Alternative methods of resolving conflicts

The teaching unit (UE) focuses on the so-called alternative methods of conflict resolution (more simply "ADR"), i.e. the various processes and procedures that have the object or purpose of accompanying, and if possible, "resolving" conflicts other than by a judicial decision. These are therefore alternatives to "classic" judicial procedures, to trials.
The UE focuses more specifically on areas of practice relating to private law, namely family, civil, commercial (between companies), and social (individual and collective labour law). It nevertheless provides an overall picture of the other avenues, particularly those that exist in the institutional field (criminal mediation and restorative justice, hospital mediation, school mediation, mediation within municipalities, administrative mediation, etc.).
The cost and length of proceedings, the unpredictability of judicial decisions and the difficulties that may arise in their enforcement, as well as their inability to ease tensions, have led to ADR taking on an increasingly important role in recent decades, both in Belgium and abroad. The Belgian legislator has been actively involved in their development, seeing in them an opportunity to relieve the courts and tribunals while at the same time contributing to social peace. The recent reforms of the Judicial Code confirm this: after having recognized conciliation by the judge and arbitration at an early stage, mediation (2001, 2005), collaborative law (2018), and finally the amicable settlement chambers or CRA (2013, 2023) have been incorporated into the Judicial Code and recognized as holding an equivalent place in our justice system. Disputes are no longer resolved solely through decisions rendered by judges applying the rules of law. The legislative encouragement to use an amicable resolution process (negotiation, mediation, collaborative law, conciliation) before any legal proceedings has also increased considerably since the two major reforms in 2018 and 2023.
The reality of a plural justice, which offers parties in conflict the possibility of choosing the most appropriate mode(s) for their situation and relationship, can no longer be ignored by (future) jurists. Lawyers now have a legal obligation to inform their clients about the different methods of resolution and to advise them in selecting the most suitable option. At some point in their professional practice, all lawyers will also be called upon to assist their clients in such procedures or processes. How can this be done without knowing the available paths, without being able to identify their specific features and place them into perspective? How can the relevance of one or another of these paths be assessed in a given situation? How, moreover, can a lawyer best support clients in such frameworks, the posture to adopt being necessarily influenced by the objectives and modalities specific to each mode? Do all disputes lend themselves to all the avenues proposed by the legislator? More broadly, what alternatives are available to any individual faced with a legal claim from another (a seller, a landlord, a business partner, an employer, a spouse, etc.) or who has been the victim of an act attributable to another?
Faced with what we see as a necessity in any law study course, the main objectives pursued by this optional course will be the following:
- Raise awareness among students, from their Bachelor's degree, of non-judicial dispute resolution methods so that referral to a judge is no longer the first — and, above all, the only — reflex; in this respect, teaching responds in particular to the wish expressed by the legislator, during the reforms of the Judicial Code in 2018 and 2023, to make judicial proceedings a "safety net," a last resort when attempts at amicable resolution have failed.
- To support the correct knowledge of the system, now plural, of Belgian Justice; this implies being able to identify the means of resolution (of a decision-making and amicable or remedial nature), to understand their legal framework as well as to perceive the possibilities of their procedural complementarity: this part of the teaching therefore focuses more specifically on what is called "ADR law";
- allow, more broadly, an initial learning of practical and social skills, by being familiar with the different dimensions that are "at stake" in conflicts and the techniques and "strategies" that are in place, in the professional and private spheres;
- link teaching and research, through the writing of a written work on a theme addressed in the lecture;
- place the development of amicable methods in a broader framework, by approaching foreign laws and the mechanisms they have adopted to support their expansion;
Through the emphasis placed on interdisciplinarity in the approach to conflict and on a constant dialogue with practice (in particular through meetings organised with practitioners of the modes studied), as well as through its objectives in terms of skills (especially soft skills), the UE is resolutely in line with the aims set out in the Manifesto for Law Education adopted by the Faculty of Law of the Saint-Louis site in 2015 (R.I.E.J., 2016/1, Vol. 74, pp. 169-175).
https://dial.uclouvain.be/pr/boreal/en/object/boreal%3A178251/datastream/PDF_01/view)
Beyond that, the UE also intends to draw the links with:

• the inter-university certificate programmes in mediation offered by UCLouvain in partnership with UNamur (basic training; specialised training in family mediation, specialised training in civil and commercial mediation and social mediation, specialised training in local, school, criminal and health care mediation);
• the research work carried out within the Research Group on Conflict Management Methods of the Centre for Private Law of the Faculty of Law of the Saint-Louis site of UCLouvain: https://cepri.be

In doing so, it encourages students, who are initiated into these procedures and processes, to continue their study and research in ADR law.

