Mediation & Arbitration
Most disputes are resolved without a trial, and increasingly they're resolved outside the courthouse entirely. We represent clients in mediation and arbitration across Washington, prepare and enforce the agreements that send disputes there, and challenge or confirm the awards that result, so the alternative to litigation actually works in our clients' favor.
Talk to an attorneyFounded
1965
Attorneys
11
AV-rated
Martindale-Hubbell
Office
Bellevue, WA
Founded
1965
Attorneys
5
AV-rated
Martindale-Hubbell
Office
Bellevue, WA
Mediation and arbitration lawyers for Bellevue and Seattle businesses
Oseran Hahn represents businesses and individuals in alternative dispute resolution, the mediation and arbitration that resolve most commercial disputes today. ADR is faster and more private than court, but it is not informal: arbitration in particular has its own rules, its own strategy, and very limited rights of appeal, so how a case is presented matters enormously. We represent clients in mediation and arbitration, draft and enforce the arbitration clauses that govern where a dispute is heard, and litigate the motions to compel arbitration and the challenges to awards that follow.
Alternative dispute resolution is how most disputes actually end, and we work every part of it. We represent clients in mediation, the facilitated negotiation that resolves the large majority of cases. We advocate in arbitration, the private, binding alternative to a courtroom trial. We draft arbitration agreements and litigate whether a dispute belongs in arbitration at all. We move to confirm favorable awards and to vacate flawed ones, within the narrow grounds the law allows. And our lawyers serve as neutral mediators and arbitrators themselves, which informs how we advocate before them.
Mediation
Mediation resolves the large majority of disputes that don't settle on their own, and doing it well is a skill, not a formality. A neutral mediator helps the parties reach their own agreement; the mediator decides nothing, which means the outcome depends heavily on preparation and advocacy. We prepare clients for mediation with a clear view of the strengths, the weaknesses, and the realistic range of outcomes, and we advocate through the process toward a resolution the client can accept. Mediation communications are confidential and privileged under Washington's Uniform Mediation Act (RCW 7.07), which lets parties speak candidly without fear it will be used against them later. Whether a case is pre-suit or already in litigation, a well-run mediation is usually the fastest path to a durable resolution.
Arbitration
Arbitration is a private trial: the parties present their case to a neutral arbitrator or panel who renders a binding decision, usually faster and more privately than court, but with very limited rights of appeal. That finality cuts both ways, which is why how the case is built and presented matters so much. We represent clients through the full arbitration process, selecting the right arbitrator, framing the issues, conducting the streamlined discovery arbitration allows, and presenting evidence and argument at the hearing, in proceedings administered by bodies like the American Arbitration Association and JAMS or conducted privately. We treat an arbitration with the same rigor as a trial, because for most purposes that is exactly what it is.
Drafting and enforcing arbitration agreements
Whether a dispute is heard in arbitration or in court often depends on a clause written long before the dispute arose, and those clauses are heavily litigated. We draft arbitration provisions that say what the parties actually intend, the scope of disputes covered, the rules, the forum, and how costs and arbitrators are handled, and we litigate their enforcement when a dispute breaks out. That means moving to compel arbitration and stay a lawsuit when an agreement requires it, or opposing arbitration when it doesn't, under the Federal Arbitration Act and Washington's Uniform Arbitration Act (RCW 7.04A). The threshold fight over arbitrability, whether a claim must be arbitrated at all, frequently shapes the entire dispute, and we handle it from either side.
Confirming, vacating, and challenging awards
An arbitration award is not automatically enforceable or automatically final; it has to be reduced to a court judgment, and the losing side sometimes tries to undo it. We move to confirm favorable awards into enforceable judgments (RCW 7.04A.220), and we pursue or defend the narrow challenges the law permits. Washington allows a court to vacate an award only on limited grounds, such as corruption, evident partiality, or an arbitrator exceeding their powers, not simply because the arbitrator got the law or facts wrong (RCW 7.04A.230), and to modify an award for defined errors (RCW 7.04A.240). Because those grounds are deliberately narrow, the realistic time to win an arbitration is at the hearing, not after, and we counsel clients accordingly.
