Earlier this week I criticized an article in the last month’s ABA Journal saying that there’s work to be had as an ADR neutral due to the economic downturn.  You can see the post here.  Since then a colleague brought an article that backs up my assertions about the difficulties of entering the profession and … Continue reading Where the Work Is – Cont’d →

The International Ombudsman Association has announced its first student writing competition, inviting law students and other graduate students to submit articles arguing for a statutory privilege for organizational ombudsmen.  More information can be found here. For a short preview, here’s the call of the question: For this article, assume that you are advising the legislature … Continue reading International Ombudsman Association Writing Competition →

An article in the most recent ABA Journal entitled “Where the Work Is” (here) listed ADR as one of the subfields of law where there are likely to be jobs during the current economic downturn.  The article states that legal services consumers are seeking to avoid litigation costs and concludes that has been a boon … Continue reading Where the Work Is →

The AALS Placement Bulletin, which provides the hiring announcements for all the law schools across the country, is hot off the presses.  Based on a quick review of the bulletin last night and requests I’ve received for names of candidates, the market for ADR law profs looks pretty good this year.  If anyone knows of … Continue reading Which Law Schools are Looking to Hire ADR Profs ? →

As many readers of this blog already know, foreclosure mediation is booming across the country.  Many states with judicial foreclosure procedures (as opposed to non-judicial foreclosure states) are requiring mediation before any hearings on the foreclosure process.  Add Florida with its strong ADR practices to the list.  The Florida Supreme Court’s residential-foreclosure task force is … Continue reading Mandatory Mediation in Florida Home Foreclosures →

Today is the first day of training this semester’s crop of students in the Lodestar Mediation Clinic at ASU.  It’s a day filled with excitement and questions for both the students and myself.  From the teaching side, some of the questions remain the same.  What will the personality of the class be?  Will we have … Continue reading Game On !! →

The deadline for submitting a proposal to present at the ABA’s Dispute Resolution Section’s Annual Meeting is 10 days away – August 24th.  The Section is always looking for good programs, so don’t be shy in submitting one.  The meeting is scheduled for April 2010 in San Francisco.  A copy of the Call for Proposals … Continue reading Upcoming Deadline – ABA DR Section Conference Call for Proposals →

As everyone who follows the news of the day knows, there was a little dust-up in Cambridge, Mass. last week.  (If you need a primer to catch up, go here).  President Obama is scheduled today to meet and have a beer with Cambridge Police Officer, Sgt. James Crowley and Harvard faculty member Henry Louis Gates, … Continue reading President Obama – Mediator in Chief →

Here’s another comment, this one by Cliff Palefsky, a San Francisco lawyer with a substantial arbitration practice. Regulation is the price you pay for the elimination of true consent.  As the National Academy [of Arbitrators] said, “without volunariness, arbitration lacks moral and legal justification.”  Statistics in the end are meaningless.  Anyone who truly loves the … Continue reading NAF Commentary – Part II →