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Family Law in the United States
September 20, 2014
Two long-term developments currently reshaping families and transforming family law: greater autonomy for women and growing economic inequality in Western societies. These changes have eroded the formerly near-universal acceptance of marriage as the only appropriate site for child-rearing. Growing inequality has created a menu of options in family formation that are importantly shaped by class. Today, marriages tend to occur much later in life, if at all. Some commentators suggest marriage has become...
September 20, 2014
Two long-term developments currently reshaping families and transforming family law: greater autonomy for women and growing economic inequality in Western societies. These changes have eroded the formerly near-universal acceptance of marriage as the only appropriate site for child-rearing. Growing inequality has created a menu of options in family formation that are importantly shaped by class. Today, marriages tend to occur much later in life, if at all. Some commentators suggest marriage has become...
Smart People, Dumb Decisions
September 20, 2014
Being smarter leads to critical thinking but bad decisions. Generally, we assume it’s good to be smart. And we expect smart people to make generally smart decisions. But smart people may be so good at reasoning that they can logically reach the conclusion they want rather than the actual correct answer. In fact, maybe careful thinking isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Let me start this consideration of smart people making bad judgments by considering science and politics. Is the earth...
September 20, 2014
Being smarter leads to critical thinking but bad decisions. Generally, we assume it’s good to be smart. And we expect smart people to make generally smart decisions. But smart people may be so good at reasoning that they can logically reach the conclusion they want rather than the actual correct answer. In fact, maybe careful thinking isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Let me start this consideration of smart people making bad judgments by considering science and politics. Is the earth...
Do Physicians Respond to Liability Standards?
September 20, 2014
Michael Frakes (Northwestern), Matthew Frank (Harvard student), & Seth Seabury (RAND) have posted to SSRN Do Physicians Respond to Liability Standards?. The abstract provides: In this paper, we explore the sensitivity in the clinical decisions of physicians to the standards of care expected of them under the law, drawing on the abandonment by states over time of rules holding physicians to standards determined by local customs and the contemporaneous adoption of national-standard rules. Using...
September 20, 2014
Michael Frakes (Northwestern), Matthew Frank (Harvard student), & Seth Seabury (RAND) have posted to SSRN Do Physicians Respond to Liability Standards?. The abstract provides: In this paper, we explore the sensitivity in the clinical decisions of physicians to the standards of care expected of them under the law, drawing on the abandonment by states over time of rules holding physicians to standards determined by local customs and the contemporaneous adoption of national-standard rules. Using...
Changing Law Dept. Demands Drive Law Firm Changes
September 19, 2014
It’s been a challenging couple of years for the legal industry. And although it’s always hard to say precisely what’s going to happen next, there are certainly some trends to consider. The latest update from Robert Half Legal’s annual Future Law Office research series, “Client Dynamics Driving Change in the Legal Profession,” indicates that both in-house legal departments and law firms are looking to the next few years with a desire to work more efficiently, and are rethinking their organizing...
September 19, 2014
It’s been a challenging couple of years for the legal industry. And although it’s always hard to say precisely what’s going to happen next, there are certainly some trends to consider. The latest update from Robert Half Legal’s annual Future Law Office research series, “Client Dynamics Driving Change in the Legal Profession,” indicates that both in-house legal departments and law firms are looking to the next few years with a desire to work more efficiently, and are rethinking their organizing...
Tomorrow’s Lawyers: An Introduction to Your Future
September 19, 2014
In his book Tomorrow’s Lawyers, Richard Susskind writes, “Tomorrow’s legal world, as predicted and described here,...
September 19, 2014
In his book Tomorrow’s Lawyers, Richard Susskind writes, “Tomorrow’s legal world, as predicted and described here,...
Developmental Negotiation: Preliminary Stage
September 19, 2014
Developmental negotiation involves a plan and execution of the development of all five stages to maximize the likelihood of a beneficial outcome. The five stages are preliminary, preparation, information, negotiation and closing. Let’s take a closer look at the first stage, preliminary. In real time, your client has met with you and has been signed up, and you are considering approaches. When signing the client, you developed a thorough understanding of the client’s needs, interests and capacity...
September 19, 2014
Developmental negotiation involves a plan and execution of the development of all five stages to maximize the likelihood of a beneficial outcome. The five stages are preliminary, preparation, information, negotiation and closing. Let’s take a closer look at the first stage, preliminary. In real time, your client has met with you and has been signed up, and you are considering approaches. When signing the client, you developed a thorough understanding of the client’s needs, interests and capacity...
Another Federal Appeals Court Finds Availability of Class Arbitration Is Question for Court
September 19, 2014
In a footnote in Sutter, SCOTUS hinted that the question of whether an arbitration agreement allowed for class arbitration...
September 19, 2014
In a footnote in Sutter, SCOTUS hinted that the question of whether an arbitration agreement allowed for class arbitration...
Mediator Ethical Breaches: Implications for Public Policy
September 19, 2014
Hamline University School of Law Professor Sharon Press has published Mediator Ethical Breaches: Implications for Public Policy, Penn State Yearbook on Arbitration and Mediation, Vol. 6, p. 107 (2014). In her article, Professor Press discusses the public policy goals behind court-connected mediation. She also examines the effect that grievances filed against court-connected mediators in the State of Florida over the course of a decade had on those goals and offers suggestions for addressing ethical...
September 19, 2014
Hamline University School of Law Professor Sharon Press has published Mediator Ethical Breaches: Implications for Public Policy, Penn State Yearbook on Arbitration and Mediation, Vol. 6, p. 107 (2014). In her article, Professor Press discusses the public policy goals behind court-connected mediation. She also examines the effect that grievances filed against court-connected mediators in the State of Florida over the course of a decade had on those goals and offers suggestions for addressing ethical...
Android and iPhones Offering Default Encryption, Blocking Police
September 18, 2014
The next generation of Google’s Android operating system, due for release next month, will encrypt data by default for the first...
September 18, 2014
The next generation of Google’s Android operating system, due for release next month, will encrypt data by default for the first...
Amazing Scottish Mediator Works on Reconciliation Regardless of Referendum Vote
September 18, 2014
On this referendum day in Scotland, I am writing this piece without knowing the outcome. By the time most of you read this, our future will be clearer. And by then, whatever the outcome, the work of restoration, healing and moving forward together will have commenced. Some years ago I worked as a mediator in Malawi with a large group of people who represented several sides in a dispute. We had three days of workshops and negotiations. On the first day, we played what we call The Gain Game. This...
September 18, 2014
On this referendum day in Scotland, I am writing this piece without knowing the outcome. By the time most of you read this, our future will be clearer. And by then, whatever the outcome, the work of restoration, healing and moving forward together will have commenced. Some years ago I worked as a mediator in Malawi with a large group of people who represented several sides in a dispute. We had three days of workshops and negotiations. On the first day, we played what we call The Gain Game. This...
