In recent blogs, I have discussed the importance of trust, rapport and reciprocity in resolving disputes. Something happened recently that highlights the importance of trust and rapport. Surprisingly, it has to do with one of my dogs- Buddy. Buddy is a rescue which we adopted when he was six years [Read More]
The last mediation I conducted in 2021 did not result in a resolution. There were a number of reasons why which I could not quite put my finger on. But over the holidays I read some books on negotiation which helped to crystallize my thinking. One of the books, Bargaining [Read More]
The end of the semester is drawing near in my online employment mediation dispute class. The theme of the last discussion board is reflective: what three things has each student learned from or skills developed or improved upon in this course. There is a saying to the effect that as [Read More]
One of the most important things a mediator must do- if not the most important- is to build trust and rapport with the parties. In pre-Covid days, this was a bit easier; the mediator could sit face to face with each party and schmooze. Now, we are reduced to being [Read More]
One value in being a mediator is learning how to think outside the box: to brainstorm. I learned long ago that any problem usually has more than one resolution. So… this is all about Buddy – part 2. Needless to say, Buddy took awhile to recover from the anti-anxiety medicine [Read More]
Mediations have a lot to do with trust. Not only must each party have some trust in the mediator but also should have at least a minimal degree of trust in the other side. If everyone completely distrusts everyone else in the mediation, there will be no resolution. In fact, [Read More]
School has started. More specifically, I have returned as a lecturer in law at USC’s Gould School of Law teaching ADR Ethics. And, I must say, the first class was very lively. The topic was negotiation ethics. And, at one point, I noted that as a mediator, the most important [Read More]
The one thing I love about being a mediator is that it constantly brings new challenges and new insights into people. A recent mediation is no exception. In that mediation, for the first time, defense counsel advised that her client wished to proceed to trial because it believed that the [Read More]
