What is an Early Neutral Evaluation (“ENE”)?
Per the North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission, a neutral evaluation is an informal, abbreviated presentation of the facts and issues by the parties to a neutral at an early stage of the case. The neutral is responsible for evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the case, providing a candid assessment of liability, the settlement value, and a dollar value or range of potential awards if the case proceeds to trial. The neutral is also responsible for identifying areas of agreement and disagreement and suggesting necessary and appropriate discovery.
ENE is a process where each side presents written and oral summaries of its case to a neutral person (the “evaluator.”)
ENE is different from mediation. In ENE, lawyers and their clients get to hear independent feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of their case. This allows them to provide better advice to their clients and allows the clients to hear from a neutral third party how strong or weak their claims are. This can really help people who are entrenched in their positions see things from a different angle.
Some benefits of ENE to consider:
ENE can be a cost saving and time saving measure. To be able to have a neutral evaluate the case early on, prior to extensive monies being spent on litigation, is of great benefit to everyone. ENE provides an opportunity to take the experience and wisdom of experienced attorneys to help pinpoint the issues and provide a solution to the outstanding issue(s).
What are good examples of issues to take to an Early Neutral Evaluator?
Questions regarding the enforceability of a prenuptial agreement, postnuptial agreement, or separation agreement
Questions regarding classification issues: what is separate property, how much of a marital component exists, etc.
Questions regarding valuation issues: marital residence, businesses, etc.
