3 Things You Should Know About Real Estate Mediation

Unlike litigation, real estate mediation is not time-consuming. Also, it is not expensive which could lead to stressful situations. To ensure that you are able to reach an agreement, hire a professional mediator. read

When Memorializing a Mediated Settlement, Empower the Mediator to Resolve Any Disputes Over Language

To avoid any issue with the enforceability of an agreement in principle signed at the conclusion of a mediation, parties should agree in advance that if negotiations to memorialize the settlement in a more formal agreement break down, the mediator shall resolve any remaining disputes over language or otherwise. read

A World Class Mediator Shares 7 Ways to De-escalate Your Office Tension

Mediation, a form of dispute intervention that focuses on reaching understanding, offers plenty of tactics to help turn fraught deskside conversations into productive ones. read

North Bay Cities, Counties Agree To Mediator's Proposed Wildfire Damage Costs By Pg&E

Napa and Sonoma counties and the cities of Santa Rosa and Napa announced Tuesday they have agreed to a proposed settlement with PG&E over the damage caused to them during the 2017 wildfires in the North Bay. read

From the Talmud: Leveraging Reciprocation Bias in Mediation

The message is that my behavior (whether positive or negative) towards another person will be reciprocated by that individual. read

Tony O'Reilly, former nurse agree to mediation

Retired H.J. Heinz CEO Sir Anthony O’Reilly and his former personal nurse, Sabina Vidunas, have agreed to enter mediation to try to settle Ms. Vidunas’ claims alleging that Mr. O’Reilly reneged on a promise to pay her some $40 million worth of stock as compensation. read

‘Bitcoin Inventor’ Craig Wright’s Satoshi Lawsuit Mediation at ‘Impasse’

Self-proclaimed “bitcoin inventor” Craig Wright attended a mediation conference in Miami related to his $10 billion lawsuit against the estate of deceased computer genius Dave Kleiman. read

State opioid nuisance trial: Retired chief justice named mediator in dispute over settlement

Steven W. Taylor, a retired chief justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, has been named a special master to try to work out a dispute between state lawmakers and the state attorney general over a pending $85 million settlement agreement between the state of Oklahoma and opioid maker Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. read

Berkeley schedules mediation to resolve KC’s BBQ dispute

The city of Berkeley has agreed to pay for a professional mediator to resolve a dispute between KC’s BBQ in Berkeley and a group of neighbors who have complained about odor and smoke coming from the restaurant’s outdoor smoker. The mediation is scheduled for July 9. read

Commission for Efficiency of Justice adopts new tools on cyberjustice and mediation

At its 32nd meeting (Strasbourg, 13-14 June 2019), the CEPEJ adopted a Toolkit for the implementation of the Guidelines on Cyberjustice, a European Handbook for Development of National Legislation on Mediation as well as Guidelines on designing and monitoring mediators training schemes. read

The Mediator’s Proposal: If Both Sides Say Yes, Make Sure It’s Binding

An important technique in any mediator’s toolkit is the mediator’s proposal. Typically used as a measure of last resort to avoid litigation after all other options for compromise have been exhausted, a mediator’s proposal recommends a dollar number (and perhaps other terms) to settle the dispute. read

New Zealand passes farm debt mediation bill

New Zealand Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor announced Monday a new debt mediation scheme that will help farmers in financial distress deal with their heavy debt. The Farm Debt Mediation Bill requires creditors to offer farmers who  default on payments mediation before they take any enforcement action. read

Conflict prevention, mediation: among ‘most important tools’ to reduce human suffering, Guterres tells Security Council

Conflict prevention and mediation are two of “the most important tools at our disposal to reduce human suffering” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council on Wednesday. read

The Social Network: Lessons from the Mediation That Resolved the Dispute Over the Founding of Facebook

Those who saw the award-winning film, The Social Network, are familiar with the dispute between Mark Zuckerberg and the Winklevoss twins (and their business partner, Divya Narendra) over the founding of Facebook. What many fans of the movie might not be aware of is that the Zuckerberg-Winklevoss dispute was resolved through mediation. read

