New name, new direction

“We liked the idea of working with the concept of equality and the word ‘equitable', which relate to the company's belief in equality within the law,” explained Freedman. “It refers to the possibility of parties being empowered within their own legal disputes, as opposed to a top-down approach from legal professionals to non-legal clients.”

The second part of the name is derived from the meaning for ancient wisdom. Lore is about knowledge, typically passed from person to person by word of mouth. It's a form of storytelling, and of communicating.

Both African and international

The name is both African and international. Equillore is about respecting older ways of mediation that existed here long before lawyers. Consider how people used to resolve disputes. They'd sit in a circle and discuss the issues, and then agree on a settlement. Contemporary dispute settlement services use this method as an intrinsic model.

Equillore's approach is about understanding what South Africa needs, particularly when it comes to innovative ways of unclogging the civil courts.

Currently, in the Western Cape alone, the backlog of civil cases is running at 18 months. Through a multi-tiered system that resolves disputes before require adjudication, it is hoped the legal system will be freed up to deal with more serious criminal cases.

The name Equillore is both about the changing nature of a specific business, and the potential for dispute settlement services as an instrumental and exciting tool to address service delivery constraints in the developing world.

The company, established in 1997, has for a decade been a provider of arbitration, mediation and dispute management services. Within this field, it has been successful in managing Road Accident Fund claims, as well as establishing mediation and negotiation solutions.

Concentrating energies

Moving into 2008, the company is concentrating its energies on a progressive range of services that enable dispute settlement. These services include case management, mediation, conciliation and arbitration.

“We are taking a multi-tiered approach to dispute settlement,” explains Wahida Parker, CEO of Equillore. “By assisting to mainstream mechanisms such as mediation within the established legal process, we are also responding to the need to free up the civil courts.”

The name Equillore corresponds to this focus.