Featured Legal Blog Posts
Two Converging Trends
Us mediators and consultants try to help people create constructive engagements and dialogues that lead to real problem solving.
ADR Forms, Methods and Practices
Dispute resolution comes in as many forms as there are people in dispute.
Norms and Nonviolence
This article discusses the impact of gender equality on nonviolent conflict.
The Time for Dispute Resolution Alternatives (DRA) has come
There was a time, not long ago, when those who found themselves in a dispute had two basic choices: They could either file a lawsuit/initiate some formal complaint process or they could just walk away from the conflict and try to move on.
ADR Pilot Schemes and Programs
What are pilot programs, or pilot schemes, in ADR?
How to Tank a Mediation Without Even Trying
Every so often, you may want to tank a mediation.
An Update on Prior Disclosure
As some of you may recall, the California Law Revision Commission issued its Tentative Recommendation late last year to create an exception to mediation confidentiality.
Start Protecting The Public Before Raising State Bar Fees
The problem with the Ba Association is a lack of agreed upon understanding of what "its critical public protection functions" entails.
Why Ego Management is Key to Effective Mediation
In the 1990s, the very suggestion of facilitated negotiation was viewed with equal parts suspicion and contempt by most seasoned trial lawyers
Dispute Management Plans and ADR
Three myths relevant to Dispute Management Plans (DMPs) exist.
SCOTX Holds Payday Lender Did Not Waive Right to Arbitration
The Supreme Court of Texas has ruled that a payday lender did not waive its right to compel arbitration against the company’s defaulting customers.
Court-based Dispute Resolution
Adapted from Prof Tania Sourdin, Alternative Dispute Resolution, 5th ed, 2016, Thomson Reuters. ADRAC gratefully acknowledges the authorship of Professor Sourdin, who kindly prepared this paper.
What Does the 2017 Tax Law Mean for Divorcing Couples?
I sat down with Jill Boynton of Cornerstone Financial Planning to find out how this law will effect divorcing couples.
Ask the Judge - Do I need an Attorney's Help to Create a Parenting Plan?
As long as you and your coParent are committed to working together to create a Parenting Plan that’s best for your children, there is no need for extra costs.
Criminal Justice and ADR
What does ADR mean in the criminal justice context?
In Memoriam: CPR Chairman Emeritus Charles Renfrew
The International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Dispute Resolution mourns the loss of Chairman Emeritus Charles B. Renfrew (pictured above), who died in San Francisco on Dec. 14 at age 89.
Objections to Joint Sessions
“Joint sessions are a waste of time,” said the judge conducting a mediation in which I was representing one of the parties.
Arbitration of Criminal Plea Bargains? A Step Too Far Says Ninth Circuit
This article discusses the decision holding that disputes between a putative criminal defendant and a private company contracted by a prosecutor pursuant to a criminal diversion process are not subject to arbitration.
Letter to Kelly
This article is a letter of advice to someone who is starting law school.
Conflict Audit: How Much Is Conflict Costing Your Organization?
Finally discover how to quantify the direct and hidden Costs of Conflict.
Roundup: Legislation with Mediation or Arbitration…Maybe for the future?
Several bills have been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate this year that touch upon arbitration or mediation.
I Apologize For Suggesting It !
Mediations and their participants never cease to amaze me.
Courts and Attorneys Aren’t Doing Enough to Inform Litigants about Their ADR Options
Donna Shestowsky at UC Davis School of Law has been researching the relationship between litigants and court ADR programs for quite a while.
ADR in the Regulation of Aged Care
The role of ADR in the aged care sector has a chequered history with regulatory bodies and dispute resolution processes frequently changing in response to public concerns and budgetary considerations.