Mediation Talks Begin In Ohio State Abuse Lawsuits

Accusers of doctor Richard Strauss met with Ohio State University attorneys in Cincinnati this weekend to begin mediation over a pair of lawsuits against the school. An independent investigation revealed Richard Strauss abused at least 177 men, and a number of administrators at the time failed to adequately respond. read

Preserve LA's Dispute Resolution Program

For 30 years -- since Avis Ridley-Thomas founded it in 1989 -- the Dispute Resolution Program has been providing free mediation for Los Angeles residents. Not surprisingly, the reason given for cutting the program is "budget cuts." read

Canada: Complexity, Newton and New Directions in Mediation Research

Let’s talk some more about mediation research.  To recap, in his February 2019 post to this Blog, Michael Leathes argued for the need for more field-based research into mediation. read

EU proposes emergency WTO dispute settlement measures

The European Union is working on alternative dispute resolution measures to get around an impending blockage in the World Trade Organization's Appellate Body.  For several years, the US has blocked new nominations to the WTO's dispute settlement panel, due to dissatisfaction about the way it operates. If nothing changes by the end of the year, the Appellate Body will have too few members to function. read

Time for an update: How to revisit the EU’s framework for international mediation engagements

In 2009 the EU adopted the Concept on Strengthening EU Mediation and Dialogue Capacities, its first-ever strategic document focusing specifically on mediation. Ten years later, the EU’s concept and practices of mediation need an update, write Julian Bergmann, Toni Haastrup, Arne Niemann and Richard Whitman. read

Using Charitable Donations to Resolve Disputes in Mediation

I’ve occasionally read about disputes that were resolved in whole or in part through a charitable donation. I recently had an opportunity to use this technique to mediate a dispute between a landlord and a tenant over the condition of the premises vacated by the tenant at the conclusion of the lease. read

Dealing with deadlock in mediation

When faced with deadlock in mediation process, a mediator needs to bring pro-active leadership, energy, patience and imagination in helping the parties make progress. read

How Your Business can Benefit from Mediation

Business mediation is not just about saving your business money. Keep reading for how your business can benefit from mediation. read

From the Talmud: How Can a Mediator Turn Emotional Outbursts Into Opportunities for Resolution?

One of a mediator’s most challenging tasks is managing emotional, high conflict parties. How do you calm them down? Enforce limits on their conduct? Is there value to letting them vent? read

Are Negotiations Between Parties During the Mediation Process Without the Mediator’s Participation Protected by the Mediation Privilege?

After a mediation session ends, the parties may continue to negotiate independently by meeting and communicating between themselves outside the mediator’s presence. When and to what extent are those independent negotiations (conducted without the participation of the mediator) protected by the mediation privilege? read

Feuding over race issue, Lee’s Summit superintendent and board head to mediation

Three weeks after the Lee’s Summit school superintendent threatened to leave his post, he and the school board have agreed to meet in mediation over his contract and his future with the district. They will also try to work out differences that erupted at recent meetings over hiring a firm to lead racial equity training for teachers and staff. read

Why Didn’t Amazon and New York City Mediate? - A Pitch for Transactional Mediation

Mediation is not just useful in settling lawsuits; it can also be deployed in the deal making context to help contracting parties overcome non-economic barriers that often threaten to derail otherwise economically sound agreements. read

Mediated Settlements: The Way Ahead for India

Dispute resolution in India has been the matter of much consternation. One is wary of approaching the courts, due to its lengthy and time-consuming process as well as the infamous delays. read

Mediation better way to respond to sex assault allegations: lawyer

Big rise in the use of workplace restoration. Mediation and other less adversarial methods continue to be the best ways to respond to allegations of sexual misconduct, including sexual harassment and sexual abuse, say lawy read

Can Ghana’s president really be a football mediator?

