Arbitration Sciences Limited focuses on client case persuasiveness
Elizabeth Loftus, distinguished professor of psychological science and criminology, law & society, has been named a member of the newly formed advisory board of Arbitration Sciences Limited (ASL).
ASL, established in 2022, is a UK-based independent consulting firm that assess the strengths and weaknesses of claims in international arbitration. It has been developing and testing rigorous, reliable scientific techniques to assess the persuasiveness of its clients’ cases, according to a company press release. “Its processes are grounded in proven psychological and behavioral science techniques that enable understanding of how arbitrators feel, think, and ultimately decide disputes.”
Loftus is one of ASL’s inaugural advisory board members. The others are: Antonio Damasio, Dornsife professor of psychology, philosophy and neurology at USC and director of USC’s Brain and Creativity Institute; Markus Diethelm, an attorney with expertise in performing triage functions on scandals and court cases to help decide which ones should be fought and which to settle; Meg Kinnear, an independent arbitrator and mediator at LKDR LLC, an international dispute resolution boutique who served as the secretary-general of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and a vice president of the World Bank; and Lord Hope (David Hope) of Craighead, an attorney who practiced in tax, construction oil and gas law and was appointed to the bench as Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General of Scotland.
“It’s an honor to be chosen along with the other advisory board members,” Loftus says, adding that she will be advising on the state of psychological science in decision making and how it can be helpful to people involved in international arbitration of major disputes.
In another UC Irvine connection, alumna Katie Winks (2023 Ph.D. psychological science) works for ASL as a data scientist.