Commercial Mediation, Community Mediation, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Family Mediation, Lawyers, lawyers in mediation, Mediation Lawyering, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mindset, Negotiation, Stages of mediation, The role of the mediator, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

(University of Strathclyde)/ /14 Comments
Lawyer making opening statement in mediation

“The world is made, not found.” (W Barnet Pearce) I had been a mediator for about 10 years before I heard parties’ initial words described as their “opening statement.” This may surprise some readers, though probably not if they began, like me, in family mediation, nor community or workplace. Other descriptions are available, as our…

Bias, Causes of Conflict, crisis negotiatons, International Mediation, peace negotiations, Russia, Ukraine, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /2 Comments

A disaster has unfolded in Ukraine and beyond in the month and a half since Russia invaded. Thousands of dead and injured, reports of horrific brutality, millions of refugees and towns and cities reduced to rubble. Russia is also suffering from economic sanctions, the loss of many of its brightest and best and a pariah…

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, Dispute Resolution, Ethics, Mediation, Mediation and Society, Uncategorized

(Hoffmann Eitle )/ /3 Comments

As soon as the news of the Ukrainian invasion emerged in late February, I felt the urgent need to address in writing what had been unthinkable only days earlier but which has now changed Europe for good. At the same time, I felt a massive sense of despair and helplessness which rendered me mute. Weeks…

Mediation, mediation as a career, Mediation Skills, Mediation wisdom, Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), Online Mediation, Values and attributes of a mediator, Zoom

(Kwok, Ng & Chan, Solicitors & Notaries)/ /Leave a comment

As a mediator, have you ever come across a situation where the parties and their respective legal representatives insist to have a face-to-face mediation session with you against a backdrop of sudden rise of confirmed Covid cases in your city to the extent that social distancing measures are being tightened and the Judiciary has announced…

ADR, Arbitration, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, Intellectual Property, International commercial mediation, lawyers in mediation, Legislation, Med-Arb Clauses, mediation process, Mediation Reforms (Legislation, etc.), Role of Mediator, user perspectives

(Strategic Resolution)/ /Leave a comment

One of the important things that struck me about Dr. Anna Howard’s brilliant research into Mediation is the discovery that the General Counsel she interviewed for her project feel disappointed that the promise of mediation has not been realized. I feel the same disappointment – although my disappointment has a somewhat different source. What seems…

Conflict, Europe, Governments/Public Sector, Negotiation, peace negotiations, Russia, Ukraine, Uncategorized, Violence

(FORARB/Charles University)/ /4 Comments

It was Thursday, February 24th, 2022. From the morning, I had been mediating a dispute between a grandfather and two of his granddaughters. Then, during the break, I switched on my phone and read the news. Very shocking news. As a person that has spent all his professional life bringing peace and understanding to the…

Brazil, Causes of Conflict, Conflict, Cooperation, Dialogue, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, Uncategorized

(Mediar360 - Dispute Resolution )/ /Leave a comment

According to the Wikipedia, “Make love, not war” is an anti-war slogan commonly associated with the American counterculture of the 1960s. It was used primarily by those who were opposed to the Vietnam War, but it has been invoked in other anti-war contexts around the world since then. The part of the slogan – “make…

ADR, Bias, Commercial Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Game Theory, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation wisdom, Reality-Testing

(Bruce Greig, Civil and Commercial Mediator)/ /1 Comment

Kleros is a cryptocurrency dispute resolution platform. It uses crypto tokens and game theory to resolve real-world disputes. It follows an automated process with no discussion, no nuance, no probing questions. It seems to be at the opposite end of the dispute resolution spectrum to mediation. Yet I think there is something that mediators can…

Bias, Cognitive Bias, Success in mediation, Tactics, Uncategorized

/ /2 Comments

Mediators are well acquainted with parties blaming one another for problems.  Scapegoating in particular can get in the way of coming to terms, instead leading to an escalation of bad feelings and an increasingly toxic relationship.  However, what is less well-known is that ‘scapegoating’ can mean and imply different things, each of which calls for…

Causes of Conflict, Communication, crisis negotiatons, Dialogue, International Mediation, peace negotiations, Scotland, Ukraine, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

The escalating situation in Ukraine brings challenges to those of us committed to mediation and peace-making. Is there a time when what we stand for does not work and cannot be pursued? When dialogue, even in the most threatening of situations, is not appropriate? I don’t pretend to have the answers but I have been…