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 →

The Minnesota Attorney General filed suit today against the National Arbitration Forum alleging multiple counts of consumer fraud in violation of Minnesota law.  The suit stems from an allegation that both the NAF and many of the collection firms that regularly use its services are owned, at least in part, by the same company.  Business … Continue reading Minnesota AG sues the National Arbitration Forum →

The ABA’s Dispute Resolution Section has just issued its Call for Proposals for the Section’s annual meeting next April in San Francisco.  A copy of the Call for Proposals can be seen here, and the proposal form can be accessed here.  As an fyi, priority is given to proposals that introduce new and innovative concepts, … Continue reading Call for Proposals – ABA Dispute Resolution Section Conference →

In contrast to the election turmoil occurring in Iran, an interesting alternative for settling an election occurred in suburban Phoenix yesterday.  The City of Cave Creek recently had an election for their city council and two candidates had a runoff election for the last council seat.  They ended up tied with 660 votes each.  How did … Continue reading Elections and Dispute Resolution – A Card Game →