ADR and workplace conflicts: a British Perspective with Professor Susan Blake

I was delighted to welcome Professor Susan Blake to the Expert Views on ADR (EVA) Vid /Podcast Show. She is a Barrister and an Associate Dean at the City Law School. She is a co-author of A Practical Approach to Alternative Dispute Resolution, published by Oxford University Press and a co-author of The Jackson ADR Handbook' published by Oxford.

Susan is currently focussing on developing a strategy in relation to the use of educational technology to deliver blended learning and the incorporation of an understanding of legal technology into the legal curriculum.

Having played a major role in the design and development of the Bar Vocational Course (now the Bar Professional Training Programme), Susan assisted in the development of the legal skills-focused Legal Practice Course. More recently she designed and became Programme Director of an LLM in Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution which is now part of the LLM Master of Laws programme at City Law School. The main focus of Professor Blake's research, scholarship and teaching is litigation and alternative dispute resolution, and she seeks to develop an understanding of how ADR options can be developed and used effectively. In addition to teaching alternative dispute resolution in the LLM Master of Laws and the LLM International Business Law, she also teaches civil litigation, civil advocacy, opinion writing and legal research on the Bar Vocational Studies Course.


Susan is a founding member of the Centre for the Study of Legal Professional Practice at The City Law School and a Convener of the Forum for Alternative Dispute Resolution. She attends and speaks at a range of conferences in relation to many aspects of legal professional skills training. Education- LLM, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, Jan 1974 – Jan 1975, LLB, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.


In this episode, we analysed the following questions:


1) How far has ADR been able to enhance access to Justice in the United Kingdom?

2) Might ADR do more in the Future?

3) Is there any measurable difference or impact on the Cost and Time Frame for settling disputes under ADR Compared to litigation?


4) What is your take on whether Arbitration should be classified as ADR?


5) What is your advice for people pursuing a career?

6) What is the way forward for mass advocacy or awareness?


* The City Law School https://www.city.ac.uk/about/schools/law