Quick Glance into the Adjudicated Process

Adjudicated refers to the formal legal process by which a judge or arbiter reviews evidence and testimonies (including legal reasoning offered by litigants or opposing parties) to render a legally-binding decision. This adjudicated decision, which is a legally enforceable resolution, will ultimately determine the distribution of rights and obligations for the parties involved in the legal quarrel.

Adjudication is distinct from other justice-seeking or evidence-based resolution formats (most notably a trial by jury) because the process maintains the expedient and relatively inexpensive characteristics, of mediation or other alternative resolution policies, while also maintaining a legally-enforceable or binding settlement. In particular, the adjudicated process is used to solve the following types of disputes:


Disputes between private parties, such as individual citizens or corporations (who possess a legal personality)


Disputes that arise between public officials and private parties


Disputes between public bodies and public officials


The Adjudicated process occurs when a natural person, typically someone empowered by an agency to formalize a binding decision, is given the task of examining evidence or facts to render a legally-acceptable and affirmed judgment in a legal quandary. As a result of this process and the broad definition attached, the adjudicated process may refer to a casual form of judging, such as in athletic competitions, where a body of judges adjudicate and awards scores to the competitors; or a binding judgment that distributed significant penalties and/or punishments to a party involved.


The Adjudicated process, in the majority of cases, is binding and does not require the inclusion of a jury to render the decision. In the adjudicated process, a judge will render a decision regarding the case only after all the evidence has been presented to the presiding body. This legal process is preferred by a number of institutions and individuals in the midst of a legal battle because it is typically less expensive and far more expedient than a trial by jury.


The Adjudication Process Explained:


As stated earlier, a judge (instead of a jury) will typically settle disputes between parties involved in the adjudicated process. Although the adjudicated process is quicker and typically less expensive, the review of facts is generally thought to be less thorough and sympathetic when compared to a trial by jury. In the legal sense, an adjudicator is not regarded as a mediatory--even though the two parties are required to come to terms or agree on a settlement to resolve a case.

In the majority of situations, a mediator will help find a compromise between feuding parties, but they cannot force the parties to do so. In contrast, the legal adjudication process and the settlement it reaches, does require the parties involved to comply to the punishments or settlements outlined; the resolution the legal adjudication process reaches is legal binding.