impartiality were important factors for the school officials only. / School Psychology

The number of Ombudsman offices in U.S. federal agencies rose dramatically in the 1990s. This study investigates why, despite the efforts of policymakers to force staff reductions across the federal government, Ombudsman offices continued to be established to the point that almost every agency has an Ombudsman. This study uses neo-institutionalist theory to pinpoint indicators that explain what has triggered the proliferation of external facing Ombudsmen in the federal government. The results of this historical retrospective investigation, which uses a mixed methods approach, indicate that the offices were created to ensure procedural justice and as a response to both: stakeholder pressures (since the population became more vocal and active, demanding access to the government, transparency, and accountability) and congressional mandates (such as the Administrative Dispute Resolution Act (ADRA) of 1990 and 1996 the Alternative Dispute Resolution Acts from 1998). This is consistent with neo-institutionalist expectations that organizations change as the result of pressures from forces in the environment combined with the drive for survival. As change accelerates, isomorphism occurs as organizations and agencies adopt strategies that have worked for other similar organizations in their environment. / Ph. D. / This study investigates why, despite the efforts of policymakers to force staff reductions across the federal government, external facing Ombudsman offices continued to be established in the U.S. federal government, to the point that almost every agency has an Ombudsman. This study uses neo-institutionalist theory to pinpoint indicators that explain what has triggered the proliferation of these entities. The results of this historical retrospective investigation indicate that the offices were created to ensure procedural justice and as a response to both: stakeholder pressures (since the population became more vocal and active, demanding access to the government, transparency, and accountability) and congressional mandates (such as the Administrative Dispute Resolution Act (ADRA) of 1990 and 1996 the Alternative Dispute Resolution Acts from 1998).

Complex bargaining between domestic and international actors has characterized world trade since the end of World War II. Moravcsik's commercial liberalism explains that trade policy stems from individuals within democracies, who indicate rational preferences to the government. In the structure of Putnam's two-level game, preferences are then aggregated by self-interested government officials who must reconcile constituency interests with pressures from foreign partners to form trade policy. Since 1995, the structure of world trade has been fundamentally redefined by the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Dispute Settlement Understanding has erected a supranational trade judiciary, effectively institutionalizing global increasingly free trade. The independent authority of the WTO has created a three-level strategic game between the domestic, international, and supranational political economic arenas. As illustrated in the softwood lumber dispute and the Boeing-Airbus dispute, the three-level game further empowers a powerful minority to capitalize on a collective action problem in world trade via dispute settlement. Olson's logic of collective action explains the ability of small self-interested coalitions to seek rent from the government, compromising the interests of the latent constituency majority. The result is a politicization of world trade that ultimately threatens the very underpinnings of the WTO itself.

Magistro baigiamasis darbas skirtas ginčų, kylančių tarp vartotojų ir verslininkų, alternatyvaus sprendimo analizei. Darbo pradžioje nagrinėjama problemos, susijusios su alternatyvaus ginčų sprendimo (toliau - AGS) samprata, atskleidžiami AGS privalumai ir trūkumai, jo reikšmė vartotojų teisių gynimo sistemoje. Antroje darbo dalyje apžvelgiama atskirų AGS procedūrų įvairovė, jų ypatumai bei taikymo sąlygos, taip pat pateikiama šių procedūrų visumos (tame tarpe - jų klasifikacijų) analizė. Galiausiai yra gvildenamos neteisminiam vartotojų teisių gynimui esminės įtakos turėjusios Europos Sąjungos (toliau - ES) iniciatyvos, ES valstybių narių praktika, ir, įvertinus Lietuvoje vyraujančias tendencijas, jos institucinę ir įstatyminę bazę, atskleidžiamos problemos, su kuriomis susiduria mūsų valstybės vartotojai. Darbas aktualus ir naudingas tiek teoriniame, tiek praktiniame lygmenyje: kadangi AGS vartotojų teisių srityje Lietuvoje pakankamai naujas, tradicijų kol kas dar neturintis reiškinys, tyrimo rezultatai galės būti panaudoti ne tik gerosios praktikos kūrimui, veiksmingos teisinės duomenų bazės formavimui, bet ir problemų, su kuriomis susiduria AGS procedūras taikančios struktūros, sprendimui. Remiantis šiuo darbu, bus galima toliau tęsti ginčų, kylančių iš vartojimo sutarčių, alternatyvaus sprendimo analizę, jo teigiamų ir neigiamų savybių tyrimą. Atnaujinus statistinius duomenis, papildžius praktinių pavyzdžių sąrašą, priėmus naujus teisės aktus, jau galiojančius - pakeitus... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Master thesis is attributed to the analysis of alternative dispute resolution between consumers and businessmen. At the beginning of the thesis problems related to the alternative dispute resolution (hereinfather reffered to as the ADR) concept are researched, later on, advantages and disadvantages of ADR, its importance to consumer rights protection system are described. The second part of the thesis discusses the diversity of particular ADR procedures, their features and application possibilities, as well as provides the analysis of whole these procedures (including their classification). Finally, it provides European Union (hereinfather reffered to as the EU) initiatives substantially influenced the extrajudicial consumer rights protection, EU Member States‘ practice and challenges facing our state‘s consumers in accordance with the assessment of the prevailing trends in Lithuania, its institutional and legal framework. The thesis is relevant and useful at theoretical as well as at practical level, because ADR of consumer rights is new phenomenon with no traditions in Lithuania yet. Therefore, results of the research could be used not only in order to create good practice and to form effective juridical database, but also in order to deal with problems facing the structures that apply the ADR procedures. Based on this study, further improvements will be possible of the analysis of alternative resolution of disputes arising from consumers’ agreements, research of positive... [to full text]