An evaluation of the effect of court-ordered mediation and proactive case management on the pace of civil tort litigation in Lake County, Indiana

A review of mediation literature and an empirical study of the effect of mediation and proactive case management upon the pace of civil tort litigation in Lake County, Indiana. The study covered tort case filings for cases filed during the years 1993--1997. The research found that mediation and proactive case management each contributed to reductions in case disposition time and court case backlogs, and that proactive case management had a greater effect in reducing case disposition time and court backlogs than mediation. The study also found that neither mediation nor proactive case management increased case settlement rates.