As I close up shop at the office (P&T committee work, check – dean search committee task, check – article draft done, check. . . . ok, almost check but should be done by noon tomorrow), I feel very thankful this year – more so than any year before because of health and family related items.  However, other … Continue reading Giving Thanks →

In honor of the upcoming shop-a-thon known as Black Friday, I am linking to last week’s article in Newsweek about how we need to shop.  The science behind this impulse is the same that we deal with negotiation in terms of how clients view risk, loss, and gratification.  In full disclosure, here’s a picture of  my most … Continue reading Beware Black Friday →

The 5th Annual AALS ADR Section Works-in-Progess Conference took place at Creighton University Law School in Omaha earlier this month.  Ran Kuttner was the conference organizer and, according to all who were there, did a great job.  Here are Ran’s reflections on the conference and kudos to him and the rest of the crew at the Werner Institute. … Continue reading Kuttner on the Works-in-Progress Conference →

I just read an interesting keynote speech by Suja Thomas, a law professor at the University of Illinois. In the speech (http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1960032), Professor Thomas discusses access to courts and juries before and after the summary judgment trilogy. Professor Thomas also discusses the impact of the Supreme Court’s recent arbitration jurisprudence, specifcally, the Concepcion decision. She … Continue reading The Future of Summary Judgment, Arbitration and the Jury Trial Right →

My wonderful colleague, Janine Geske, who started the Restorative Justice Iniative here at Marquette has been spending her semester abroad at the University of Leuven in Belgium.  Other than being wildly jealous for the regular access to topnotch chocolate, fruity beer, frites, and waffles, I am also very impressed with what looks like a diverse and … Continue reading RJ initiatives in Belgium →

For countries of the British Commonwealth, last Friday was Remembrance Day, nee Armistice Day. Remembrance Day has been associated with the poppy since shortly after World War I, and the poppy has become an important fund-raising item for  the Royal British Legion, the organization of British war veterans. The Legion organizes a huge charity campaign … Continue reading Negotiating Symbolism →

On November 7, the Supreme Court ruled, in a per curiam opinion entitled KPMG LLP v. Cocchi, http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/10-1521.pdf, that a state court must order arbitrable disputes to arbitration even if the plaintiff’s complaint contains both arbitrable and inarbitrable claims. Affirming the strong federal policy in favor of arbitration, the Court stated that, “state and federal … Continue reading Supreme Court Rules that State and Federal Courts Must Enforce Arbitration Agreements Even When Nonarbitrable Claims are Present in Complaint →

I guess I had not been paying much attention but realized today that the Uniform Collaborative Law Act has been adopted by the National Commissioners on Uniform State Laws and has already been adopted in three states: Nevada, Texas and Utah. In addition, in 2011, it has been introduced in Alabama, District of Columbia, Hawaii, … Continue reading Uniform Collaborative Law Act →

It finally hit me yesterday–it’s not that when you travel, you are likely to negotiate.  We’ve written and talked about that before. (See our posts from our Israel trip here.)  Traveling is  negotiation…. at least in terms of preparation.  So, yesterday morning I was flying out of Harrisburg to get home in time to teach … Continue reading Traveling with your BATNA →