The National Arbitration Forum Blog

The Minnesota Lawyer ran a story about the fourth annual Litigation Trends Survey which was conducted by prominent law firm Fulbright & Jaworski. The survey (available for free online if you enter your contact information) found that, in recent years, American companies of all sizes have become less reliant on outside counsel.

The survey did not examine the cause of this trend, though arbitration was likely a factor. The use of arbitration enables companies to decrease their reliance on outside counsel because, in the arbitral forum, in-house attorneys have the ability to prosecute and defend claims in outside jurisdictions. This aspect of arbitration is beneficial for businesses and their customers because it reduces the company’s legal fees and, by extension, the cost of their goods and services.