Professional Designations

ADRIC designations allow those holding them to convey their level of experience and skill to prospective users of their services based on an objective third party assessment.

Users of ADR services, lawyers and other professionals referring clients feel confident when they choose an ADR professional with a designation granted by ADRIC because they are choosing an individual whose performance has been reviewed and assessed by a committee of senior and respected practitioners who have verified that the professional is working at a particular level.

Generalist Designations for Mediators, Arbitrators and Med-Arbitrators

Entry-level Qualified Designations

• Qualified Arbitrator – Q.Arb
• Qualified Mediator – Q.Med

Senior-level Chartered Designations

• Chartered Arbitrator – C.Arb
• Chartered Mediator – C.Med
• Chartered Med-Arbitrator – C.Med-Arb

Specialized Designations:

• Family Practice Designations (available in some regions – check with your affiliate)

• • Qualified Arbitrator (Family) – Q.Arb(Fam) – coming soon
  • Qualified Mediator (Family) – Q.Med(Fam)
  • Chartered Arbitrator – C.Arb (Family) – C.Arb(Fam) – coming soon
  • Chartered Mediator – C.Med (Family) – C.Arb(Fam) – coming soon

• Construction Adjudication Designations
  • Qualified Adjudicator – Q.Adj – coming soon
  • Chartered Adjudicator – C.Adj – coming soon

Members with the minimum training and practice experience can apply for a Qualified designation, which indicates they have been judged as able to practice at an entry level while they continue learning and gaining experience.

Highly-experienced members can apply for a Chartered Designation –  the most senior-level designations offered by the ADR Institute of Canada. These designations are known and respected across Canada and internationally.

As a matter of interest, many Federal Government departments require their practitioners to have a Chartered designation, including: Health Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Department of Justice Canada, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, Canada Revenue Agency, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada and Public Safety Canada.

How to Apply

You may view ADRIC-Accredited courses (indicating they have met the educational criteria for the designations) here.

You must be a “Full” Member via one of ADRIC’s Regional Affiliates before applying for an ADRIC designation. Some Regional Affiliates have slight differences in criteria:  Please contact yours to inquire about designation application forms, fees, etc, as they administer the designations in their region.

After being reviewed and approved at the regional level, those who meet the requirements are forwarded with a recommendation to ADRIC which confers the designations. Successful candidates will be contacted with instruction to pay the annual maintenance dues (prorated) after which a certificate will be sent.

There are several fees to apply for and maintain a designation:

• a one-time designation application fee to your affiliate;
• designation maintenance dues to ADRIC to be paid annually on January 1st;
• of course, there is also an annual membership fee payable to your affiliate.

The Assessment Process

The first stage of the objective third party assessment of an applicant for an ADRIC designation is completed by the Regional Assessment Committee (RAC). This committee is comprised of at least three Chartered members selected by the affiliate for their recognized experience and standing in the ADR Community. The RAC meets with and interviews the applicant. Applicants for a Mediator designation will also be asked to do a mock mediation and to deal with a proposed “ethical issue”.

Once the applicant has been reviewed by the regional committee, if he or she is successful, the application will be forwarded to ADRIC with the recommendation the designation be conferred. If all is in order ADRIC will notify the candidate of his/her success and next steps which include making pro-rated payment of the annual fee and sending of the certificate.

Designation holders requesting a replacement or additional copies of their certificate must order them via the ADRIC shop: Certificate Re-Issue

For Accreditation Appeals Policy, please contact ADRIC at 416-487-4733, 1-877-475-4353 or admin [at] adric.ca.

As part of our Gold Standard approach to ADR in Canada, the ADR Institute of Canada requires all designation holders to provide proof of a minimum of $1 million insurance coverage for their protection and for the protection of those for whom they provide services. View ADRIC Insurance Program

Designated members must also  commit to Continued Education and Engagement (CEE).

