What Is the Court Dispute Resolution and How CDRs Are Requested In Singapore

Posted by shanekabuttler on February 25th, 2015

In Singapore, alternate dispute resolution services are provided by the primary dispute resolution center. The PDRC is responsible for handling all kinds of civil disputes in courts. The court dispute resolution sessions, another name for the alternate dispute resolution sessions, are conducted under the order 34A of the Rules of Court in Singapore. The cases that come under this order are referred by judges to the Court Dispute Resolution, or are called in automatically.

How Requests Are Made for CDRs

Cases that fall under the section of non-injury motor accident (NIMA) and personal injury (PI) are resolved using court dispute resolution in PDRC. In such cases, a notice is sent to the parties involved after a period of 8 weeks once the defendant has made an appearance. The notices are sent to the parties through their law firms and can be accessed through the law firms’ litigation accounts. Unless a party seeks an early CDR, there is no need to request for a CDR.

Claims that fall into other categories are referred for court dispute resolution in Singapore during the summons where parties are directed to the PDRC. This can also be done during the pre-trial stage.

How to Requests for change of CDR dates

A party can get a date for a CDR session, or reschedule a CDR session is required to fill out Form 8 of the Practice Directions, which is a form that confirms that all parties involved in the CDR have agreed for the proposed change in the adjournment. The form also indicates all other dates when the parties will not be available. Once the form is submitted, a fresh date for the CDR session will be issued.

The Form 8 of Practice Directions also comes in use when a party wishes to request for a CDR date to be vacated entirely, and that no other CDR Sessions are scheduled in the future.

Filing Form 8

This form is filed in electronic format through eLitigation as a request for re-fixing of vacation of hearing dates. If the form is sent over by fax, then it will not be accepted. This is something you and your law firm must remember at all times.

Court Dispute Resolution- Does it Work?

Court dispute resolution has found many takers in Singapore as it has proved to be a very useful dispute resolution mechanism. Various types of civil disputes have been successfully resolved through mediation over the past few years.

Shaneka Buttler is an expert writer having vast experience about the Law industry. Currently, she is writing on various topics related to family law and corporate law like Business Lawyer Singapore, legal advice in Singapore. For more details click here