Serving as neutrals and court-connected arbitration
Our lawyers also serve as neutral mediators and arbitrators, and that perspective sharpens our advocacy, because we know how these matters look from the neutral's chair. We bring that experience to representing clients in court-connected programs as well, including Washington's mandatory arbitration of smaller civil cases, where many superior court matters under a set dollar threshold are arbitrated before they can reach a jury, subject to each party's right to request a trial de novo afterward (RCW 7.06). Knowing when to invoke that process, when to accept an arbitrator's award, and when to take the trial de novo is part of the judgment we bring to every dispute that touches arbitration.
Sixty years resolving Pacific Northwest disputes, with a trial group that treats mediation and arbitration as seriously as a courtroom, and lawyers who serve as neutrals themselves. We know ADR isn't a lesser process; for most disputes, it is the process, and we work it to our clients' advantage.
We prepare ADR like trial.
Arbitration is binding and mediation is where most cases end, so neither is a place to coast. We build and present these matters with full rigor, because the result is usually final.
We've sat in the neutral's chair.
Our lawyers serve as mediators and arbitrators, so we know what persuades a neutral and what doesn't. That perspective makes our advocacy in front of them sharper.
We win the forum fight first.
Whether a dispute is arbitrated or litigated often decides its trajectory. We handle the motions to compel or resist arbitration early, because the forum can matter as much as the merits.
The attorneys behindthe work.
Our business and corporate attorneys handle this work alongside our litigation team, so you have coverage whether your matter stays transactional or becomes something more.
What clientsask us first.
What's the difference between mediation and arbitration?
They're often confused but work very differently. In mediation, a neutral mediator helps the parties negotiate their own settlement; the mediator has no power to decide anything, so any resolution is voluntary. In arbitration, a neutral arbitrator hears the case and issues a binding decision, much like a private judge. Mediation is about reaching agreement; arbitration is about getting a decision. Many disputes use both in sequence, mediating first and arbitrating only if that fails. We represent clients in either and advise on which fits a given dispute.
My contract has an arbitration clause. Do I have to arbitrate?
Usually, but not always. Courts enforce valid arbitration agreements under the Federal Arbitration Act and Washington's Uniform Arbitration Act (RCW 7.04A), and a party that sues in court despite a binding clause can be ordered into arbitration. But whether a particular claim falls within the clause, and whether the clause is enforceable at all, are real questions that get litigated. We assess whether your dispute truly must be arbitrated, move to compel or to stay court proceedings when arbitration is required, and challenge arbitration when the agreement doesn't actually reach the claim.
Can I appeal an arbitration award I think is wrong?
Rarely, and that surprises people. An arbitration award is binding, and a court can vacate it only on narrow grounds, such as corruption, fraud, evident partiality of the arbitrator, or the arbitrator exceeding their authority, not simply because you believe the arbitrator misjudged the law or the facts (RCW 7.04A.230). That limited review is the trade-off for arbitration's speed and finality. It's also why the hearing itself is so important: the realistic chance to win is there, not afterward. We do pursue and defend the challenges the law allows where the grounds genuinely exist.
Is arbitration faster and cheaper than going to court?
Often faster and more private, though not always cheaper. Arbitration usually moves quicker than a crowded court docket, keeps the dispute confidential, and gives the parties more control over scheduling and the decision-maker. But the parties pay the arbitrator and the administering organization, and complex arbitrations can run up real costs. The honest answer is that arbitration trades some cost for speed, privacy, and finality. Whether that trade favors you depends on the dispute, which we assess rather than assuming arbitration is automatically better or worse.
Should our contracts include an arbitration clause?
It depends on what you value in a future dispute. An arbitration clause can give you privacy, speed, and a knowledgeable decision-maker, which many businesses prefer, but it also limits appeals and can complicate bringing or consolidating related claims. The clause's specific terms, the scope, the rules, the forum, the cost allocation, matter as much as the decision to include one. We draft arbitration provisions tailored to how you'd actually want a dispute handled, rather than dropping in boilerplate that may not serve you when a conflict arises.
When should we bring in counsel for a mediation or arbitration?
Before it's scheduled, ideally. For mediation, preparation drives the outcome, knowing your real position and the other side's, and walking in with a strategy, so early involvement pays off. For arbitration, because review of the award is so limited, the case has to be built correctly from the start, with little room to fix it later. And if there's a threshold question about whether a dispute even belongs in arbitration, that often has to be raised early or risk being waived. The sooner we're involved, the more we can shape the result.
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Mediation, arbitration, and arbitration-agreement representation for Pacific Northwest businesses and individuals.
Oseran Hahn P.S. · 11225 SE 6th St, Suite 100 · Bellevue, WA 98004
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