Conventional wisdom

Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Intuition, Neuroscience, peace negotiations

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

This week the South China Morning Post featured an article entitled “Why the theories of Einstein, climate change or evolution can never be proved right”. Referring to recent world headlines that Einstein’s theory on gravitational waves had finally been proven, the writer, Timothy Wotherspoon, argues that a scientific theory can never been proven right. He…

Communication, Conventional wisdom, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Future of mediation, Global Pound Conference Series 2016-17, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), History of mediation, mediation models, mediation process, mediation traditions, Success in mediation

/ /Leave a comment

In 1861, the then Secretary to the Education Department, Robert Lowe, addressed the UK House of Commons on the pressing matter of elementary education, in particular on the linked questions of access to education, funding, and quality. His proposal was to introduce a system of “payment for results”, designed both to limit the costs of…

Clients, Communication, Conventional wisdom, Dispute Resolution, Mediation Practice, mediation process, mediation traditions, Stages of mediation

/ /Leave a comment

The recent blog entry by Matthew Rushton (23 August) is a reminder of what changes can and do happen across the diverse landscape of mediation, and of the ways in which the “classical” model of mediation is probably as much a fond memory as it is a consistent practice. In both practice and training, we’ve…

Arbitration, Business, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Greece, History of mediation

(FORARB/Charles University)/ /2 Comments

With the summer going on, many mediation practitioners are enjoying well deserved holidays. Yet for some of them, even this period of year is time for some pondering over dispute resolution. Should you be one of them, you may find the story of two half-brothers in ancient Greece as an interesting hint. This is the…

ADR, Cognitive Bias, Conventional wisdom, Court Procedure and Litigation, Developing the Field, Efficiency, Fear, Future of mediation, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Humorous Pieces, Intuition, Lawyers, Mediation Lawyering, Mediation Users/Clients, Scotland, Uncategorized

(University of Strathclyde)/ /3 Comments

We have just reached the end of the annual marking season (grading for North Americans). The verbal joust of examinations is almost over. Students get their blows in first; teachers’ strike back with marks and comments. It’s a familiar ritual with its own rhythm and reasoning. It can be viewed as arduous by both sides…

ADR, Book Review, Business, Causes of Conflict, Clients, Cognitive Bias, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Developing the Field, Future of mediation, General, Improvisation, Language, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Neuroscience, Policy, Scotland, Skills, Stories, Success in mediation, Tips, Training, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /1 Comment

It’s funny how one thing leads to another. Regular Kluwer blogger Ian Macduff posted a great blog earlier this week on the importance of asking questions. That reminded me that I had intended to get hold of a book by Edgar Schein entitled “Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling”. So, I…

Conventional wisdom, Decision making, Developing the Field, Environmental Mediation, EU Directive on Mediation, EU Mediation Directive, Future of mediation, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Public Policy

/ /Leave a comment

Oz, left to himself, smiled to think of his success in giving the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman and the Lion exactly what they thought they wanted. “How can I help being a humbug,” he said, “when all these people make me do things that everybody knows can’t be done? It was easy to make…

Causes of Conflict, Clients, Conventional wisdom, Lawyers, Litigation, Mentoring, Mistakes

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

We got off on the wrong foot right from the start. It was a boat building case and the detail was overwhelming. Too many gudgeons, pintles and bulwarks and by the time we got to a 3 day hearing, it had become the most toxic professional relationship with a counterpart lawyer of my young career. A day…

Appointment of Mediators, Below the line, Clients, Commercial Mediation, Conflict, conlfict coaching, Conventional wisdom, Decision making, Future of mediation, General, Instinct, Interests, Lawyers, Mediation Lawyering, mediation models, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Neutrality, Success in mediation, Uncategorized

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /8 Comments

Something is in the air at the moment. And it goes to the heart of what we mediators do. On the one hand, noted mediation thinkers such as Robert Bush and Joseph Folger write an empassioned challenge to the profession “Reclaiming Mediation’s Future: Getting Over the Intoxication of Expertise, Re-Focusing on Party Self-Determination”, arguing that…

Below the line, Clients, Commercial Mediation, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, General, Humorous Pieces, Improvisation, Mediation Lawyering, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Social intelligence, Uncategorized

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /3 Comments

Global Legal Post recently carried an article intriguingly entitled “Lawyers find Eureka moments in the shower“. Sadly the article itself lacked the slightly salacious promise of its title. Instead, it focused on the results of a survey of London city lawyers, indicating that those surveyed did their most creative thinking in the shower or commuting…