The University of Guyana Law Department received a donation of educational equipment and materials on Thursday from the Carter Center in Guyana, in direct support of the new course on the subject of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).
The resources were presented formally to Vice-Chancellor Dr. James Rose by Melanie Reimer, Country Project Director of the Carter Center in Guyana at a ceremony which was also attended by Professors Aubrey Bishop and Peter Britton of the Law Department as well as a number of law students, a release said.
The term Alternative Dispute Resolution is generally used for methods of resolving disputes without the need for a full court trial and the course was introduced at UG during the past term by Professor Britton. ADR can include mediation, arbitration, and a variety of other strategies for reaching agreement without the need to go to court.
The Law Department can now offer its students the benefit of a number of books and videotapes on the topic of ADR, along with the use of a TV and VCR. This addition to the range of learning materials available to law students at UG is very welcome, the release noted, as it will contribute towards the development of a better understanding and positive attitude towards ADR among the legal profession.
The Carter Center is working to research and introduce appropriate ADR options under the auspices of the USAID Democracy and Governance Programme, the release informed. One of the goals of the Carter Center programme is to explore the use of ADR in dealing with the delays and backlog in the Guyana legal system so as to ultimately make the system more efficient and effective.
And the UG Law Department is working closely with the Carter Center and the leaders of the judiciary to move towards that goal, the release stated.(