Law Commons^™

Can Islamic Law Principles Regarding Settlement Of Criminal Disputes Solve The Problem Of The U.S. Mass Incarceration?, Amin R. Yacoub, Becky Briggs

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

The mass incarceration crisis in the United States (US) remains a vexing issue to this day. Although the US incarcerated population has decreased by twenty-five percent amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the US remains a leading country in the number of incarcerated people per capita. Focusing on Islamic law principles governing settlement in criminal cases, the rehabilitative approach of the Icelandic criminal justice model, and the powerful role of prosecutors in serving justice, this research argues that integrating settlement and mediation into the prosecutorial proceedings will significantly reduce mass incarceration in the US.

Confidential Settlements For Professional Malpractice, Sande L. Buhai

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

A lawyer representing a plaintiff in a professional malpractice case advises her client not to file a complaint with the state regulatory body—the state bar, the medical board, or some other pertinent body—until later. The lawyer explains that she can offer to settle the case more favorably, more quickly, and at lower cost if they promise that, as part of the settlement, defendant’s malfeasance will never be reported to the state regulatory body responsible for ensuring professional competence in the area. This tactic may allow the client to negotiate a larger settlement because the defendant should be willing to …

Jewish Law Perspectives On Judicial Settlement Practice, Shlomo Pill

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

The classic adjudicatory paradigm of opposing attorneys facing off at trial before a judge and jury in order to receive a favorable judgment is an image long past. Increased litigation volume, and the added time and expense of modern litigation has resulted in a rich practice of judges working to broker settlements between litigants in lieu of formal adjudication. Judicial settlement is the subject of much debate, however, and the diverse range of judicial practice in this area reflects the institutional, ethical, and jurisprudential uncertainties we still have regarding the propriety of judges facilitating settlements. This paper offers a new …

Adversarial Failure, Benjamin P. Edwards

Washington and Lee Law Review

Investors, industry firms, and regulators all rely on vital public records to assess risk and evaluate securities industry personnel. Despite the information’s importance, an arbitration-facilitated expungement process now regularly deletes these public records. Often, these arbitrations recommend that public information be deleted without any true adversary ever providing any critical scrutiny to the requests. In essence, poorly informed arbitrators facilitate removing public information out of public databases. Interventions aimed at surfacing information may yield better informed decisions. Although similar problems have emerged in other contexts when adversarial systems break down, the expungement process to purge information about financial professionals provides …

The Singapore Convention On Mediation: A Framework For The Cross-Border Recognition And Enforcement Of Mediated Settlements, Timothy Schnabel

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article attempts to provide a definitive overview of the text, structure, history, and purpose of the Singapore Convention on Mediation (also known as the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation), a new multilateral treaty developed by the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). The Convention, scheduled to open for signature in August 2019, provides a uniform, efficient framework for the recognition and enforcement of mediated settlement agreements that resolve international, commercial disputes — akin to the framework that the 1958 New York Convention provides for arbitral awards. Unlike the other primary international organizations that …

Venezuela Undermines Gold Miner Crystallex's Attempts To Recover On Its Icsid Award, Sam Wesson

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

Utility Function And Rational Choice As Support Mechanisms To Maximize Mediation And Legal Negotiation Settlement Output, Roberto Kuster

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article provides a general negotiation background, establishing some basic definitions such as BATNA, interests, and “Shadow of Law.” Then, it works with the two-step process of utility maximization and rational choice to achieve the optimal settlement output within mediation and legal negotiation processes. Lastly, it points out methods to support the theories in ways that a lawyer could understand and apply correctly. Thus, the article offers an idea for an optimal settlement in a legal negotiation/mediation. It takes the complementary views of recognized authors, from Fisher and Ury’s "how to negotiate" manual, Raiffa's lucid explanation of applied game theory, …

Magistrate Judges, Settlement, And Procedural Justice, Nancy A. Welsh

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Glucose Model Of Mediation: Physiological Bases Of Willpower As Important Explanations For Common Mediation Behavior, Roy F. Baumeister, W. Scott Simpson, Stephen J. Ware, Daniel S. Weber

