Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

PAGE PREVIEW

“Arbitration is only as good as the arbitrators” is a timeworn cliché. But like most such expressions, it is true.

Mind you, litigation works in much the same way with the quality of the judge—and in the United States, a jury—being central to the process. The appointment process is vital in both instances.

A municipal judge with real understanding of how money works can be far more effective than vague law professors when dealing with a financial services dispute. (For an example, see Van Geens & Beckett Ltd. v. Jyske Bank, Case No. 2012-G-179 (Gibraltar S.Ct. Dec. 4, 2014) (available at https://bit.ly/3oBYG6V) (a suit brought by an individual against a bank over advice to borrow in two foreign currencies and invest the proceeds in BBB corporate bonds, where the judge did not grasp everything but was far more switched on than many so-called experts).