A house with a room
for every dispute.
ADR House convenes accredited mediators, adjudicators and arbitrators to resolve construction, labour, commercial, intellectual property, divorce and court-referred disputes — privately, and outside the ordinary run of litigation.
Six practice areas, one panel
Every matter that comes through ADR House is assigned to a room — a practitioner or panel accredited in that specific field. Hover or tap a room in the plan above to read what happens there.
Three ways into a resolution
Every matter enters ADR House through one of three doors. Which one depends on your contract, your relationship with the other party, and how binding an outcome you need.
Mediation
A facilitated, without-prejudice process in which a neutral mediator helps both sides reach a settlement they author themselves. Nothing is binding until it's signed.
- Private and off-the-record
- Includes court-annexed mediation under Rule 41A
- Settlement can be made an order of court
Adjudication
A fast, interim-binding decision on a discrete dispute — the standard mechanism built into most South African construction contracts to keep projects moving.
- Decisions typically within 28 days
- Standard under JBCC, NEC3/4 and FIDIC
- Binding unless and until revised in arbitration
Arbitration
A private hearing before one or more arbitrators, ending in a final and binding, reasoned award — enforceable in the same way as a court judgment.
- Governed by the Arbitration Act 42 of 1965
- Conducted under AFSA rules, or ad hoc
- Limited grounds of review, not appeal
Practice areas
Each room is resourced with practitioners who work in that field day to day — not generalists rotating through unfamiliar subject matter.
Construction
Extensions of time, defective work, payment certificates, final accounts and delay claims under JBCC, NEC, FIDIC and GCC forms of contract.
Labour
Unfair dismissal, retrenchment and workplace grievance disputes, resolved privately or where a CCMA or bargaining council process has stalled.
Commercial
Shareholder and partnership disputes, breach of contract, sale-of-business disagreements and debt or credit disputes between businesses.
Intellectual Property
Licensing disputes, passing-off, trademark and design conflicts, and disputes over confidential information and know-how.
Family & Divorce
Parenting plans, division of the joint estate and maintenance, handled with sensitivity and away from the adversarial pressure of litigation.
Court-Annexed Mediation
Matters referred by the court under Rule 41A of the Uniform Rules of Court, for mandatory consideration or voluntary mediation ahead of trial.
From enquiry to outcome
Enquiry & conflict check
You tell us what happened and who's involved. We run a conflict check across the panel before anything else.
Room assignment
Your matter is matched to a practitioner accredited in that specific field, proposed to both parties for agreement.
Process design
We settle the mediation, adjudication or arbitration agreement, a timetable, and a venue — in person or online.
Resolution
A settlement agreement, an adjudicator's decision, or a reasoned, binding arbitral award — recorded and, where relevant, made an order of court.
The panel
ADR House is not a single practitioner working alone. It's a curated panel of admitted attorneys, advocates, chartered arbitrators, quantity surveyors, engineers and HR practitioners, each accredited in the field they're appointed to.
Panel members are proposed by name for every matter, with full disclosure of their background, so both parties can satisfy themselves of independence before a single session is scheduled.
- Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa AFSA
- Association of Arbitrators (Southern Africa) AASA
- South African Association of Mediators SAAM
- Law Society / Legal Practice Council accreditation LPC
Construction & Engineering
Quantity surveyors and civil / structural engineers who read a bill of quantities and an extension-of-time claim the way you do.
Labour & HR
Practitioners with CCMA and bargaining council experience, fluent in the Labour Relations Act and workplace disciplinary process.
Commercial Law
Admitted attorneys and advocates with corporate, contract and insolvency backgrounds for shareholder and business disputes.
IP & Technology
Practitioners familiar with trademark, patent, copyright and confidentiality disputes, and the commercial agreements around them.
Family Law
Mediators trained specifically in divorce and parenting-plan work, mindful of children's interests throughout.
Retired Judiciary & Senior Counsel
Available for complex or high-value arbitrations requiring a chair with bench or senior advocacy experience.
Built for outcomes litigation struggles to give you
Private & confidential
Proceedings, submissions and outcomes stay off the public record, unlike a trial in open court.
Faster resolution
Weeks or months, not years — particularly for adjudication, designed for turnaround measured in days.
Enforceable outcomes
Arbitral awards are enforceable in the same way as a court judgment under the Arbitration Act 42 of 1965.
You choose the room
Parties agree the practitioner, the timetable and often the venue — control litigation rarely offers.
Enquire about a matter
Tell us briefly what's happened. We'll come back to you within one business day with a proposed room and practitioner, and — where relevant — a conflict check on the other party.
[Telephone number]
enquiries@adrhouse.co.za
Mon – Fri, 08:00 – 17:00 SAST