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Success in life requires the ability to resist urges and control behavior. This ability is commonly called “willpower,” the capacity to overcome impulses and engage in conscious acts of self-control. Social psychologists believe willpower is a finite resource dependent on physiological bases including glucose (from food and drink), sleep and other forms of rest, and the absence of stress. In short, people who are hungry, exhausted, or highly stressed tend to have less willpower than those who are well-fed, well-rested, and relatively stress-free. In addition, a person who exerts self-control (uses willpower) tends to reduce temporarily the amount of willpower …

The Recognition And Enforcement Of Foreign Country Judgments And Arbitral Awards: A North-South Perspective, Michael Quilling

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

California Code Of Civil Procedure Sections 877, 877.5 And 877.6: The Settlement Game In The Ballpark That Tech-Bilt, Emery J. Mishky, Robert Tessier, Patrick G. Vastano

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Collaborative Family Law, Pauline H. Tesler

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Collaborative Law appears to meet significant needs both among family law clients and among the lawyers who assist them through divorce. As will be discussed more fully below, clients appear to want the advantages of a contained, settlement-oriented, creative, private, respectful process without sacrificing the benefits of having a committed legal advocate at their sides. For that reason Collaborative Law appeals to clients who may hesitate to commit to a dispute resolution process facilitated solely by a neutral mediator. And, while many family lawyers suffer considerable professional angst as a consequence of their awareness that family law courts are neither …

The Mediated Settlement: Is It Always Just About The Money? Rarely!, Steven L. Schwartz

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Since our legal system of dispute resolution tends to remedy wrongs only by payment of money, most settlements will eventually involve negotiations over the amount to be paid and received. Yet, in both the theory and actual practice of mediation that has lead this writer to conclude that it is never just about the money. Effective lawyer representation of clients in mediation requires a different kind of investigation and preparation than lawyers may be accustomed to conducting. Similarly, an effective mediator must be adept in identifying the clues that reveal the "below the water line" interests at work and which …

Mediating Multi-Party Disputes: Reflections On Leadership In Mediation, Elizabeth "Wendy" Trachte-Huber

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Leadership in mediating multi-party matters is imperative. In my work as Claims Administrator for one of the largest ever personal injury/bankruptcy settlements ($2.3 billion, net present value), I am charged with four primary areas of responsibility: (1) the efficient and fair evaluation of claims consistent with provisions of the Joint Plan of Reorganization; (2) the efficient delivery of payments to all approved claimants pursuant to the provisions of the Joint Plan; (3) the management and custody of the assets paid to the Settlement Facility; and finally (4) the faithful execution of the provisions of the Joint Plan in all respects. …

Alternative Dispute Resolution And Court-Appointed Experts , Joseph R. Slights Iii, Mark G. Haug

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article shamelessly borrows its subtitles-the Court's Tale and the Expert's Tale-from Chaucer's tale-telling. The two tales examine the life cycle of a case utilizing a court-appointed expert. The Court's Tale begins with a presumption against the court-appointed expert. Certain characteristics of a dispute, however, may be sufficient to rebut this presumption. The Court's Tale tells of one such case. The case involved complex damage calculations and irreconcilable positions that invite an objective analysis. The article then turns toward the Expert's Tale which describes how an expert helped resolve the problem. Following the Expert's Tale, the court assesses the outcome …

Immunizing Arbitrators From Claims For Equitable Relief, Michael D. Moberly

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

The article begins with a summary of the historical origins of the judicial and arbitral immunity doctrines. Next, the article discusses the courts' refusal to extend judicial immunity to claims for declaratory, injunctive, or other equitable relief, except perhaps in the case of federal judges. The article then explores the propriety of recognizing a similar limitation in cases construing the arbitral immunity doctrine. The article ultimately concludes that (1) arbitrators should be immune from claims for equitable relief as a matter of policy, and (2) in jurisdictions where that result is currently precluded by existing precedent, a comparable result can …

How Much Justice Can We Afford: Defining The Courts' Roles And Deciding The Appropriate Number Of Trials, Settlement Signals, And Other Elements Needed To Administer Justice, John Lande

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This article discusses how the court system can function optimally given declining trial rates and the limited resources available. It does not provide a detailed analysis of court financing but rather discusses broad issues relating to the role of trials in the legal system.

