The last months of 2012 saw three young girls end their own lives in the Northwest of Ireland. Bullying, particularly via social media, was implicated in all three deaths. Around the same time but by coincide, a national television programme focused on bullying and its effect on the victims, their families and the bullies themselves….
Down here in New Zealand it’s high summer and most of the country will spend until the end of January at the beach. I remember, when I was still at my law firm 10 years ago, the feeling of brief respite at this time of year before having to put on my boots again and trudge…
Every month I write on the 25th. Today is different. Today is Christmas! Posting during Christmas makes my job even more challenging. Regardless of religion and national boundaries, this period of the year magically turns people into more generous and helpful human beings, which goes well with the overall mediation concept. In addition to the…
Two stories currently making headlines in Canada provide the occasion to harken back to previous posts on this blog. Mediation Backlog – Ontario No-Fault Auto Insurance Disputes In March of this year I blogged about the consequences of under-resourcing mandatory mediation programs. The Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) had (and still has) a huge…
My basic nature is to be optimistic about the future. If I were one of the six thinking hats described by author Edward DeBono, I would be the yellow hat. The yellow hat is for optimism and the logical, positive view of things. The yellow hat looks for how something can be done and requires…
[Author’s note: Christmas is just around the corner and as with last year, I thought I would indulge by writing something whimsical. For those readers who do not celebrate or like Christmas; or those who do not believe in Santa Claus; or those who generally don’t like whimsy, please accept my apologies. I promise that…
In the last year I have had the privilege of joining a group of mediators for their monthly CPD (continuing professional development). We are all loosely in the commercial sector, which can include workplace, family business and public sector disputes. This being Scotland (see previous posts on judicial resistance to mediation) no-one is making their…
In June 2012 the Hong Kong Legislative Council passed the Mediation Ordinance (MO), the first piece of legislation on mediation in Hong Kong SAR. The MO was a much awaited and highly anticipated law and some mediation advocates have been disappointed in what they see as much ado about nothing. After all the MO appears…
Mediation in Europe has evolved, including developing into a mature subject of comparative legal studies. Just in October and November of this year, three voluminous books on mediation law and practice in the EU were published. Each counting over five hundred pages, they give an interesting insight into the current status of mediation in EU…
The title of “Mediator” In Switzerland there are two main areas of intervention of the mediation and therefore two broad categories of mediators: the so-called “conventional” mediators and those who have a quasi-“judicial” function; the latter only intervene in the case where mediation replaces the judicial conciliation required in most civil litigation pursuant to Articles…