The teaching unit (UE) focuses mainly on the law of alternative dispute resolution, as established mainly by the Judicial Code.
However, it aims to apprehend, from a broader perspective, all the ways of preventing and managing interpersonal and inter-company conflicts.
In such a context, it focuses on the study of Belgian law in the field of disciplines traditionally linked to private law, without excluding the necessary forays into other legal disciplines as well as into European and international law.
Part I. General Introduction to the Course
Context of the deployment of so-called alternative modes
After presenting the pedagogical contract, teaching begins with a general introduction that defines the alternative modes and situates them within the historical, sociological, political, and legal context of their development. It points to the phenomena of diversion, privatization, and, in some respects, contractualization of conflict resolution. In doing so, it also questions the place of the judiciary - and of the state - in our modern societies: the modes of horizontal regulation that are developing reveal an evolution in the relationships formed between individuals themselves and in relation to state authority. Society appears less contentious, more relational, but also less confident in the capacity of constitutionally established powers to meet its needs. In some respects, the development of amicable means remains rooted in a liberal and individualistic ideology, which relies on the ability of individuals to resolve their own disputes (empowerment). These are, in themselves, observations that deserve collective reflection, as a (general) critical framework.
The conflict and its paths to "resolution"
After a reflective review of the contexts that have enabled the (practical and legal) development of ADR, students are made aware of the multiple dimensions of conflict, its stakes, and the behaviours and strategies deployed by individuals confronted with it. What is a conflict? What emotions does it arouse? How can underlying interests and needs be identified? What cognitive biases and mental shortcuts can influence our presence in a conflict? What strategies do we intuitively apply when confronted with conflict, and how does the context shape them? What negotiation techniques can be proposed, and what are their advantages and disadvantages? These are some of the questions to which the student will be encouraged to provide initial answers, using an interdisciplinary approach.
By placing ourselves more in the perspective specific to so-called amicable methods, it becomes possible to perceive that, beyond the negative emotions accompanying conflict situations, conflicts are a "normal," and therefore inevitable, form of relationship with others, just as good understanding is. The student will thus be led to better perceive the ambivalent nature of conflicts, both as factors of rupture and as drivers of change. Such an understanding can also help future lawyers, who are required to accompany their clients - conflict and confrontation being at the heart of legal practice - to distance themselves from an approach that views conflicts merely as "problems" to be "solved" solely through the application of legal norms. While this approach to resolving conflicts is sometimes necessary - it is, in our view, necessary in certain situations - it is not always the most effective means of addressing the tensions experienced by individuals.
Part II. ADR law (in theory and practice)
The rest of the course focuses on the study of the main alternative dispute resolution methods recognised in Belgian private law, namely:

• methods that can be described as "decision-making", which leave it to one or more third parties to settle the dispute or a technical issue, as is the case in the context of mandatory third-party decisions (TDOs) and arbitration;
• so-called amicable methods, which rely on the parties' ability to resolve their differences themselves, among themselves (negotiation) or with the help of one or more "facilitating" third parties (conciliation under common law and in an amicable settlement chamber, or CRA, mediation, and collaborative law process).

The modes are considered from the theory (ADR law) and are enriched by exchanges with practitioners.
The legal framework of the applicable procedure is presented, and the different modes will be critically compared, based on different theoretically relevant entry routes.
At the same time, the production of a written work
At the beginning of the term, students will identify a research topic. This subject is one of the themes that will be addressed during the lecture. Based on this research, individual contributions will be requested to prepare the exchanges with the speakers, and a written work will be submitted at the end of the term.

The teaching unit (UE) is structured around lectures, ex cathedra, and exchange group sessions on concrete issues, or leading to meetings with field practitioners recognized in their field.
The exchange sessions with the practitioners are prepared collectively: a wooclap identifies the questions that the students are then invited to ask during the meetings.
The teacher is careful to support the progress of learning as best as possible, in particular through systematic reminders, made at the beginning of the course, and relating to the teaching given during the previous course(s).
PPTs, placed on Moodle before each class, support note-taking.

Subject matter of the assessment

The assessment focuses on the material taught during the lecture, as delineated in the PPT course materials available on Moodle.
It also focuses on the more specific points of the subject on which students have chosen to carry out their written work.
Type of assessment
The evaluation is marked out of 20.
In both the first and second sessions, it covers:

• the presence and active participation in the course sessions, especially the preparation of exchange sessions with external speakers (5 points);
• the production of a written work of no more than 10 pages per student (15 points).

