| | The newly piloted Rural Alberta Conciliation (Umpire) Network is fostering solutions among people and communities involved in disputes.
At one time in rural Alberta, many business agreements were sealed with a handshake. The only assurance required was the presumed good faith of the parties. It was enforced by social interaction at the curling rink or the community dance.
Today, that’s changed. The parties are most likely not living in the same community, agreements can involve lawyers and many are inclined to head to court if things go wrong.
To Graham Gilchrist, Assistant Farmers’ Advocate with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s Farmers’ Advocate Office, that’s the new reality. With many areas of potential disagreement – land rentals, equipment performance, and municipal relations – there’s an enduring need for a way to settle rural disputes without litigation.
“We thought of this role as being sort of a ‘rural umpire,’” says Gilchrist. “We thought we could find a mechanism to achieve consensus between people or communities without conflicting with the work we currently do on issues such as land-use agreements.”
The Umpire Network has arbitrators and mediators to help rural Alberta landowners settle disputes.
Graham Gilchrist, copyright 2008
Partnership and funding make it possible
Gilchrist took the idea to the Alberta Arbitration and Mediation Society, which quickly grasped the idea’s potential and entered into a partnership with the Farmers’ Advocate Office to implement it. The Agricultural Policy Framework provided funding to make it happen, and the Umpire Network was born. As of January 2009, the Network was active on six arbitration/mediation cases.
“One area where this funding was very important was in training,” says Gilchrist. “The members of the Alberta Arbitration and Mediation Society clearly were qualified to do this kind of work, but they needed some training and mentoring to brush up on rural issues so they could achieve satisfactory results for all parties.”
What sorts of disputes will the Umpire Network handle? Gilchrist explains that certain conditions will apply: the dispute must be genuinely rural in nature and both parties must agree to abide by the outcome. The Network will also not venture into areas where there are existing arbitration boards.
One of the most common areas for rural disputes is land use. Gilchrist notes that 50% of Alberta’s farmland is rented, providing ample scope for disagreements on lease provisions, land use conditions, environmental stewardship, financial issues and other matters. Points of contention can also occur between rural landowners and rural municipalities. Put it all together, factor in the cost and complexity of litigation that might otherwise occur, and Gilchrist expects the Network will have plenty of work.
“We hope to see the ‘rural umpire’ being very much in demand,” he says. “People are quite happy that they have a rural arbitrator or mediator who can step forward and get involved.”
For more information on the Rural Alberta Conciliation Network, please contact Assistant Farmers’ Advocate Graham Gilchrist at 780-427-7956 (dial 310-0000 for toll free) or email graham.gilchrist@gov.ab.ca. |
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