Summary Jury Trial - A Caution

My experience with summary jury trials as a settlement device, as well as a poll of my colleagues in the Eastern District of Michigan, suggests the drawbacks of summary jury trials outweigh the benefits. Additionally, a decision regarding the worth of summary jury trial as a dispute resolution mechanism, particularly over the objections of a party, should be suspended until the Rand Corporation's Institute for Civil Justice reports to Congress on its evaluation of Civil Justice Reform Act initiatives with regard to alternate dispute resolution procedures in federal district courts.