Sometimes, the issues presented cannot be resolved through the consulting, coaching, assistance, and mediation services. They require a third party to help those involved decide substantive issues which remain unresolved. Following the admonitions in I Corinthians 6:1-8, we provide arbitration services where one of our Certified Christian Conciliators™ serves as the arbitrator, conducting a hearing and deciding the issue. We also provide a service where one of our Certified Christian Conciliator™ facilitates a structured process allowing the organization’s selected arbitrators to decide the issues.
The arbitration process is governed by Rules 25 through 42 of The Rules of Procedure for Christian Conciliation. It is a formal process that allows the parties t
- present evidence (their story) to the arbitrator(s),
- who decides the issue(s) based on the information provided by the parties and their desired outcomes,
- by applying state, federal, or local laws, with the Holy Scriptures (the Bible) being the supreme authority (Rule 4).
- Arbitration decisions are legally binding and can be enforced as a judgment of a civil court.
Parties may present their information and positions to the arbitrator without the need for an attorney. The process is less formal than a court of law and easily managed by parties without attorneys. Parties, however, can be represented by attorneys, with the attorneys speaking on their behalf and assisting them in the presentation of their evidence to the arbitrator. The arbitrator applies rules for the receiving of evidence from the parties that is necessary to provide information to the arbitrator, as set forth in the Rules of Procedure for Christian Conciliation.
Facilitating an Arbitration process
Occasionally, the church or organization has an authoritative body of individuals, charged with making decisions as the final arbitrator. An example is a Board of Elders in a church or Board of Directors for an organization or business. To assist these individuals in carrying out their responsibilities, we serve as the facilitators or lead for an arbitration process as described above, with the authoritative body retaining the responsibility and role of deciding the issues.