My husband and I have two senior dogs and plan to go out of town. I contacted a dog-sitting service that specializes in senior dogs. I telephoned the owner and left a message. She called back and we spoke. Thereafter, further information was conveyed by text. We rarely spoke; we [Read More]
A recent study discussed in Livescience suggests that when we are confronted with a moral dilemma, we resolve it by listening to our bodies. In “Your moral compass is tied to how in tune you are with your body, study hints” by Skyler Ware (May 28, 2025), the author notes [Read More]
A recent mediation involved restoring a vehicle. The plaintiff alleged she was overcharged, which the defendants disputed. To resolve the litigation, the plaintiff wanted a substantial portion of her money refunded. After a few hours of negotiating different installment payment plans, and frankly, when I thought we were at the [Read More]
Have you ever looked at someone solely based on their gaze and felt that you could read their intentions? If so, you are right. A recent study showed that “People can read intention in each other’s gazes…lending evidence to this well-known assumption about human communication.” (People really can communicate with [Read More]
The New York Times Opinion published a guest essay entitled “The Dark Side of Empathy” on May 4, 2025. While it has a political slant, it raises the question of whether empathy is being used as a tactic. As background, and as I noted in a blog last [Read More]
In teaching mediation, I discuss the notion that mediation is a process of change, and like all changes, it takes time. It is often a slow process because it entails transformation. The mediation session is a transformation: it transforms one’s thinking. A party will walk into the session thinking one [Read More]
One of the areas we cover in my online Employment Dispute Mediation Class is what is mediable or negotiable and what is not. For example, disputed issues of fact and law are not negotiable because they will be decided by a trier of fact, be it a judge or jury. [Read More]
My husband and I had quite a scare last week: we thought we would have to say goodbye to Buddy, our 14-year-old male dog who has cancer. We found him collapsed out in the yard and thought the end had come. We took him to the emergency vet with the [Read More]