Attendance and participation (5 points out of 20)
Participation in sessions devoted to a theme for which external speakers are invited, as well as in collective exchange sessions, is mandatory.
The preparation of certain sessions (those related to the theme of work) is also required, and this includes evaluation.
Written work (15 points out of 20)
The written work is a work carried out in groups of 4-5 students, but identifying the contribution of each one of their members.
It focuses on a theme left to the students' choice on the basis of a list of subjects communicated by the teacher during the first class.
The work is uploaded to Moodle in accordance with the instructions given by the teacher. To be admissible, it must be accompanied by the Integrity Undertaking (document drawn up by the Faculty of Law) signed by the students.
The written work must be a "real" work.
In any case, writings presented as a mere filling of pages, without relevance or value in relation to the assigned theme, will not be assessed as such. A fortiori, the same is true of documents that are limited to a cover page and/or a bibliography or that relate to a subject other than the one that has been assigned.
It is up to the students to ensure that the "right" work is submitted.
A minimum number of references to scientific writings (not necessarily legal) is indicated by the teacher: this number depends on the chosen theme; It considers the abundance or lack of documentary resources on the subject.
Unjustified failure to submit a real work within the given time gives rise to a score of 0A out of 15, and therefore, for the UE.
If the written work is to be (re)presented as part of the 2nd session, the student carries out their work based on the theme chosen for the first session, in relation to the part that has been more specifically assigned to them within the group.
The mark awarded in the 1st session for attendance and participation in classes is carried over, whether it is a pass or fail mark. However, the student who fails may prefer to make, in addition to the above-mentioned work, a 2000-word comment on a question asked by the teacher and which is directly related to the subject taught during the lecture.
In the event of a delay in the communication of work, whether in the first or second session, the following sanctions are applied:
- a reduction in the mark by 2 points for every 24 hours of delay in submitting the work;
- the attribution of a grade of 0A/15 when the work is submitted more than 5 days late or is not submitted on Moodle (with the signed integrity commitment).
Absences and tardiness
The justification for absences or failure to submit work within the time limit must be given to the teacher no later than the day following the end of the impediment, failing which it is automatically considered inadmissible.
Language of the assessment
The final work must be written in French.
The documentary resources used in the context of its drafting can, and sometimes must, depending on the chosen theme, cover sources in Dutch and/or English.
Moreover, the resources are not necessarily legal: some themes are more relevant to other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.
The instructions are specified by the teacher, depending on the chosen subject.
Evaluation criteria
In line with the learning outcomes identified above, the criteria used in the assessment are as follows:

• the adequacy of the developments with the assigned theme;
• the ability to integrate the content of the lecture (including the contributions resulting from the exchanges with practitioners in the field) and the documentary resources referenced in the written work in a correct and relevant way;
• the ability to compare the different avenues of conflict resolution and to make connections between them in a correct and relevant way;
• the ability to identify the relevant legal and regulatory bases;
• the quality of the scientific approach, including the capacity for reasoning and argumentation, and the quality of the methodological approach (quality of the bibliography, sufficiency and relevance of sources, correct referencing, etc.);
• the ability to take a personal and critical approach;
• the quality of the writing;
• compliance with constraints in terms of work length and deadlines;
• intellectual honesty, which is essential in any scientific work, including, where appropriate, the ethical and intelligent use of AI(G). Intellectual honesty and the requirement of a solid scientific approach imply that the student can communicate to the teacher, on request and within a short period of time, a digital or "paper" version of the documentary resources mobilized as well as, if applicable, the prompts that were used when the AI was questioned (in which case, it must also be referenced).

Course Materials
No syllabus is made available to students via the SVIB Course Materials Office. The course material is gradually built up from the (fairly complete) PPTs that are communicated before each session via Moodle.
This allows the teaching to adapt to current events, to the themes identified in common, to exchanges with external speakers, and to the progress of the course.
PEPS students
Reasonable accommodations linked to a FIFO status are positively received.
However, they are only implemented upon request addressed to the teacher by the PEPS Unit of the site's education administration (SAEB; Ms. Clara Wauthy: clara.wauthy@uclouvain.be).

Moodle is preferred for sharing information and all resources related to the course (PPT, instructions relating to written assignments, "basic" documentary resources, announcements, special legislation, a list of questions to ask external speakers, etc.).

L’enseignante partage avec les étudiant·es des ressources documentaires permettant d’assimiler la matière et de l’approfondir, en lien avec la thématique attribuée pour le travail écrit.
Les ressources et une éventuelle bibliographie générale sont placées sur Moodle.