Litigation is a process where disputing parties go to court to resolve their disputes. The proceedings are conducted according to set procedural laws and are dependent on hearing dates as per the court workload. Almost all the times parties engage lawyers in order to under the laws and manage the hearing dates. Sometimes disputes may take several hearings across months/years to get resolved. Judges may also change due to various reasons The process of litigation comes to closure when a judge has passed a final order.
Arbitration is a process in which a neutral third party appointed as per an agreement of the disputing parties resolves disputes outside the formal court system and in a manner agreed by the parties. An 'award' given by the arbitrator is binding and recognizable by court. As the proceedings are custom made and in accordance with the agreement of the parties, the proceedings are fast, flexible, and cost effective. Parties need not engage lawyers during the arbitration process.