From FOI Tracy Blanchard: The Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program recently launched Thanks for Listening, a podcast that strives to bridge the political divide through dialogue. You can listen to the episode here. From the description: What would happen if people learned to flex their “dialogue muscles” at a very young age? What if, … Continue reading Thanks for Listening, episode 2 →

From FOI Alyson Carrel: Check out Amazon’s new system for resolving patent infringement disputes. According to the article: For a $4,000 deposit, the program will match a seller claiming infringement and the accused merchant with a neutral, third-party lawyer. If the accused party doesn’t respond to claims that it violated the seller’s utility patent — … Continue reading Amazon Patent DSD →

This week’s New Yorker has a great article on Ken Feinberg’s work helping the Catholic Church manage its sexual abuse crisis. Feinberg and Camille Biros created and run the Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program (IRCP), which processes claims of sexual abuse by priests. The IRCP started in New York in 2016 and other dioceses from … Continue reading DSD and the Catholic Church →

Interesting addition to our ongoing discussion about apologies: Check out this TedTalk about how women overapologize, and how too many “I’m sorrys” can relate to or exacerbate problems with confidence, participation, and voice. Canadian sociologist Maja Jovanovic starts with a fascinating story about women academics at a conference downplaying their own expertise. From this writeup: … Continue reading Women Saying Sorry →

This video of talk show host James Corden pranking soccer star David Beckham provides a fascinating example of remaining composed and assertive in the midst of strong emotions. Note, however, that the emotions make it hard for Beckham to brainstorm options, even though he knows that the status quo is unacceptable.

You may have heard that President Trump said he would sign an executive order guaranteeing free speech on college campuses. With that in mind, let me recommend Jen Gerarda Brown’s wonderful essay, “Four Questions About Free Speech and Campus Conflict,” written for a symposium at Missouri last year. Jen points out that categorizing speech-related conflicts … Continue reading Brown (Quinnipiac) on Free Speech on Campus →

HBO’s new feature, “Brexit,” stars Benedict Cumberbatch and dramatizes the events leading to the Brexit referendum. Check out the trailer here. Watching the film makes you appreciate how fragile our democracy is, especially (and perhaps ironically) in the information age. When we frame something as a referendum, we have the sense that we are encouraging … Continue reading HBO’s Brexit →

From FOI Noam Ebner (Creighton): I’m very excited to share that my book, co-edited with friend and colleague Prof. Ayub Khan, has been published. The Palgrave Handbook of Cross-Cultural Business Negotiation goes far beyond ‘negotiation with a business twist.’ After covering the basics, the book focuses on the realities of contemporary international business, in which … Continue reading Ebner on Cross-Cultural Transactions →

The ABA Dispute Resolution annual conference is coming up in a few months, and the Section would like to see as many law students and young professionals attend as possible. With that in mind, last year the Section started a Young Scholar Program. Those selected for the program will receive a $25 registration fee; the … Continue reading Young Scholar Program →

I am grateful that our community (in this blog, on the listserv, and elsewhere) has been highlighting examples of public apologies (see the SNL apology below, among many other apology-related posts in our archives). I read this tribute to Stan Lee this morning, and thought about how wonderful it is to see public expressions of … Continue reading Showing Appreciation →

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, Leigh Thompson (Northwestern) reports on her research around getting women to negotiate “more like men” (that is, competitive and unethical) and men to negotiate “more like women” (that is, empathetic and honest). The article is here. Nothing new here in terms of substantive advice, as Professor Thompson concludes … Continue reading Gender and negotiation – more of the same →

A recent New Yorker has a thought-provoking piece on reading Gandhi in the context of the current political moment. For those who are grappling with the complexities of creating meaningful dialogue in the midst of divisions, it is startling to read how prescient Gandhi was about what we face today. Author Pankaj Mishra argues that … Continue reading Reading Gandhi →