In a recent blog, Tammy Lenski discusses, “ 4 Handy Principles for Deciding When You Can’t Agree”. Considering the present national situation, I found the blog very timely and cannot resist sharing. But, to take it out of politics, let’s use an example. Suppose Jack and Jill are neighbors. Jill has a dog that keeps [...]
First and foremost, I would like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year; I hope that it proves to be a happy, healthy and very prosperous one for each of you. As I am still recovering from the holidays, I decided to post a blog about a very big change in the law regarding [...]
In past blog posts, I have discussed implicit biases and how important it is to recognize their existence and to counteract them in our daily lives. Yet, there may be another and more positive way of looking at them. It is simply a question of “framing”. (See below!) A November 27, 2018 blog posted on [...]
Recently, I wrote a blog about an almost mediation that was cancelled at the last moment because the attorney representing one party was not going to be present but sending a substitute instead. While the theme of that blog was that the parties lost a valuable opportunity to settle, there is another theme as well: [...]
I had a really weird almost mediation recently. It was a lemon law matter. It cancelled at the last minute simply because plaintiff’s counsel (let’s call her Joan) was sending another attorney (let’s call her Janice) in her stead. The defendant did not like this substitution and so cancelled. It all started when defense counsel [...]
Several weeks ago, I attended the annual fall conference of the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA). While all the sessions were very good, one of them on emotional intelligence (presented by Harold Coleman, Jr. Esq, Debra Dupree MFT, Psy.D., and Matt Argue, Esq. entitled “The Modern Mediator: Interplay of Psychology and Mediation Strategy”) got me [...]
Once again, Thanksgiving is upon us. Last year- 2017- I posted the blog below which I believe is as relevant today as it was last year. So, I would like to share it again. And.... again I want to thank each of you for such a great year. I deeply appreciate your kindness, generosity and [...]
Over the years, many people have told me that they sometimes use the “carrot and stick” approach as a negotiation tactic. Wikipedia defines this tactic as The phrase "carrot and stick" is a metaphor for the use of a combination of reward and punishment to induce a desired behavior. It is based on the idea that a cart driver [...]