Negotiation

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,…

Book Review, Business, Clients, Communication, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Future of mediation, General, Lawyers, Lawyers and Psychologists, Legal Practice, Litigation, Mediation Lawyering, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Neuroscience, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Scotland, Skills, Social intelligence, Status, Transformation, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

(Core Solutions Group)/ /2 Comments

I have been reflecting recently on the individual and collective professional journeys we all undertake – and on the different stages we reach. My reading has taken me to a thought-provoking book by theologian Richard Rohr, entitled Falling Upward. Rohr’s thesis, put very simply, is that there are two stages to life. The first, necessary,…

Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, General, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Negotiation

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

Author’s Note: For those readers who do not speak or read Chinese, the words and numbers in brackets indicate how to pronounce and intonate the Chinese characters indicated I was recently given the honour of launching 谈判 (Tan2 Pan4): The Chinese-English Journal on Negotiation at the 3rd Asian Mediation Association Conference held in Hong Kong…

Communication, Conflict, General, Governments/Public Sector, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, peace negotiations, Stages of mediation, Stories, Success in mediation, Switzerland, Transformation

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /10 Comments

Like many of us, I listened with rapt attention to the reporting from Geneva of the Syrian peace talks last week. So much is at stake. And so much of it feels very familiar to me as a mediator. One particularly interesting item was a radio interview last Saturday with a Syrian media officer who…

Argument, Cohen, mediation models, Monty Python, Negotiation

(First Mediation Corporation)/ /Leave a comment

There is a famous sketch by Monty Python in which the lead character (Michael Palin) is looking to buy a five-minute argument. He walks into an office where the receptionist offers him some options. One of the options involves a person who is too conciliatory. She decides that there is a good argument available and…

Decision making, Mediation Practice, Negotiation, Trial Value

(First Mediation Corporation)/ /Leave a comment

The Problem: You think that your client’s pain is so severe and different than the typical client that you value the case substantially higher than the other side will pay. The Solution: Understand what “category” your adversary has put your case in and either accept it or try to create a new category of value….

Commercial Mediation, Due Process, General, Instinct, mediation models, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Stages of mediation

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /3 Comments

Here is a confession. I have a theory (in the best traditions of Monty Python). It is totally untested. I am pretty certain that it would not survive rigorous, double-blind trials. It may, however, contain some seeds of insight. My theory – wait for it – is that mediations where one or more of the…

Commercial Mediation, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Developing the Field, Efficiency, Future of mediation, Governments/Public Sector, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Negotiation, Public Policy, Settlement Agreements, Success in mediation, Understanding mediation

(Weiler ADR Inc.)/ /Leave a comment

A potpourri of mediation-related reflections as the holiday break fades from memory. Hockey Mediation – With last Saturday’s puck drops in 13 cities the National Hockey League has commenced its lockout-shortened season. Full arenas around the league confirm the strength of the game’s drawing power if not the forgive-and-forget sentiments of long-suffering fans. Readers of this…

Class action, Discrimination, Employment, Mediation Practice, Negotiation, Planning, Wrongful termination

(First Mediation Corporation)/ /2 Comments

Mediating complex employment cases is like rehearsing for a concerto. The conductor spends a substantial amount of time reviewing the score, while the musicians practice the piece both individually and collectively. Hours and hours of practice result in one concert. Malcolm Gladwell, in his recent book ‘Outliers,’ describes the phenomenon of hugely successful people and…