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Knowing How, When, and Why to Go into Caucus
April 1, 2016
In my mediation practice, I think a lot about caucusing. I don’t, however, spend any time wondering whether to caucus; my thoughts are all about how and when to make a successful transition to private meetings with the parties I’m trying to help. I train law students, graduate students, and lawyers through the mediation program at the William H. Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. I also mediate and supervise mediations in adoption, child protection, elder guardianship,...
April 1, 2016
In my mediation practice, I think a lot about caucusing. I don’t, however, spend any time wondering whether to caucus; my thoughts are all about how and when to make a successful transition to private meetings with the parties I’m trying to help. I train law students, graduate students, and lawyers through the mediation program at the William H. Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. I also mediate and supervise mediations in adoption, child protection, elder guardianship,...
The Place of Money in Mediation
April 1, 2016
Addressing Money The other big point was the timing of addressing money claims. Each mediation had financial aspects, whether for the purpose of rectification, as compensation or as debt apparently due. In two, parties and their representatives were content to be guided by me as mediator on the timing. As a result, the financial talks were relatively straightforward in so far as that is ever so in cases like these. The point was that, with other issues on their minds (how they felt about the other...
April 1, 2016
Addressing Money The other big point was the timing of addressing money claims. Each mediation had financial aspects, whether for the purpose of rectification, as compensation or as debt apparently due. In two, parties and their representatives were content to be guided by me as mediator on the timing. As a result, the financial talks were relatively straightforward in so far as that is ever so in cases like these. The point was that, with other issues on their minds (how they felt about the other...
What Works in Mediation? What Do “Consumers” of Mediation Value in the Process?
April 1, 2016
I am a part of a the above titled program at the upcoming ABA DR Section Conference (it’s already been labeled as an intriguing...
April 1, 2016
I am a part of a the above titled program at the upcoming ABA DR Section Conference (it’s already been labeled as an intriguing...
Fees & FINRA
March 31, 2016
Following are two interesting and recent federal court rulings related to arbitration. Award of Attorney’s Fees Associated with Motion to Confirm Reversed on Appeal Zurich American Insurance (as subrogee of Vinmar International) v. Team Tankers Vinmar International chartered a ship from Team Tankers (TT). When the chemical shipped from Houston arrived in South Korea, it showed signs of yellowing, reducing its value. * * * Non-FINRA Arbitrators Allowed if Specified in Pre-Dispute Employment...
March 31, 2016
Following are two interesting and recent federal court rulings related to arbitration. Award of Attorney’s Fees Associated with Motion to Confirm Reversed on Appeal Zurich American Insurance (as subrogee of Vinmar International) v. Team Tankers Vinmar International chartered a ship from Team Tankers (TT). When the chemical shipped from Houston arrived in South Korea, it showed signs of yellowing, reducing its value. * * * Non-FINRA Arbitrators Allowed if Specified in Pre-Dispute Employment...
When a Mediator Knows Something the Parties Do Not, What’s the Obligation?
March 31, 2016
Doctors Jones and Green are engaged in a bitter dispute over the assets of their medical partnership. On the first day of a mediation between the parties, the mediator learns from his own research that Dr. Green’s attorney has grossly overestimated the value of Dr. Green’s future income from a medical device Dr. Green recently patented. The mediator, who is also a patent attorney, knows that US Patents are presumed to be valid, but he also knows that such presumptions are rebuttable. In this...
March 31, 2016
Doctors Jones and Green are engaged in a bitter dispute over the assets of their medical partnership. On the first day of a mediation between the parties, the mediator learns from his own research that Dr. Green’s attorney has grossly overestimated the value of Dr. Green’s future income from a medical device Dr. Green recently patented. The mediator, who is also a patent attorney, knows that US Patents are presumed to be valid, but he also knows that such presumptions are rebuttable. In this...
Susskind: As Legal Work Decomposes Will Law Firms ‘Break Rank?’
March 31, 2016
In this video op-ed Richard Susskind, co-author of “The Future of the Professions: How Technology Will Transform the Work of Human Experts,” lays out the challenges facing law firms today, and what he believes will be the difference between success and struggle. In the upcoming second part of our video series, Susskind will respond to questions about the ideas he presents in his book, which was co-written with his son, Daniel Susskind, a lecturer in economics at Balliol College, Oxford. Hat...
March 31, 2016
In this video op-ed Richard Susskind, co-author of “The Future of the Professions: How Technology Will Transform the Work of Human Experts,” lays out the challenges facing law firms today, and what he believes will be the difference between success and struggle. In the upcoming second part of our video series, Susskind will respond to questions about the ideas he presents in his book, which was co-written with his son, Daniel Susskind, a lecturer in economics at Balliol College, Oxford. Hat...
The Global Pound Conference Series
March 30, 2016
Worldwide events seek reliable, comparable information about what users and disputants really need — and how the dispute resolution landscape could change to provide it Today’s world is full of disconnects between the people who practice, promote, and think about dispute resolution processes and those who might use them. Mediators, arbitrators, judges, and other neutrals, those who have seen firsthand what ADR can achieve, often lament that alternative processes could help resolve many...
March 30, 2016
Worldwide events seek reliable, comparable information about what users and disputants really need — and how the dispute resolution landscape could change to provide it Today’s world is full of disconnects between the people who practice, promote, and think about dispute resolution processes and those who might use them. Mediators, arbitrators, judges, and other neutrals, those who have seen firsthand what ADR can achieve, often lament that alternative processes could help resolve many...
ABA Dispute Resolution Skills Courses Highlighted
March 30, 2016
Improve Your Skills With Us! The Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference has skills programs for every...
March 30, 2016
Improve Your Skills With Us! The Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference has skills programs for every...
ABA Dispute Resolution Conference April 7-9, 2016
March 30, 2016
The ABA Dispute Resolution Section Spring Conference is always a highlight. For 2016 it’s being held in New York City,...
March 30, 2016
The ABA Dispute Resolution Section Spring Conference is always a highlight. For 2016 it’s being held in New York City,...
No Brotherly Bias in Arbitration Award, Ninth Circuit Rules
March 29, 2016
A federal appeals court on Monday reinstated a $5.3 million employment arbitration award against medical-device maker Masimo Corp. in a case where the company made an issue of the arbitrator's family ties to Cooley chairman Stephen Neal. Masimo's appellate team at Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear had claimed JAMS neutral Richard Neal, a former justice on the Second District Court of Appeal, was biased because his brother had lost two big-ticket cases against the company. The argument persuaded...
March 29, 2016
A federal appeals court on Monday reinstated a $5.3 million employment arbitration award against medical-device maker Masimo Corp. in a case where the company made an issue of the arbitrator's family ties to Cooley chairman Stephen Neal. Masimo's appellate team at Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear had claimed JAMS neutral Richard Neal, a former justice on the Second District Court of Appeal, was biased because his brother had lost two big-ticket cases against the company. The argument persuaded...
