Arbitration and Mediation Services
Jim Casey provides services in the following areas:
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Labour arbitration
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Interest arbitration
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Grievance mediation
Services are provided in Alberta, Western Canada, and the North. Services are provided either in person or using a virtual platform, depending on the preference of the parties.
Labour Arbitration
Jim acts as a sole arbitrator and as a Chair of 3-person grievance arbitration boards. He adjudicates disputes in both the provincial and federal sectors in a broad range of industries.
Interest Arbitration
Jim acts as an arbitrator in voluntary and statutorily mandated interest arbitrations.
Grievance Mediation
Jim acts as a grievance mediator. He utilizes an interest-based mediation process in which the parties actively participate in crafting their own resolutions to workplace disputes. Many parties find grievance mediation to be a superior dispute-resolution method that can be quicker and more cost-effective than labour arbitration. Mediation is a flexible and confidential process and can provide a platform for the parties to address the root causes of disputes in the workplace.
The parties can either use a stand-alone mediation or a “med/arb” process. In a stand-alone mediation process, if the mediation does not resolve the grievance, then the parties utilize a different arbitrator to adjudicate the grievance. Under a “med/arb” process, if the grievance is not resolved through mediation, then Jim transitions from a mediator to an arbitrator role and adjudicates the case. Both mediation and med/arb have their unique advantages and disadvantages that Jim can discuss with the parties and their legal counsel before they make a final decision. If the parties wish to have a grievance mediated, Jim utilizes a Mediation Agreement and a Med/Arb Agreement setting out the ground rules of both processes. Parties who are potentially interested in mediation are welcome to contact Jim to request a copy of the agreements.
Timeliness of Decisions
We all know the adage: “Labour relations delayed is labour relations denied.” And yet for a variety of reasons, the grievance and arbitration systems are subject to many delays. In order to do my part to address delay in the labour arbitration system, I set as a personal performance objective to issue arbitration decisions within 3 months of completion of the arbitration hearing. I can almost always meet this objective. When hearings are cancelled, I try to have the discipline to work on decisions on reserve, and cancellations are common. I try to keep decisions to a reasonable length by summarizing the evidence only to the level of detail required for the analysis of the issues. I provide only a brief summary of the parties' arguments and instead address the arguments more fully in the analysis portion of the decision. If I am sitting as the Chair of a 3-person arbitration board, I ask the nominees to commit with me to try and issue the arbitration decision within 3 months.
If I find that I cannot issue the arbitration decision within 3 months, then my commitment to the parties is that I will contact them at the 3-month mark to advise them I have been delayed and to advise them when they can expect to receive the decision. That way, I avoid putting the parties and their legal counsel in the difficult situation of a lengthy reserve for the arbitration decision with no idea when the decision will be issued.
For arbitrations where obtaining an expedited hearing is crucial to the parties, I will sit on weekends, provided all parties agree. In addition, it is always open to the parties to agree to having a summary-style arbitration award rather than a full-length decision to shorten the time the decision is on reserve.