International Dispute Resolution - The Most Relevant Area Of Law Today?

Over the last couple of years, negotiations and disputes have been at the forefront of both UK and international politics. From Brexit negotiations, to the United States’ back-and-forth talks with Korea and Russia, to Emmanuel Macron’s recent struggles with violent public displays in France, details of conflicts happening around the world are now widely accessible to the general public.

Arbitration and mediation skills are currently in demand on both a domestic and international level, making International Dispute Resolution one of the most relevant law Masters courses around.

The legal profession is seeing some significant changes, one of them being the proven success of mediation strategies: the mediation industry now saves businesses an estimated £2.8 billion per year. With litigation increasingly seen as a last resort, the future is bright for those seeking a career in Dispute Resolution.

Mr Denis Parchajev, Online Tutor for Queen Mary Online's International Dispute Resolution LLM, takes an in-depth look at arbitration agreements:

Dispute Resolution: transferable skills

Negotiating is a highly valued skill in any workplace and the type of negotiation associated with dispute resolution processes is of great additional value to employers. A CIPD workplace survey found that 46% of employees believed mediation was an effective approach to dealing with workplace conflict, while a further 13% admitted they had had a relationship that would have benefited from mediation.

As a mediator or arbitrator who has been brought in to avoid the need for litigation, possessing strong people skills is essential. Mediators who do not have a background in law often have experience in counselling, social work or human resources.

A huge part of your role as a mediator is to empathise with all parties involved (without becoming emotionally involved) in order to come to a solution. This sets mediation apart from the skills needed in other areas of legal practice.

What makes a career in this area particularly challenging and equally rewarding is, as asserts writer Giovanni Rodriguez touched upon for Forbes, ‘the ability to see things from different perspectives, but to also bridge the gap between them’.

Wide-ranging career prospects

As you might expect, many graduates of the International Dispute Resolution LLM have applied the skills and knowledge acquired on the course to pursue successful careers as solicitors, barristers, lawyers and legal associates. Others have gone on to work in areas such as consultancy, financial and energy regulation, and patents and trademarks.

The course at Queen Mary University aims to inspire a new generation of lawyers to rethink traditional approaches to conflict and conflict resolution which, in a world currently dominated by stalemated negotiations, will be a valuable asset.

The online International Dispute Resolution LLM at Queen Mary Online is a fantastic opportunity to steer your knowledge in a specialised direction at a School of Law that is consistently ranked in the top 10 law schools in the UK: