5/17:Bermuda: Gang Mediation Structure Put In Place
A structure has been put in place around gang mediation and police officers will directly engage with students to stem the growth of the gang culture, read
5/17:Charles Schwab Drops Forced-Arbitration Clause From Contracts
After AT&T somehow convinced the U.S. Supreme Court that a couple of sentences buried toward the end of a contract that maybe .05% of customers ever think about reading was all that was needed to preempt class-action lawsuits, many large companies have rushed to pack their user agreements and licenses with clauses that force customers into arbitration. But, stuck in a battle with an industry regulator, the folks at Charles Schwab have decided to go another way, announcing that they have gotten rid of their arbitration clause… for now. read
5/17:More ADR Tools for Shippers
Arbitration, and not litigation, is the driving force behind rules that federal regulators hope will settle simmering disputes between freight railroads and shippers, including coal plant operators.
The Surface Transportation Board announced the policies May 13, after nearly three years of studying prolonged rate challenge cases. “Changes to the arbitration rules are intended to consolidate and simplify formerly separate arbitration procedures and to encourage greater use of arbitration,” the board said. read
5/17:National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM) receives $50,000 grant from JAMS Foundation for development of national Training Resource Center.
The Training Resource Center (TRC) will be the largest compilation of community mediation resources in the country. NAFCM will partner with community mediation centers across the country to collect new and existing resources including but not limited to PowerPoint, handouts, mocks, videos, and more. read
5/17:Kobe Bryant Judge Orders Mediation in Memorabilia Dispute
Kobe Bryant, the All-Star basketball guard, must undergo mediation before a possible June 17 trial to resolve a dispute over whether a New Jersey auctioneer can sell his memorabilia on behalf of his mother. U.S. District Judge Renee Marie Bumb set a mediation session for May 17 in federal court in Camden, New Jersey, to try to settle a lawsuit between Bryant and Goldin Auctions LLC. Bryant, a Los Angeles Laker, seeks to block Goldin Auctions from selling 100 items consigned by his mother, Pamela Bryant. The firm estimates the auction could raise more than $1 million. read
5/17:Bishop Eddie Long Agrees to Mediation (Huff Post Opin)
With little fanfare or news coverage, the four sexual coercion lawsuits confronting Bishop Eddie Long had the first hearing recently, with both sides opting for mediation to avoid a trial.
"Bishop Eddie Long agreeing to mediation of sexual coercion charges is an end-run around the universally accepted moral and ethical responsibilities of any ecumenical leader. Mediation of sexual allegation grievances is tantamount to an admission of "some" guilt, "some" form of ministerial misconduct. Innocent folk don't make deals if the claims against them are baseless and untrue. Mediation for the accused is a forfeiture of the right to ever claim innocence, and readers should be absolutely clear on this point." read
5/17:Amazon wants seller lawsuit to go to arbitration
Amazon.com’s response to two former sellers complaining about tied-up payments can be summed up as: We’ll see you in arbitration. Seattle-based Amazon, in a 28-page document filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle, asks Judge Marsha Pechman to move the case to arbitration. The two sellers claimed in a lawsuit filed in March that Amazon refused to pay them for more than 90 days after it shuttered their accounts. They want full restitution of “monies wrongfully obtained,” plus interest and other unspecified damages.
In its response, Amazon noted that when the plaintiffs signed up to sell products on its website they agreed to arbitrate any disputes. The suit, which seeks class-action status, says Amazon routinely holds sellers’ money longer than allowed to rack up interest and “reap many tens of millions of dollars annually.” read
5/14:Mediation Myths and Misunderstandings That May Affect Your Decisions in Divorce
The decision to divorce is probably one of the most important -- and most difficult -- decisions one will make during the course of a marriage. The unknowns and avalanche of effects falling like dominoes are often too overwhelming for one person to handle: "How do I start the process? When is the best time for me to initiate the divorce? If and when I make the decision to divorce, should I litigate or mediate?" It can be mind-boggling. read
5/14:Arbitration Fairness Act of 2013 Introduced in Congress
As discussed by the American Association for Justice, the new law seeks to end the abusive practice of so many large corporations, including nursing home conglomerates, that seek to insulate themselves from legal accountability with forced arbitration. As the AAJ summarized, the law is critically needed, because when it comes to arbitration, “The process is secretive, costly and rigged so that corporations cannot be held accountable. By removing access to justice, it grants corporations a license to steal and violate the law.” read
5/14:Discussion stuck? Call in a virtual mediator
Ever find yourself in a collaborative situation that’s gone awry? Maybe one person on the team dominates the conversation or an offhand comment distracts everyone for a whole meeting. Experts in social computing are developing a virtual mediator to turn around unproductive discussions. read
Holding Both (5/03/13) Jeanne Cleary “What do you need to grow in order to have the capacity to hold both?” Holding both is a concept of holding on to your true self and seeing yourself in relation to the world around you. This author examines that concept in relation to the Boston marathon bombing.
Transformative Mediation with Louise Phipps Senft (4/13/13) Louise Phipps Senft This interview of Louise Phipps Senft by Dave Hilton of the Conflict Specialists Show addresses such issues as Transformative Mediation; Relational Mediation; Transformative vs Evaluative, Facilitative and Narrative Mediation; Hopi Tribe; Dealing with Burnout; Mediators Beyond Borders; American Institute of Mediation; and the Association for Conflict Resolution.
Bach, Beijing, and Being at the Table (4/12/13) F. Peter Phillips Negotiators at the table might have completely different interests and no shared ground as to the law or the facts; they can nevertheless contribute to a productive mediation because they are there. They share the dispute itself, and they share at least an interest in resolving the dispute in their clients’ favor. They share a recognition of the process, and a willingness to make themselves heard.
Making a Mountain Out of a Mole-Hill (12/27/12) Cinnie Noble When we begin to experience irritation about something happening with another person, our thoughts and feelings sometimes go to places that are not helpful for the situation and relationship with the other person. We may not always be aware of what is exacerbating things, but before we know it our initial responses have taken twists and turns that only serve to complicate matters. As things expand in our minds and hearts, we often find ourselves more and more conflicted, confused, and upset. As things get bigger they may not even be a reasonable facsimile of what they were in the beginning.
Negotiation Theory on the Edge of the Fiscal Cliff: The Limits of Rationality (12/23/12) Robert Benjamin In a Washington Post article, the views of some well-regarded negotiation experts cast doubt on the quality and efficacy of the ongoing "fiscal cliff" negotiations between President Obama and Speaker Boehner, noting how much that process is at odds with the civil, rational, and principled model they purport to teach and claim is practiced in other contexts. It may, however, be their theory of negotiation that is insufficient, not only as applied to the political sphere, but in all negotiations, by failing to account for the predictable irrationality of people in decision-making.
Need for Enhancement of Standards in Mediation Practice (12/08/12) Uma Ramanathan This article is a summary of the keynote speech presented at India's National Conference on Mediation. It provides a synopsis of the current state of mediation in India, as well as a statement of the future of mediation. 1 Comment
The Annoying Union Rep (11/26/12) Dan Simon One of the areas of disagreement was what exactly happened when there was physical contact between Jack and the supervisor. The supervisor had reported that Jack puffed his chest out and intentionally bumped into him. But Jack said that he was trying to walk away from the supervisor at the time, but that the supervisor was following very closely behind him – and when Jack turned around, it was the supervisor who bumped into Jack.
Negotiating Happiness: Managing Peoples’ Predictably Irrational “Focusing Illusions” - Part 1 (11/18/12) Robert Benjamin This is Part 1 of a two-part series. This first part discusses how most human beings concoct out of their 'messy' human brains, an emotional state, often labeled 'irrational,' which neuroscientists and psychologists identify as a focusing illusion of happiness. Most conflicts can be usefully understood as a collision between peoples' differing notions of happiness an often resistant to remediation by reasoned approaches. The forthcoming Part 2 will consider the 'rationally irrational' negotiation strategies and techniques necessary to manage focusing illusions. 4 Comments
Mediation Can Be a Bitter Pill to Swallow (9/11/12) Katherine Graham The mediation process is simply the structure of a different type of meeting. In NLP terms, it is designed to allow pacing of the parties by the workplace mediator, followed by leading by the mediator. The process allows parties to visualise what may happen. Like a doctor explaining an operation, talking through the sequencing and timing, any key events and how people typically have felt in the past going through this, we as mediators need to talk through what is going to be a new and anxiety-inducing process for the parties.
It's Changed Who I Am (9/11/12) Dan Simon In the last few weeks, I’ve exchanged emails with transformative mediators from throughout the USA and Europe. I asked them how working as a transformative mediator has affected them personally and professionally; and I asked them what’s surprised them most about their work.
Keys to Mediator Success: Issue Identification, Exploring Options, and Brainstorming (8/20/12) Dudley Braun Some words, spoken at the right time, in the right way, in the right context, can be particularly powerful. They can sometimes cause a new thought or unfreeze a position. This compilation is intended to assist trained mediators and add possibilities to their already extensive vocabularies. It offers many ‘tried and true’ expressions in a variety of contexts to help them unlock hidden possibilities and improve mediation successes. This section focuses on
Issue Identification, Exploring Options, and Brainstorming.
Mediating Between the Mediation Models - Part 3 (8/06/12) Kathy Goodman This final section of the Mediation Models article gives an example: What if you had two clients at the table that have a different expectation of what the mediation model will look like? Kathy Goodman presents some practical ideas and literature references to mediate between multiple models. 5 Comments
Mediating Between the Mediation Models - Part 2 (7/30/12) Kathy Goodman This article discusses the three most prominent models of mediation: Evaluative, Facilitative, and Transformative. It then compares them with the four mediation stories discussed in Part 1.
The Role of Imagination and Mediation (4/09/12) Milan Slama Before you start the mediation process, you are already making some assessments. You imagine what kind of issues might occur. You imagine what kind of behavior you will have to deal with when it comes to interactions between parties. You picture their backgrounds and the environments they grew up in. As you go along you try to imagine their working environment, their personalities, and how they might act under various circumstances. To make it simple, you, the mediator, must do a lot of imagining.
Homeowner Mediator Association Primer (4/09/12) Jim Lingl There is no “right” or “wrong” type of mediation style. Effective mediators can be helpful in almost any setting, regardless of their predominant style. But resolution of different types of dispute can be enhanced by the selection of the best style of mediator to match the participants and the conflict. 2 Comments
Conflict Resolution on Pinterest (3/26/12) Colin Rule “Last week another photographer posted a question on Facebook asking if it was okay to pin your own work on Pinterest. I was surprised to see that many of the photographers who commented back admonished those who pin their own work and even cited Pinterest’s suggested rules of etiquette, which apparently discourage self-promotion. That same day, I participated in a thread on Facebook in which some other photographers were complaining about people posting their work on Facebook pages without the photographers’ permission."
Negative Peace, Positive Peace: What kind do you want? (3/26/12) Tammy Lenski “I don’t want to resolve this conflict,” said the professor, looking me squarely in the eye and leaning forward in his seat. “I want to exacerbate it.” The word exacerbate was pronounced with each syllable clipped and exaggerated to highlight his point. “It’s a conflict that needs to be done thoroughly, fearlessly, and with zest.”
Poor Behavior 6: Giving Vague Instructions (3/05/12) Vivian Scott We’re halfway through our list of a Dozen Dirty Behaviors that cause problems at work with #6; giving vauge instructions. What do you think your boss means when she gives you an assignment and then adds, “When you get to it” as part of the instructions?
Poor Behavior 5: Being Dismissive (2/28/12) Vivian Scott Don’t you find it frustrating when you have an idea that you’re dying to share and after getting out only a few words someone cuts you off or moves on to the next person? Yeah, me too; and that’s just one example of dismissive behavior in the workplace.
Listening for the Echo in Mediation (2/19/12) John Potter As we develop as mediators, it has been suggested that we engage in a process that grows through three stages. First, we learn technique. Second, we begin to develop a deeper understanding of how and why mediation works. Finally, we become more aware of how our personal qualities influence the mediation process for better or worse. It is the third stage that keeps me entangled in the joy and frustrations of the mediation process. 1 Comment
Helping Parties Have the Conversation They Want to Have (2/13/12) Diane Cohen How often have we all wanted to say something to someone important in our lives, and yet our meaning is misunderstood; our words fail us; or confusion ensues and we wonder what happened. The same holds true for parties, and for many parties this is the cause of their conflict.
High Conflict Mediation and Ethics (1/30/12) Ann Begler Working with high conflict people requires skill that goes well beyond facilitating a conversation. Some mediators do it well and some should never try. If a mediator sees it as his or her responsibility to make a fair assessment about competency in this regard, everyone is well served – clients, mediator and the system, itself.
Mediator Excellence and Self-Awareness (12/12/11) Louise Phipps Senft Louise Phipps Senft discusses mediator self-awareness. She looks in-depth at how it aids the mediation process, and MACRO's process to use self-awareness to assist mediators become excellent.
Hybrid Proceedings (12/05/11) Joe Markowitz One of the touted benefits of ADR is that it allows parties to design their own dispute resolution process specially suited to their needs.
AudioBlog: Transforming Conflict Through Forgiveness (12/05/11) Patricia Porter Forgiveness is a powerful tool for clients who are up against difficult, and seemingly insurmountable, conflicts. It creates a pathway from conflict to a deeper place of understanding and compassion.
Powered by Paradox (11/14/11) Michael Jacobs Power is an issue no mediator can afford to ignore. This includes the power we have as practitioners. This article argues that much of the power we have as mediators comes from our capacity to embrace a fundamental paradox that lies at the heart of our practice. 1 Comment
Oprah's New Show "Confronting" Premieres (9/16/11) Phyllis Lawrence Oprah Winfrey was always impressed with the crime victims and perpetrators meeting and moving through the pain via dialogue. Now on the Oprah Winfrey Network, she's running a new series, "Confronting . . . " which documents the facilitated peace and reconciliation process.
