Brown Bag Lunch and Learn for Bay Area Lawyers – Mediation Advocacy

The San Francisco Bar Association is holding a brown-bag lunch and learn on March 12, 2009 entitled, Preparing for an Effective Mediation.  It should be interesting.

I am currently working on preparing a similar program that I hope to present here in the Atlanta market this spring.  I may end up shooting myself in the foot (ha ha), but most mediations would be far more efficient if more attorneys learned to prepare as if they were going to trial, rather than scan the file at red lights on the way to the mediation table.

Really want to keep your dispute “quiet”? Hire a mediator early.

Mediator Kevin Whitaker recently commented on a news item in which a union official bemoaned the need to bring “a third party [the mediator] into our business.”   Kevin suggests that this is because “mediators don’t go around discussing their successes publicly.”

Is that really the case?  Would a union official really be wholly unaware of the benefit of mediation?  Doubtful. The fact that the union issued a press release complaining that it had to bring a third party into it’s business is completely disingenuous.   The official wanted public sympathy.   He wanted to make the big bad employer seem bigger and badder by suggesting that they wouldn’t bargain in “good faith”  and need a mediator to keep them “honest.”

Nevertheless, Kevin’s post makes some excellent points:

More disputes would be well served by the early assistance of dispute resolution specialist, someone who is interested in getting to a solution rather than defending a position or advancing an interest. Interestingly enough, with a skilled mediator’s help, odds are more disagreements will be resolved quietly before the dispute ever becomes newsworthy. Thus, if you really want to keep outsiders “out” and your dispute quiet, mediation may actually be the best place to begin.

I always tell the parties in mediation that one of the key benefits is confidentiality.   Free from the concern that their willingness to compromise might be used against them later, the parties should be able to discuss their interests candidly.  Furthermore, if the subject matter of the suit is particularly sensitive, like a harassment suit or even malpractice allegations, mediation can be a way to discuss settlement without putting the matter on record.  I keep things so confidential, I even shred my notes after mediation.

If you really want to keep your dipsute “quiet”, then you should really consider hiring a mediator early.

New Blog – Youth Services Litigation

I had a very nice lunch on Thursday with Debbie Ausburn, the author of the blog Youth Services Litigation.   Debbie has defended day care centers, youth camps, mentoring organizations, and private schools on various issues, including abuse cases.   And just so you don’t get too depressed reading about such cases, she throws in the occasional chuckle.

New Mediation Blog

New York based mediator “Jeff” offers us “Enjoy Mediation.”  I found it over the weekend and will be looking through his posts when I find some time this week.