News
SCOTUS Vacates CA State Employment Arbitration Opinion
February 24, 2014
In its Orders released this morning (http://www.supremecourt.gov/orders/courtorders/022414zor_19m2.pdf), the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the decision of the Second Appellate District of the Court of Appeal of California inCarmax Auto Superstores v. Fowler applying the so-called Gentry rule relating to class action waivers in arbitration agreements, and remanded the case back to the California state appellate court for further consideration in light of American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant. As...
February 24, 2014
In its Orders released this morning (http://www.supremecourt.gov/orders/courtorders/022414zor_19m2.pdf), the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the decision of the Second Appellate District of the Court of Appeal of California inCarmax Auto Superstores v. Fowler applying the so-called Gentry rule relating to class action waivers in arbitration agreements, and remanded the case back to the California state appellate court for further consideration in light of American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant. As...
My Apologies, Can We Now Start to Talk about Resolution
February 24, 2014
Apologies, if from the heart, can be effective in bringing the parties closer to resolution in a mediation or negotiation. There may be some attorneys who feel it’s just a tool to emotionally manipulate the other party to get a lower settlement cost. But, depending on the circumstances, the apology can help make the deal possible, not to reduce or increase the value of the deal. The science behind apologies is discussed in a recent article of Psychology Today. Writer Guy Winch, PhD., states...
February 24, 2014
Apologies, if from the heart, can be effective in bringing the parties closer to resolution in a mediation or negotiation. There may be some attorneys who feel it’s just a tool to emotionally manipulate the other party to get a lower settlement cost. But, depending on the circumstances, the apology can help make the deal possible, not to reduce or increase the value of the deal. The science behind apologies is discussed in a recent article of Psychology Today. Writer Guy Winch, PhD., states...
Rose Miller To Speak At The 2014 CLM Georgia Event
February 24, 2014
Rose Miller, Esq. Principal, ADR Solutions, LLC will be speaking at the CLM Georgia Event on, “Settlement Offers and Negotiations: Pitfalls, Pointers and Recent Developments.” The event includes a combination of speakers and networking events. The Georgia Event will take place on February 27th at The Atlanta Event Center at Opera, Atlanta GA. Rose Miller is an accomplished trial attorney, former in-house counsel and claims manager with a proven track record of helping companies significantly...
February 24, 2014
Rose Miller, Esq. Principal, ADR Solutions, LLC will be speaking at the CLM Georgia Event on, “Settlement Offers and Negotiations: Pitfalls, Pointers and Recent Developments.” The event includes a combination of speakers and networking events. The Georgia Event will take place on February 27th at The Atlanta Event Center at Opera, Atlanta GA. Rose Miller is an accomplished trial attorney, former in-house counsel and claims manager with a proven track record of helping companies significantly...
What Makes Humans Unique
February 23, 2014
I'm going to talk about some new findings in my field, comparative cognition. I'm interested in what makes humans unique. There are findings that I think are fantastically cool, in that they might be redefining how we think about human nature, but first they're going to pose for us some really interesting new problems. I'm doing this, in part, because I think already having redefined human nature in the last couple of years is sort of a tall order, and that scared me, but also because I think...
February 23, 2014
I'm going to talk about some new findings in my field, comparative cognition. I'm interested in what makes humans unique. There are findings that I think are fantastically cool, in that they might be redefining how we think about human nature, but first they're going to pose for us some really interesting new problems. I'm doing this, in part, because I think already having redefined human nature in the last couple of years is sort of a tall order, and that scared me, but also because I think...
How I Beat Stage Fright
February 23, 2014
Humanity's fine-tuned sense of fear served us well as a young species, giving us laser focus to avoid being eaten by competing beasts. But it's less wonderful when that same visceral, body-hijacking sense of fear kicks in in front of 20 folk-music fans at a Tuesday night open-mic. Palms sweat, hands shake, vision blurs, and the brain says RUN: it's stage fright. In this charming, tuneful little talk, Joe Kowan talks about how he conquered it. By day he's a graphic designer, and by night Joe Kowan...
February 23, 2014
Humanity's fine-tuned sense of fear served us well as a young species, giving us laser focus to avoid being eaten by competing beasts. But it's less wonderful when that same visceral, body-hijacking sense of fear kicks in in front of 20 folk-music fans at a Tuesday night open-mic. Palms sweat, hands shake, vision blurs, and the brain says RUN: it's stage fright. In this charming, tuneful little talk, Joe Kowan talks about how he conquered it. By day he's a graphic designer, and by night Joe Kowan...
