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Developing the Field, Future of mediation, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Negotiation, Policy, Public Policy, Scotland, Uncategorized

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In recent weeks, I have had the privilege of mediating and facilitating in different matters with representatives of four governments . On one occasion they were on the same “side”; on another, notionally on different sides. A common theme to emerge was the needs and behaviours of political masters who were not present. The representatives…

ADR, Arbitration, Dispute Resolution, Evaluative Mediation, Med-Arb Clauses, mediated settlement agreement, mediation models, Mediation Outcomes, mediation traditions, Neuroscience, Scotland

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My wife and I recently spent a very convivial evening at the beautiful home in Sydney of leading Australian mediator Alan Limbury and his wife, Dr. Rosemary Howell, who coaches a team from the University of New South Wales in the annual ICC mediation competition. One topic which stimulated some forthright conversation was the use…

Communication, Conflict, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, International Mediation, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, Negotiation, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Public Policy, Reform, Scotland, Skills, Transformation, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /1 Comment

This week, I have had the genuine privilege of contributing one of the key note addresses at the Annual Conference of the Arbitrators and Mediators Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ) in Wellington. It has been a terrific conference, superbly organized by the indefatigable Deborah Hart. The standard of the many and diverse sessions has been…

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

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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…

Causes of Conflict, Conflict, Developing the Field, Instinct, mediation as a career, Mediation Practice, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Scotland, Skills, Tips, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

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(This is the final part of a keynote address to the YMCA Conference “From Reactions to Relations” in Burton on Trent on 20 November 2014.) Having considered what we can’t help noticing about our clients and about conflict I now turn to the tricky business of self-knowledge: what has our unique perspective at the heart…

Commercial Mediation, Deal Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Employment, Ethics, Europe, Family Mediation, Future of mediation, General, Governments/Public Sector, Greece, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), History of mediation, Interests, Ireland, Joint Sessions, Language, Lawyers, Legal Issues, mediation as a career, Mediation Lawyering, mediation models, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Memory and Illusions, Neuroscience, Nigeria, Particular Sectors (e.g. Construction, Banking, etc.), peace negotiations, Planning, Policy, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Public Policy, Reform, Scotland, Settlement Agreements, Skills, Sport, Stages of mediation, Standards, Success in mediation, Switzerland, Tactics, Transformation, Trust, UN and International Organizations, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation, Workplace

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I was all set to write about climate change and, more particularly, to reflect on some excellent writing on that subject which addresses so-called climate change sceptics or deniers. It seems to me that there is much to be learned about the motivations and psychology which affect such people and which can easily be read…

Conflict, Developing the Field, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Tips, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

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(This is the second of three parts of a keynote address to the YMCA Conference “From Reactions to Relations” in Burton on Trent on 20 November 2014) Last month I wrote in this blog about the fact that mediators “can’t help noticing” certain things as a result of the work that we do. We are…

Business, Causes of Conflict, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Conflict, Costs in Mediation, Decision making, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, General, Improvisation, Interests, Joint Sessions, Mediation Agreement, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Neuroscience, Scotland, Skills, Sport, Stories, Success in mediation, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /6 Comments

As 2014 comes to an end, it is good to reflect. How privileged many of us are. I often remark to others that my “job” is better than “real work”. What do I mean when I say that? As mediators, we have an extraordinary window through which we view life, other people and what happens…

Conflict, Developing the Field, Family Mediation, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Mediation Practice, Skills, Stories, Tips, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation

(University of Strathclyde)/ /Leave a comment

(This is the first of three parts of a keynote address to the YMCA Conference “From Reactions to Relations” in Burton on Trent on 20 November 2014) Here’s an interesting phenomenon. When asked to play the part of an adversarial lawyer students have no difficulty. It’s as if the script for this activity is carved…

ADR, Business, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Deal Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Evaluative Mediation, Impasse, Improvisation, Lawyers, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Negotiation, Neutrality, Scotland, Skills, Stages of mediation, Stories, Uncategorized

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I have never been a great fan of mediator’s proposals. I took the view that the mediator’s job, done well, was to help the parties to come to a solution themselves. Party autonomy and all that. Achieving a satisfactory outcome, I thought, shouldn’t require a specific suggestion by the mediator. I have changed my view….