Many African politicians have found it hard to resist meddling in their countries’ football. read

The Merits of Med-Arb

If Mediation Fails to Resolve a Dispute, Should Parties Let the Mediator Arbitrate? read

Principles of Cognitive Dissonance at Play in Mediation

Psychologists tell us that humans prize harmony between their actions and beliefs. Accordingly, when we act contrary to a strong belief, alarm bells go off in the brain, and we feel mental discomfort, or “dissonance.” To eliminate this tension, we can either abandon the belief or change the behavior. read

Mediation Principles in the Talmud

Four Lessons From the Disputes of the Academies of Hillel and Shammai. read

Governor signs Padden bill to require mediation between elected officials before lawsuits begin

OLYMPIA Sen. Mike Padden’s legislation to avoid costly litigation between elected officials was signed into law. read

Mediation goes mainstream

The mediators of Independent Mediators discuss the changes they have witnessed in mediation in their time in practise in the field and future trends read

Mediation ordered in murder case

SANDPOINT — Attorneys in the first-degree murder case pending against Stephen Mathew Lott have agreed to enter into mediation. The mediation, which will be presided over by Senior District Judge Steve Verby, could lead to resolution of the case without a trial. read

MA Bill would require mediation before foreclosure

Foreclosures would have to go through mediation and a judicial process under a bill proposed by Sen. Nick Collins. read

Why Japanese mediation of US-Iran tensions makes sense

Reports indicate that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is heading to Southwest Asia next week to mediate tensions between the United States and Iran. read

Dartmouth, women want mediation in sexual misconduct lawsuit

Dartmouth College and nine women who accuse the school of ignoring years of sexual misconduct by three professors have agreed to try to settle a lawsuit out of court. read

From violence to dialogue: as land conflicts intensify, UN boosts efforts to resolve disputes through mediation

“In areas that have seen conflict, particularly where you have a broken state, or weak institutions, our approach has been to really think about ways to build trust, confidence and reconciliation among communities. We set up a mediation system. read

Ayodhya: Legal Experts Indicate Possible Solution if Mediation Fails

The larger question is on the utility of mediation on the dispute, what if, after exhausting several months in engaging all stakeholders concerned, it does not yield any result.   read

Mediation Explained

European Union, Ireland, United Kingdom read

Does a Prior Relationship With a Party Impair a Mediator’s Neutrality?

California Says Not Necessarily. To what extent does a mediator have an obligation to disclosue prior contacts and relations? read

Dos and Don’ts of Mediation in Family Law Cases

More and more jurisdictions are requiring parties to attend mediation at least once, and sometimes twice, before walking into court for trial. read

Lawyer Who Handled Sept. 11 Victims Fund To Mediate Talks Between Bayer, Plaintiffs

Kenneth Feinberg has been called on to tackle the emotionally grueling job of figuring out the monetary value of victims' lives following a slew of tragedies. And now, a federal judge in California has appointed the prominent attorney to do it again. read

New York Courts to Begin Presumptive Mediation for Civil Cases Later This Year

The purpose of the initiative, which will be a significant change to the state’s court system, is partly to provide an avenue for litigants to resolve legal matters more efficiently and at a lower cost, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore said. read

Brexit Paves Way for Timeshare Disputes Mediation

Brexit should be seen as an opportunity and not a hindrance for those in the UK fighting disputes over unwanted timeshares says a Spanish legal expert. read

Mediation in Norway aims to resolve Venezuela crisis

The Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution has worked behind the scenes since last year to bring the two sides in Venezuela together. read

South Lake Tahoe moving toward mediation in attempt to resolve Measure T lawsuit

The city is heading toward mediation with the backers of a lawsuit seeking to strike down Measure T. The hope, according to city officials and an attorney involved in the lawsuit, is to reach a compromise on the vacation home rental issue rather than fight a legal battle in court. read

Business mediation can avoid the grind of litigation

As compared to litigation and arbitration, mediation is less expensive and far quicker. Further, mediation can lead to a resolution broader than the issues raised in a particular lawsuit and may even lead to an ongoing business relationship among the parties. read

Canada - Response time, dispute resolution should be addressed as part of CRA consultation: lawyers

“We’re seeing a lot of movement in the provincial courts around family law mediation and mental health where you’re de-escalating the amount of court time and bringing in forms of alternative dispute resolution. I think the CRA could maybe expand that, because not everything needs to be going to court.” read

Chicago street gang members give ‘peace circles’ a chance to prevent shootings

Hardiman says he’s used peace circles this year to mediate 24 potentially deadly conflicts among gang members on the South Side and the West Side. read