Causes of Conflict

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, crisis negotiatons, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, General, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Hong Kong, Mediation Practice, Negotiation, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Skills, Social intelligence, Tactics, Time Pressure

(Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy)/ /Leave a comment

Next week I am going to interview one of Hong Kong’s leading police negotiators, Dr Gilbert Wong, Commanding Officer of the Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC). When I first emailed with Gilbert, I was struck by the signature line of his email: “Who Cares Wins”. While it could be a mediator’s tagline, it is in fact,…

Causes of Conflict, Commercial Mediation, Conventional wisdom, Humorous Pieces, Stories, Tactics, Uncategorized

(Weiler ADR Inc.)/ /3 Comments

Story telling and humor are among the essential tools in any mediator’s kit. Of course, when it comes to humor, mediators learn early in their career that the self-deprecating variety is usually the safest choice. This turns out to be quite good for me since in my life there is no shortage of material to…

Availability of Mediators, Causes of Conflict, Civil rights, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, General, History of mediation, Impasse, Instinct, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /7 Comments

My December blog was centred around a 15th Century occurrence. This month, I am in the final two years of the 14th Century. Last night, I went to see Shakespeare’s Richard II at the Barbican Theatre in London. The title role was played (quite brilliantly) by David Tennant – a piece of trivia for all…

ADR Clauses, Business, Causes of Conflict, Combined Clauses

(Brick Court Chambers / Clifton Chambers)/ /2 Comments

I don’t mean to argue against the undeniable wisdom of inserting a dispute resolution clause in a commercial contract at the drafting stage. Conventional wisdom says settle your disputes as early as possible – like bubbles off the ocean floor, conflict expands as it rises to the surface and finally explodes into the air. What’s not…

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, General, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Transformation

(National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law)/ /3 Comments

I recently had the pleasure of attending the Tan Pan [谈判 means “Negotiation” in mandarin] Symposium held in Hong Kong from 1-2 November 2013. This was organized by the International Institute for Conflict Engagement and Resolution (IICER) of the Hong Kong Shue Yan University. This symposium saw the launch of the Tan Pan Journal and…

'Money-only' Cases, Apologies, Apology, Causes of Conflict, Commercial Mediation, Communication, General, Interests, mediation models, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Settlement Agreements, Skills

(Brick Court Chambers / Clifton Chambers)/ /Leave a comment

This week I spoke to a group of young legal practitioners here in New Zealand. I aimed low and went back to source. I suspect I got more of a kick out of it than anyone at the session. So, mediators, look away. There is nothing new here. But users, occasional or repeat, I hope these three…

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, Developing the Field, General, Training, Transformation

(National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law)/ /Leave a comment

I should state at the outset that I have a confession to make. Not quite yet but soon. As a long term practitioner and teacher of negotiation and mediation, it has occurred to me on many occasions that much of the conflict, trouble and strife that we experience, whether at an interpersonal level or international…

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, Cross-cultural, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Ethics, Europe, International Law, International Mediation, UN and International Organizations, UNCITRAL Model Law

(Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy)/ /Leave a comment

This is the first of a series of four blog postings written by Nadja Alexander , Michael Leathes , Tina Monberg and Irena Vanenkova. Achieving the promise of mediation in conflicts that threaten the stability of societies and economies is one of the most important challenges of our time. Inspiring progress has been made in…

Bias, Causes of Conflict, mediation as a career, Mentoring, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Stories

(Sabine Walsh Mediation)/ /Leave a comment

“At these times”, said Dumbledore, indicating the stone basin, “I use the Pensieve. One simply siphons the excess thoughts from one’s mind, pours them into the basin, and examines them at one’s leisure. It becomes easier to spot patterns and links, you understand, when they are in this form.” (From Harry Potter, by JK Rowling,…

ADR Agreements, Causes of Conflict, Developing the Field, Employment, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Success in mediation, Transformation, Uncategorized

(University of Strathclyde)/ /Leave a comment

A human resources manager recently asked me for a general list of reasons why a mediation might not settle. While part of me wanted to question the idea of settlement as the goal of mediation (see Alan Gross’s excellent piece ‘Agreement Not the Gold Standard for Mediation – http://www.mediate.com/articles/GrossA3.cfm ) most of me thought this…