Acts 23:35
"I will hear thee, said he, when thine accusers are also come. And he commanded him to be kept in Herod's judgment hall."
The trial of the Apostle Paul was sadly mishandled. It was mishandled by the Apostle Paul himself by prematurely appealing his case to Caesar, and it was mishandled by many of the men who were considered judges. When you read about the trial of the Apostle Paul, you can see very early on he should have been released due to a lack of evidence. Yet, through this trial you can learn some valuable lessons on how to handle disputes and grievances between two parties that can lead to proper judgment.
First, both parties need to be present face to face. One of the sad results of a technological society is that we have lost the art of approaching the accuser face to face. We are so used to emailing and texting that when the uncomfortable task of approaching someone face to face comes, many will avoid it. You find this was also the case in Paul's trial when many of those who accused him would not come to his trial to lay out their grievances. If both parties of a grievance or dispute are not willing to come face to face, then you will never settle the dispute. My practice of settling disputes or grievances is to either put up or shut up. If you are not willing to face someone with your grievance or dispute, then you need to be quiet.
Second, both parties need to be heard before a decision is made. One of the things for which Felix can be commended in Paul's trial was that he would not even hear the case until the accusers came. When handling disputes or grievances, you must withhold judgment until you hear both sides. You must not make a judgment just because one side sounds believable until you hear the other side. It makes a big difference to hear both sides of the story. Hearing both sides gives you the whole story to make a proper judgment.
Third, don't handle a grievance or dispute that is not in your area. The first thing Felix determined was whether this case was in his jurisdiction. If a dispute or grievance is not in your area of judgment, then you have no business listening to it. Only let those who have the authority in that area make the judgment.
Fourth, don't delay the unpopular decision. Felix made the mistake of delaying a right decision because he knew it was unpopular. Just because the crowd wants you to judge one way does not mean you should delay a decision that will cause them to be upset with you. Delaying unpopular decisions will only cause the situation to get worse and will always make it more complex.
Fifth, don't pass the buck to another. Felix didn't want this decision on his head, so he passed it on to Festus. Part of being a leader is making difficult decisions. Passing it to someone else so you won't be unpopular is wrong and unjust. If you know what the decision should be, then make it! Don't pass it to someone else and delay the proper judgment.
Sixth, don't judge with your benefit in mind. Felix wanted Paul to pay him money, which means that Felix was truly an unjust judge. If money could sway his judgment, then the one with the most money would win and justice is not served. Never make a judgment by how it benefits you. In fact, if you can benefit from a judgment, you would be wise to recuse yourself and let someone else who has no skin in the game hear the grievance and dispute.
Friend, it is never easy to deal with disputes and grievances. Nobody truly wins in these instances; however, these lessons can help to lessen the loss of the situation and will allow justice to prevail. When justice prevails, truth wins.