During a mediation, one or more parties will often bring up the topic of managing expectations- usually in reference to the other party. The discussion will be to the effect that I, as the mediator, should go into the other conference room and have a “candid” conversation with that party [Read More]
In previous posts, I have discussed the benefits of small talk. It is crucial to building trust and rapport at the start of any mediation. It is crucial for the mediator to get the parties to “like” her which is done through small talk. If the parties do not “like” [Read More]
Happy New Year! I hope that everyone’s 2023 is full of joy, happiness, peace and prosperity…. and brings an end to this pandemic! Browsing the internet for inspiration, I came upon an article in Live Science concerning quantum physics entitled “Does reality exist when we’re not looking” by Paul Sutter. [Read More]
As we all know, mediation has become quite popular if not ubiquitous over the last twenty years. In the 1980’s and 1990’s, it was slowly gaining acceptance; in the last twenty years, it has truly become THE alternative to litigation. (No doubt, the pandemic with its lockdowns creating the necessity [Read More]
On three occasions in the past, I have written about a case in Saginaw, Michigan in which the issue was whether chalking tires on parked vehicles violated the Fourth Amendment’s unreasonable search provision. (See, May 10, 2019; September 10, 2021 and August 19, 2022.) In that case, Taylor vs City [Read More]
As part of my preparation to teach a class on mediation confidentiality, I reviewed the Uniform Mediation Act with all of its comments (UMA). In doing so, it struck me that although mediation is extremely popular and common place, it would be good to remind ourselves why we should mediate [Read More]
Last week, I posted a blog about the shortness of our working life and whether we really want to spend it embroiled in litigation. That post reminded me of a much earlier post (dated October 1, 2007) in which I looked at time in terms of seconds in a day [Read More]
The other day I conducted a mediation between a non-English speaking plaintiff and a used car dealer. The issue was whether the dealer had misrepresented certain aspects of the sale to the plaintiff. We were well on the way to settling the matter when the issue of attorneys’ fees came [Read More]
