Tag Archives: dispute system design

Seeking Resources to Promote Pre-Session Preparation in Mediation

6 Comments

My post, The Critical Importance of Pre-Session Preparation in Mediation, really resonated for some people. Clearly, pre-session preparation can help everyone involved in mediation to improve the process and outcomes.  Many mediators and mediation programs routinely incorporate robust pre-session procedures in their mediation systems. Roselle Wissler and Art Hinshaw’s empirical study provides some good news … Continue reading Seeking Resources to Promote Pre-Session Preparation in Mediation →

Real Practice Systems Project Series

Leave a comment

This post collects and summarizes the posts in the Real Practice Systems Project series.  I began by focusing on mediation systems, which are the combination of factors affecting what mediators do before, during, and after mediation sessions.  These systems include their routine procedures and strategies for dealing with recurring challenging situations.  Practitioners develop systems for … Continue reading Real Practice Systems Project Series →

Ten Real Mediation Systems

Leave a comment

This short article presents accounts of ten mediators about the factors affecting how we handle continuing streams of mediations – our mediation systems.  These systems are the combination of factors affecting what mediators do before, during, and after mediation sessions.  The systems include their routine procedures and strategies for dealing with recurring challenging situations. The … Continue reading Ten Real Mediation Systems →

Shifting the Central Paradigm to Dispute System Design

Leave a comment

There is no good definition of ADR, as described in a recent post. This post suggests that it’s time for a paradigm shift in our field.  Instead of identifying our field as ADR, we should use dispute system design (DSD) as our central theoretical framework. Time for a Paradigm Shift Thomas S. Kuhn’s classic book, … Continue reading Shifting the Central Paradigm to Dispute System Design →

Houston, We Have a Problem in the Dispute Resolution Field

1 Comment

If two rocket scientists don’t correctly understand each other’s jargon, things could blow up real fast.  If laypeople don’t understand the scientists, however, no problem. It’s quite different in the dispute resolution field.  Parties are supposed to actively participate in mediation (and other dispute resolution processes to some extent), and thus they need to understand … Continue reading Houston, We Have a Problem in the Dispute Resolution Field →

Would you like to read a WIP draft?

Leave a comment

I will present a draft of my article, Real Mediation Models to Help Parties and Mediators Achieve Their Goals, at the Works-in-Progress conference next month and I am posting it now so that you can read it before then if you like. People can attend the conference in person or by video – and I … Continue reading Would you like to read a WIP draft? →

What I’m Reading – Worth

1 Comment

Who’d expect Netflix to produce a movie about dispute system design?  Or that it would be really good? Its docudrama, Worth, about the process of designing and implementing the 9/11 Victims’ Compensation Fund, actually is terrific.  (Note that this What-I’m-Reading series isn’t limited to just reading stuff.) It is based on Kenneth Feinberg’s book, What … Continue reading What I’m Reading – Worth →

Charting a Middle Course for Court-Connected Mediation

Leave a comment

The majority opinion in the Breslin case led me to write my piece, Courts Should Make Mediation Good Samaritans Not Frankensteins, which led the CPR Mediation Committee to sponsor a program, Consequences of Not Participating in Court Ordered Mediation:  What Is Fair?  I was one of the speakers, along with Lauren A. Jones, ADR Coordinator … Continue reading Charting a Middle Course for Court-Connected Mediation →

If You Had Only One Hour to Describe ADR, What Would You Say?

Leave a comment

This was the question I had to answer when planning a lecture.  I was a speaker in a course offered by the Universidad Monteavila in Caracas, Venezuela.  My wonderful colleague, Rafael Gely, organized this collaboration with Missouri’s DR Center to provide a series of speakers, including me. My Venezuelan colleague told me that I could … Continue reading If You Had Only One Hour to Describe ADR, What Would You Say? →

Proposal for Standard Explanation in Mediation

3 Comments

Since writing my recent short article, Courts Should Make Mediations Good Samaritans Not Frankensteins, I have been thinking about how to maximize the substantial benefits of court-connected mediation while minimizing the risks of coercion. Most mediators, mediation program administrators, and courts are conscientious about providing appropriate, high-quality mediation services.  Unfortunately, with some frequency, there have … Continue reading Proposal for Standard Explanation in Mediation →