Why we started

For years, the court service has provided increasingly complex means of processing even simple disputes. For those involved in establishing Independent Evaluation, originally known as the Independent Evaluation & Facilitation Service, it was obvious that clients and society really need simple means of resolving complex disputes.

Everyone involved with IE, senior barristers, QCs or judges, is familiar with how disputing parties in England & Wales suffer pain far beyond that arising from the dispute itself, even if they ultimately win.

The long term under-funding of the Court Service and ongoing Court closures means there is no foreseeable prospect of meaningful improvement.

We were not prepared to stand by when so many people are sucked into a court system that treats them so poorly and causes them so much unnecessary delay, expense, pain and stress. We determined to do everything we can to provide a viable and successful alternative.

We believe that being a lawyer is more than merely standing up and speaking on behalf of a client: to be a lawyer in the fullest sense is to strive to improve the administration of justice and the rule of law that is essential to an efficient, harmonious society.

Many people said it was so improbable that we could effect change that it was not worth trying. They were wrong.

“The illiterate of the 21st century are not those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn how to do something, then unlearn it, and relearn how to do it much better.”

Alvin Toffler

Creating the Independent Evaluation & Facilitation Service meant continually pushing against the established way of doing things and reluctance to change. It has not been easy, but we remain committed to improving the delivery of just and fair dispute resolution.

Over the years, the Independent Evaluation & Facilitation Service flourished, as law firms started to refer their more difficult and complex cases to us on a regular basis. Gradually, people started to call us simply ‘Independent Evaluation’, or IE for short. In response to this, on 1st September 2017, we rebranded as Independent Evaluation.

Since then, the service has gone from strength to strength. IE continues to provide optimal resolution for disputing parties all over the country. We strive to deliver accessible, affordable dispute resolution that is just, fair and fast – for everyone.

We remain passionate and committed to this cause.