A NOVEL ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCEDURE FOR PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS

In March 2018, the Civil Procedure Rule Committee approved the implementation of the Professional Negligence Adjudication Scheme following the successful completion of a pilot involving seven cases. The Scheme is a novel alternative dispute resolution procedure for the resolution of disputes and forms part of the Professional Negligence Pre-action Protocol. This paper discusses the objectives, features, and structure of the Scheme; reviews the experiences of those who participated in the seven pilot cases; and makes proposals for procedural improvements to the Scheme.