ABOUT RESOLUTION WASHINGTON

Resolution Washington is a state-wide association of Dispute Resolution Centers (DRCs).  There are currently 20 Dispute Resolution Centers operating in the cities and counties of Washington State, with a coverage area of approximately 93% of all Washington residents. These DRCs provide low-cost and effective conflict resolution services, including mediation, facilitation, and training to individuals or organization in their communities.

For the last 20 years, Resolution Washington has provided to directors of all these centers the opportunity to meet quarterly to share ideas about improving the management of their organizations, to establish statewide policies, and to advocate for mediation at the state level.  
DRCs typically have a small paid administrative staff.  The majority of services are provided by skilled, dedicated volunteers.  Our funding sources are the courts, government grants, donations, and fees for service. The effectiveness of mediation is clear: 70% of DRC cases are successfully settled.

Law specifically authorizes DRCs in Washington State:

• To stimulate the development and use of centers as an alternative to the courts on certain issues;
• To encourage community participation in local programs;
• To develop structures which can serve as models for other centers;
• To resolve disputes within the community; and
• To educate the community about dispute resolution and prevention.

Mediation through a DRC offers the fastest, easiest, cheapest, safest and most effective means of settling disputes available today. In 2007, Resolution Washington member centers served more than 66,137 Washington residents, mediated 5,535 cases, provided training to 4,546 people, and had 1,098 volunteers who together provided 41,228 hours of service.

Members of Resolution Washington provided a wide variety of services to the residents of our state. For example our small claims mediation program saves our courts hundreds of thousands of dollars annually.  And people who use our services truly appreciate our work, in exit surveys 90% of them said they would recommend mediation to others.  Increasingly, local, state and federal courts are turning to our DRCs because we provide an effective alternative to more adversarial dispute resolution processes.