Mission

The mission of the ADR Office is to provide and promote the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) techniques at all levels throughout the DOE complex.

What is ADR?

Alternative Dispute Resolution is an umbrella term encompassing a variety of dispute resolution processes. These include, but are not limited to, conciliation, facilitation, mediation, mini-trials, arbitration, use of the ombudsman, or any combination thereof. ADR techniques are designed to assist people in avoiding more polarizing and potentially more costly forums such litigation.

Secretarial Support

On June 24, 2021, Secretary Granholm issued a Secretarial Statement in support of ADR at DOE. Recognizing the inherent value of conflict management and resolution in strengthening DOE overall as a Department, Secretary Granholm iterated her full support for the use of ADR in workplace conflict. Secretary Granholm also furthered her commitment to ADR by expressing her expectation that managers and supervisors integrate ADR practices into their organizations and by strongly encouraging managers and supervisors to fully participate in ADR when ADR is requested. To read Secretary Granholm's statement in its entirety, please click on the image to your right.

History

With over 25 years of service to the DOE community, the ADR Office can trace its lineage back to the passage and implementation of the Administrative Dispute Resolution Act.

Originally known as the Office of Dispute Resolution, it was created in 1995 and was housed in the Office of the General Counsel. The office was tasked with the mandate to promote and increase the understanding and use of ADR within the DOE, which included offering training, providing system design support, and acting as a consultant for all types of dispute resolution. Historically, ADRO's predecessors focused on directing the Headquarters Mediation Program, which provides mediation services to resolve workplace disputes. Mediation was the ADR technique most often utilized at DOE and remains an important part of the ADR Office's work.

Effective August 31, 2008, the office underwent an organizational change at the request of the General Counsel. The Office of Dispute Resolution became the Office of Conflict Prevention and Resolution (OCPR). The new office continued to report directly to the Immediate Office of the General Counsel.

OCPR remained in the Office of the General Counsel until Fiscal Year 2011. In a joint memorandum on September 28, 2010, Poli Marmolejos, the Director of the Office of Hearings and Appeals, and Scott Blake Harris, then-General Counsel, requested that DOE transfer responsibility from GC to OHA because of OCPR's mission to provide a neutral function in the DOE enterprise. The memorandum noted that this neutrality is not always consistent with GC's mission, but that OHA performs neutral functions on behalf of DOE. OCPR thereafter became housed in OHA.

Establishment of the ADR Office

On December 1, 1994, then-Secretary of Energy Hazel R. O'Leary issued a memorandum in which she noted her recent approval of the establishment of the Office of Dispute Resolution, which would later evolve into the ADR Office on November 13, 2016. 

Her memorandum demarcated the duties and activities:

"The Office will be responsible for the Department's compliance with the Administrative Dispute Resolution Act and will provide coordinated support and oversight of the Department's alternative dispute resolution activities. These activities include informal, non adversarial means of resolving conflicts, including conciliation, facilitation, mediation, fact-finding, mini-trials, arbitration and negotiated rule making."

"The Office will also encourage greater use of dispute resolution techniques for conflicts involving the Department by identifying opportunities for dispute resolution techniques, overseeing training of relevant Departmental personnel, and providing necessary resources, such as outside neutrals. Some areas to be targeted include litigation brought by third parties against the Department or its contractors, disputes between the Department and its contractors, disputes concerning employee relations, and Department's defense nuclear facilities."

Conflict Resolution Day

As part of an annual tradition, the ADR Office celebrates Conflict Resolution Day (CRD), which is recognized each year on the third Thursday in October. Our Lunchtime Series provides ample opportunities to connect with ADR professionals and share their experiences with the public.

To view all previous ADR Lunchtime Series Programs, click here.