Houston, We Have a Problem I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. We use rotten language to describe our ideas and theories. Theory is important because it guides actions. Concepts are building blocks of theory. It’s a real problem if we use different language for similar concepts or the same terms for different … Continue reading Need for Clear Language Initiative to un-Babel Our Models
Ohio State Professor Deborah Jones Merritt and Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System Research Director Logan Cornett just published an important report, Building a Better Bar: The Twelve Building Blocks of Minimum Competence, based on insights from 50 focus groups. They found that minimum competence consists of 12 interlocking “building blocks,” including … Continue reading Important New Report on Essential Lawyering Skills
I continue to produce videos related to the LIRA book, which you might be interested in, possibly for use in courses. As I produce more videos, I add them to the full collection in this post, which you might want to bookmark. Here are the latest videos: Mediating with LIRA. Mediate.com University. $49. August 2020. … Continue reading Gadzooks! Even More LIRA Videos! And Coming Attractions!
Jeff Trueman, an experienced Maryland mediator, wrote an excellent article about the challenges of lawyers, mediators, and insurance claims professionals in mediation. He interviewed subjects about their problems in mediation, and his study provided evidence of professionals behaving badly, very consistent with my post about BATNAs and the emotional pains of “positional negotiation.” He specifically … Continue reading Jeff Trueman’s Study on Nightmares of “Positional” Tactics in Mediation
As part of my LIRA book tour, I gave talks entitled,“They Should Call It Negotiation School, Not Law School” for Becky Jacobs’s (Tennessee) ADR class and the UC-Davis’s King Hall Negotiation Teams student organization (thanks to Donna Shestowsky’s suggestion). The presentation points out that the vast majority of cases are negotiated, not litigated and certainly … Continue reading They Should Call It Negotiation School, Not Law School
From FPOI Peter Philips: We are pleased to announce the third series of this popular event. Every other Wednesday, New York Law School hosts informal discussions with leaders in the fields of conflict avoidance, management, and resolution. All sessions are free and will be held via Zoom. Please note the varying times of each program. … Continue reading Next Series of New York Law School Wednesday Conversations
From SFOI Sheila Purcell Dear Colleagues, We hope this finds you well at this unusual time. I write from (smoky!) Northern California to invite you to: New Frontiers in ADR A virtual “lunch and learn” Speaker Series! Mark your calendar and register for these two, free events, which will take place at noon Pacific, 1 Mountain, … Continue reading Hastings Programs with Grande Lum and John Lande on October 14 and 28
Everyone knows that a bottom line in a lawsuit is an immutable “line in the sand” that is accurately reported to mediators and counterparts as the least that a plaintiff would accept or most that a defendant would pay. Not really. During the life cycle of a case, lawyers start with vague and tentative bottom … Continue reading What’s a Bottom Line?
Everyone loves BATNA. It has more than 16 million hits on Google. I have loved BATNA too. Of course, people should consider alternatives to a negotiated agreement when negotiating or mediating. Unfortunately, people have loved BATNA so much that it has become a cliché that is widely misunderstood, even by some dispute resolution experts. When … Continue reading BATNA May Be Less Important Than You Think – and Teach
My career has focused on helping disputants by analyzing and promoting helpful lawyering and other dispute resolution techniques. The ABA book, Litigation Interest and Risk Assessment: Help Your Clients Make Good Litigation Decisions, is the culmination of my scholarly career, combining Michaela’s and Heather’s excellent research on litigation risk assessment and my work on planned … Continue reading LIRA Book Tour
