The role of the mediator

Argument, Below the line, Bias, Brexit, caucus, Cognitive Bias, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Dialogue, Ethics, Fear, General, Impasse, Instinct, Interests, Intuition, Joint Sessions, Leaders, Leadership, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Non-violent communication, Patience, Perception, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Reflective Practice, shuttle mediation, Skills, Status, Success in mediation, Tactics, Teamwork, The role of the mediator, Tips, Transformation

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /4 Comments

One of the privileges of mediating is to watch leaders at work. Every party, every team, has its leader(s). And as any mediator will tell you, the way in which they choose to lead during a mediation – and more widely during the conflict or dispute itself – has a significant impact on the outcome;…

Decision making, Developing the Field, Future of mediation, Mediation Practice, Public Policy, Reflective Practice, Scotland, The role of the mediator

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

My last blog reflected on an excellent mediation conference in Frankfurt on the Oder where the strength which comes from working together was clear. I started this present blog on the day that the EU agreed the terms of the UK’s departure from the organisation that has been such a significant part of Europe’s post-second…

Developing the Field, Europe, Future of mediation, Germany, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Mediation and Society, Mediation Outcomes, Neutrality, Philosophy, Policy, Public Policy, Reflective Practice, Scotland, The role of the mediator, Ukraine, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

(Core Solutions Group)/ /2 Comments

At a recent excellent conference hosted by Professor Ulla Glaesser at Viadrina University in Frankfurt (Oder), one of the workshop sessions focussed on the extent to which mediators can or should disclose or express their views when engaged in politically-related mediation work – or more generally. What a fascinating conversation we had. It was no…

Developing the Field, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Personal Development, Reflective Practice, Scotland, Success in mediation, The role of the mediator, Transformation

(Core Solutions Group)/ /3 Comments

“The last great act of a courageous leader is to let go,” I suggested to the CEO as he pondered whether this was in fact a good time to step down. He had many reasons not to leave. He attributed these to other people’s needs for a good transition, giving him a decent send-off, planning…

Community Mediation, Conventional wisdom, Court Procedure and Litigation, Developing the Field, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), mediation models, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mediation Users/Clients, Neutrality, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Scotland, The role of the mediator, Uncategorized, user perspectives

(University of Strathclyde)/ /1 Comment

(This post is being republished because of technical problems when it was first published.) One of the key debates among mediators centres on the word ‘evaluation’. I’ve written about this before – see Has the evaluative label outlived its usefulness? I’m sure many readers are familiar, even bored, with the claimed polarity between facilitative and…

ADR, Argument, Below the line, Brexit, caucus, Clients, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, cross-border mediation, Decision making, Dialogue, Fear, Impasse, Instinct, Intuition, Joint Sessions, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Middle East, Negotiation, peace negotiations, Perception, Practical Challenges for Mediators, shuttle mediation, Stories, Success in mediation, The role of the mediator, Trust, Violence

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /2 Comments

Bloomberg (not my usual reading fodder, I confess) carried an interesting piece a couple of months ago, entitled “Meet the Real Force Behind the Brexit Talks”. Yes, it was about Brexit (yawn) but it was about an unseen side of the negotiations. Opening with the line “In every negotiation the most important work is done…

Bias, Cognitive Bias, Commercial Mediation, Decision making, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, Mediation and Society, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Mediators’ Conduct, Neuroscience, peace negotiations, Personal Development, Policy, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Promoting Mediation, Public Policy, Reflective Practice, Scotland, shuttle mediation, Skills, Social intelligence, Success in mediation, The role of the mediator, Tips, Transformation, Trust, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

“I’ve been trying to tell you, but you didn’t listen. You’ve got to go down more deeply and take more time, you’re rushing it and it’s too superficial. You’re hardly disturbing the surface. You’ll make no progress that way. And you are using so much effort. Relax. When you get into difficulty, you are expending…

ADR, Decision making, Dispute Resolution, Mediation Practice, National Mediation Laws, The role of the mediator, Vietnam

(Vietnam International Arbitration Centre) and (University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University)/ /Leave a comment

In recent years, Vietnam has boosted its legal framework for commercial mediation. The story began with the promulgation of the new Civil Procedure Code 2015 whose Chapter 33 serves as the legal basis for the recognition of out-of-court mediated settlement agreements. Then, the Government issued Decree no. 22/2017/ND-CP on Commercial Mediation (“Decree 22”) detailing and…

Arbitration, Australia, Commercial Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Due Process, Hong Kong, Legal Issues, Legislation, Med-Arb Clauses, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Mediation Reforms (Legislation, etc.), Mediators’ Conduct, The role of the mediator

(Strategic Resolution)/ /Leave a comment

(This post is being republished because of technical problems when it was first published) The recently reported Australian case of Ku-ring-gai Council v Ichor Constructions Pty Ltd [2018] NSWSC 610 (8 May 2018) provides a useful lesson in how not to conduct the hybrid Arb-Med-Arb process, from which (I hope) we might learn how to…

Dispute Resolution, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Scotland, The role of the mediator, Training

(Core Solutions Group)/ /6 Comments

We finished module 2 of our flagship training course last week. One of our participants emailed me the next day: “I was driving up the road yesterday and mulling over one aspect of the mediation exercise we did. I get that we are facilitating adults to make fully informed autonomous decisions and that they need…