NON BINDING ARBITRATION 

In addition to voluntary binding arbitration, there is a procedure known as "court ordered non-binding arbitration". The authority for non-binding arbitration can be found in Sec. 44.103 of the Florida Statutes, and the procedure in Rule 1.820 of the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. Non-binding arbitration is currently being ordered by the courts more frequently than it has been in the past. It differs from mediation in that a decision is made and differs from traditional arbitration in that it is neither voluntary nor binding. The courts are ordering non-binding arbitration in cases where mediation has failed to result in a resolution and the court feels that one or the other of the parties needs a reality check in the form of a third party letting the litigants know the merits or lack thereof of their dispute.

The courts are limited to ordering non-binding and not binding arbitration because to force litigants into binding arbitration would violate their constitutional guarantee of access to the courts.