The New Formula to Create a Billion Dollar Firm: Tesla, Nest, Harry’s and Matternet
February 23, 2014
The challenge for the CEO of a traditional larger enterprise whatever sector is to reimagine their industry as an ecosystem, identify their natural allies, ask what they can do to make in their interests to work collaboratively, and to open themselves up to consumer-orientated applications to run over them. British Gas could have created Nest. British Telecom could have created Skype. Volkswagen or General Motors could have created Tesla. But they didn’t. They didn’t reimagine their industries...
February 23, 2014
The challenge for the CEO of a traditional larger enterprise whatever sector is to reimagine their industry as an ecosystem, identify their natural allies, ask what they can do to make in their interests to work collaboratively, and to open themselves up to consumer-orientated applications to run over them. British Gas could have created Nest. British Telecom could have created Skype. Volkswagen or General Motors could have created Tesla. But they didn’t. They didn’t reimagine their industries...
Can Watching a Movie Improve Your Relationship? Motivate You to Write a Will? Resolve Your Conflict?
February 23, 2014
Here's the news release from University of Rochester. (Click to see the list of movies and discussion questions used in the study, and to read the study itself.) Divorce Rate Cut in Half for Couples Who Discussed Relationship Movies January 31, 2014 Contact: Susan Hagen susan.hagen@rochester.edu 585.276.4061 A new study finds that watching and discussing movies about relationships is as effective in lowering divorce rates as other, more intensive early marriage counseling programs. Discussing...
February 23, 2014
Here's the news release from University of Rochester. (Click to see the list of movies and discussion questions used in the study, and to read the study itself.) Divorce Rate Cut in Half for Couples Who Discussed Relationship Movies January 31, 2014 Contact: Susan Hagen susan.hagen@rochester.edu 585.276.4061 A new study finds that watching and discussing movies about relationships is as effective in lowering divorce rates as other, more intensive early marriage counseling programs. Discussing...
New Mediation Law in UK Geared to Divorcing Couples
February 23, 2014
Despite the efforts of a group of 6,500 mediators and millions of pounds spent by the government on advertising and diversion efforts, divorce mediation languished in Great Britain. The London Times reported that “only half of 4,000 adults surveyed would even consider an out-of-court solution to resolving their disputes.” [emphasis added] A new law will require that divorcing couples with disputes about children or property will be required to attend a “mediation information and assessment...
February 23, 2014
Despite the efforts of a group of 6,500 mediators and millions of pounds spent by the government on advertising and diversion efforts, divorce mediation languished in Great Britain. The London Times reported that “only half of 4,000 adults surveyed would even consider an out-of-court solution to resolving their disputes.” [emphasis added] A new law will require that divorcing couples with disputes about children or property will be required to attend a “mediation information and assessment...
The 2014 U.S. News Job Rankings: Being A Lawyer Is Worse Than Being A Nail Technician
February 22, 2014
Each year, U.S. News and World Report comes out with a ranking of the 100 best jobs in the nation, based on important factors like the number of expected openings, advancement opportunities, career fulfillment, and salary expectations. With criteria like that, it makes sense that each year, the job of “Lawyer” sinks lower and lower in the rankings. * * * But don’t you worry, U.S. News claims that “[t]he job market for lawyers has improved in recent years,” and “an additional 74,800...
February 22, 2014
Each year, U.S. News and World Report comes out with a ranking of the 100 best jobs in the nation, based on important factors like the number of expected openings, advancement opportunities, career fulfillment, and salary expectations. With criteria like that, it makes sense that each year, the job of “Lawyer” sinks lower and lower in the rankings. * * * But don’t you worry, U.S. News claims that “[t]he job market for lawyers has improved in recent years,” and “an additional 74,800...
Lawyer up online: Startups Aim to Make the Law Less Confusing, Expensive
February 22, 2014
When Jim Angelopoulos opened his first restaurant 10 years ago, he hired a lawyer to help him incorporate. When he later decided to trademark the name with an eye toward expansion, he used a different route: A website called LegalForce. "The cost itself is night and day," said Angelopoulos, who owns Scrambl'z Diner in south San Jose. Angelopoulos said LegalForce helped him register his trademark nationally and block another restaurant from using a similar moniker. "I thought registering a name...
February 22, 2014
When Jim Angelopoulos opened his first restaurant 10 years ago, he hired a lawyer to help him incorporate. When he later decided to trademark the name with an eye toward expansion, he used a different route: A website called LegalForce. "The cost itself is night and day," said Angelopoulos, who owns Scrambl'z Diner in south San Jose. Angelopoulos said LegalForce helped him register his trademark nationally and block another restaurant from using a similar moniker. "I thought registering a name...
