O.C. Firm Quickly Grew Into Biggest One-Stop Judge Shop

IRVINE —  In less than 20 years since its founding by former Orange County Superior Court Judge Warren Knight, primarily as a way for corporations and professionals to voluntarily resolve legal differences out of court, JAMS/Endispute has become the largest for-profit private judging business in the country.

What began as a simple way of helping businesses avoid the time, expense and hassle of a lawsuit has grown through aggressive marketing to large corporate clients into a one-stop private justice shopping mall with hundreds of judges who hear more than 1,500 cases a month.

But unlike its major competitor, the American Arbitration Assn., a nonprofit formed in 1926, JAMS aims to one day become a major public corporation.

From its headquarters in a modern office tower on Main Street in Irvine, JAMS negotiates contracts with corporate and insurance clients to provide judges to preside over arbitration and mediation hearings in major cities across the country.

JAMS is constantly mindful of the “standards of fairness,” said Senior Vice President Michael D. Young, and seeks to avoid involvement with arbitration schemes grossly stacked against consumers and employees.

Despite the proliferation of arbitration clauses, “we haven’t had a significant number of horror stories,” said Young, who also monitors ethical issues for the company.

Young said he doesn’t understand critics of the practice, since most people who end up before a JAMS judge are represented by “plaintiff’s attorneys” who should be well aware of the process.