Delivering online dispute resolution for consumers

The UNCTAD DODR Project aims to be the first step towards the implementation of online dispute resolution (ODR) for consumers in Indonesia and Thailand. It assesses beneficiaries’ needs, benchmarks international best practices, strengthens local capacities and uses emerging technologies like block chain and artificial intelligence to leapfrog development stages and deliver ODR. 

The DODR project is organizing its first online training workshop on consumer dispute resolution for Indonesia and Thailand. The purpose of this training workshop is to lay the foundation of knowledge that will allow beneficiary countries to contribute to the design of the consumer ODR system that best suits their reality.  

The United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection (General Assembly resolution 70/186 of 22 December 2015) call for fair, effective, transparent and impartial mechanism to address consumer complaints, including for cross-border cases, and require online consumers shall be provided no less protection than the one in other commercial forms.

ODR is an effective mechanism to provide consumer access to justice and redress for resolving disputes facilitated by the use of electronic communications and other information and communications technology. ODR has been on the rise as a mean to boost consumer trust in electronic commerce, including cross-border commerce.

A solid grounding in the theory of ODR systems, along with a comparative analysis of the implementation of these systems in various jurisdictions, will help participants identify good practices of consumer ODR in different contexts.

Objectives of the first training workshop: 

• To understand the international frameworks for delivering consumer dispute resolution and redress. 
• To identify the different pathways for delivering ODR for consumers, with special focus on the current ODR initiatives.
• To compare the design and implementation of different ODR systems, and identify advantages, challenges and latest developments. 
• To identify needs and gaps in beneficiary countries for delivering ODR for consumers.