Designation Holders’ Annual Renewal Fees
Generalist Designations
C.Arb or C.Med	$   231.00
C.Arb and C.Med	$   293.00
C.Arb, C.Med and C.Med-Arb	$   308.00
Q.Arb or Q.Med	$   132.00
1 each: Chartered and Qualified designation	$   258.00
2 Qualified designations	$   183.00
Family Designations
C.Arb(Fam) or C.Med(Fam)	$   271.00
C.Arb(Fam) and C.Med(Fam)	$   370.00
Q.Arb(Fam) or Q.Med(Fam)	$   172.00
1 each: Chartered(Fam) and Qualified(Fam) designation	$   345.00
2 Qualified (Family) designations	$   272.00
(2021 rates – subject to change) Applicable taxes extra.
Fees include annual CEE reporting fee.

Policy for Reinstatement of Designation(s)

ADRIC and Affiliates work to ensure Designation holders practice at the highest standards by requiring them to maintain active membership. Membership is important to ensure adherence to the Codes of Conduct and Ethics, to stay informed via member newsletters and notices, and to be updated via continuing education and engagement.

If an ADRIC designation holder has failed to maintain membership and/or his or her designation (due to hardship[2], neglect or a temporarily hold on their practice[3]) and would like to be reinstated, the following policy will apply:

1. UP TO THREE YEARS LAPSE

If the lapse period is three years or less, the applicant may be reinstated to their former designated status upon meeting the criteria below.

The applicant must:

1.  Complete and submit a form indicating reasons for the lapse;
2. Submit a CEE report for the lapsed period (if no points were accumulated, an agreement to accumulate at least 2 points per month until year end[4] and remit a report by the end of the year;
3. Surrender to ADRIC the previously issued Designation certificate (which will be replaced with a new certificate);
4. Remit the following fees:

• • The designation renewal fee for the full current year
  • Outstanding membership dues and any fees as set by your affiliate;
  • The administrative fee of $300 which covers previous year designations fees, CEE filing fee, new certificate fee and administrative fees. The administrative fee can be paid via the ADRIC shop – click here.

1. MORE THAN THREE YEARS LAPSE

An applicant whose designation has lapsed for four or more years will be required to apply as a new applicant (including paying application fees to their regional Affiliate for recommendation to ADRIC, etc.)

Retiring Chartered / Qualified Members

Note: ADRIC and the Affiliates offer retired members the opportunity to hold their Chartered designation(s) at no annual fee provided that they are fully retired from the workplace and maintain a retired membership category with the provincial or regional affiliate. In such cases, the designation would be modified as follows: C.Med(Ret); C.Arb(Ret). This is ADRIC’s way of honouring our long-term designated members. You must maintain Retired (or ADRIA “LINK”) membership with your regional Affiliate and you must sign an agreement to reinstate your full membership and designation if you engage in any paid dispute resolution services. Please complete the Retiring Chartered Member form/agreement and send via email to your to admin@adric.ca, copying your affiliate.

Those retired members holding a Q.Med and/or Q.Arb may now retain their designation by continuing to pay the ADRIC annual designation maintenance fee ($132), along with their retired membership fee to their affiliate, however CEE reporting will no longer be required.  You would display your designation with “(Ret)” after it. You must maintain Retired (or ADRIA “LINK”) membership with your regional Affiliate, and you must sign an agreement to reinstate your full membership and designation if you engage in any paid dispute resolution services. Please complete the Retiring Qualified Member form/agreement and send via email to your to admin@adric.ca, copying your affiliate.

As a retired member, your ADR Connect profile will no longer be visible to the public.  Also, retired members have no access to the ADRIC insurance program except Extended Reporting/Tail coverage.

These retired designation categories are not available to members on a temporary basis – those who are facing serious health issues, etc, may apply to have their designation “paused” temporarily if they have taken a leave of absence (LOA) from work. (Pauses may not  extend beyond the end of the calendar year.) Please contact us for more information.

[1]  Regional Affiliate forms may vary – check with your affiliate before completing
[2]  Such as serious illness of self or immediate family member, severe business downturn, etc.
[2] i.e. leave of absence, sabbatical
[4] Collect points via ADRIC and affiliate events, section meetings, online webinars and videos, etc, or other professional development events.