I think it will be better to say that the guilty party is to bear the cost of the dispute fee that way, that way, the innocent one is left out of the expenses
My take is that anything in a business can change. You need to be flexible to change what does not work. I too think it is a lot for a dispute but I think we will get to the result of that when there is traction and actual disputes. Also you have to compare it to other competition.
It is mentioned here that the dispute will be capped to a maximum amount. This amount has not been decided yet. We will have a good balance between what works for the transacting parties and what is viable for the nodes to spend their time reviewing the documentation.
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/m.46495009
The idea of a maximum for dispute charge is splendid. Looks more like a clearing or mining bitcoins. First and best person to clear the dispute get the payment. Which fluctuates.