Judicial Arbitration is like a trial. But it is less formal and there is no jury.An all new chapter covering how to conduct an individual arbitration, including selecting an arbitrator, conducting discovery, preliminary hearings and motions. Office, as instructed below, with the case name in the memo field. Arbitration is essentially a paid private trial, in other words, a method to resolve disputes without going to court. The parties may be asked to prepare statements or a brief before attending mediation in which they lay out important facts and goals for mediation. These are the Local Rules for Alternative Dispute Resolution in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. My sister and I were defendants in a civil litigation case. Joint Case Management Statement and Discovery Plan.