Understanding Settlement In Damages (And Beyond), Chris Guthrie

Journal of Dispute Resolution

The purpose of this article is to introduce these academic accounts of settlement and to consider whether they provide insight into the settlement of the Sabias' litigation against Humes and Norwalk. I believe these accounts are largely complementary rather than competing, so my own view is that each sheds some light on litigation and settlement behavior in most civil cases (including the Sabia case).

Judicial Mediation And Signaling, Edward J. Brunet

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Mediating Preferences: Litigant Preferences For Process And Judicial Preferences For Settlement, Judith Resnik

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In the 1980s, as a consultant to RAND's Institute for Civil Justice, I joined Deborah Hensler, Allan Lind, Robert MacCoun, William Felstiner, Tom Tyler, and Patricia Ebener in seeking to learn how litigants viewed their experiences with courtbased processes. We surveyed litigants whose cases had been resolved through trials, court-annexed arbitrations, judge-run settlement conferences, and bi-lateral negotiations between lawyers.' We found that litigants cared about process: they reported less satisfaction with processes in which they took no part and more satisfaction with processes in which they could participate. Contrary to some lore that litigants were alienated by trial-like procedures, the …

A Model For Arbitration: Autonomy, Cooperation And Curtailment Of State Power, Kenneth

Fordham Urban Law Journal

As compared with the formal pleadings, massive discovery, aggressive motion practice, and endless appeals of litigation, arbitration is undoubtedly more efficient as a dispute resolution mechanism. However, efficiency is only one of many advantages of arbitration. Arbitration empowers disputing parties, promotes individual autonomy and cooperation, and curtails the power of government in the process. Still, the state should not wholly limit its involvement in arbitral processes; the courts do and should have a substantial role in determining the enforceability of arbitration agreements and awards in a few select contexts. Overall, courts should enforce arbitration agreements and only limit enforceability that …

Exceptional Circumstances Justifying Vacatur When Lower Court Decision Mooted By Settlement: Repeat Litigants Slide Into Home With Second Circuit Decision - Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. V. Pacific Trading Cards, Inc., S. Kristina Starke

Journal of Dispute Resolution

At heart in the scholarship advocating Alternative Dispute Resolution are two interests: one, that using processes such as negotiation, mediation, and arbitration conserve public and private resources otherwise expended on litigation; and two, that in certain circumstances, these alternative processes may provide better justice than would occur in litigation.' However, once litigation of a case has commenced, and an adverse judgment has been made against one party, that party may not be willing to settle the case unless the adverse judgement is vacated.4 Historically, most state and federal courts would routinely grant vacatur when requested by litigants who settled their …

Class Action Settlement Bars, Cross Claims, And Co-Defendants: The Search For A Uniform Standard - In Re U.S. Oil & (And) Gas Litigation, Craig Richard Heidemann,

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Prior to the U.S. Oil & Gas decision, the federal courts had only considered settlement bars as related to non-settling defendants. In the U.S. Oil & Gas case, all of the defendants sought to settle with the plaintiff. 2 Only one settling defendant chose to contest the entry of the bar order. 3 In U.S. Oil & Gas, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals was faced with a defendant who settled with the plaintiff but opposed an order barring its seemingly independent claims against the third-party defendant who also settled. For this reason it was a case of first impression. …

Settlement In Securities Fraud: Is Settlement Promoting Litigation - In Re Jiffy Lube Securities Litigation, Brian R. Hajicek

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In the complex securities fraud arena, partial pretrial settlement in cases involving multiple defendants would appear to reduce litigation in the dispute. However, conflict over the proper method of allocating responsibility for a damage award among settling and non-settling defendants can in fact increase litigation. Federal courts disagree as to which method most fairly and equitably apportions damage liability. In re Jiffy Lube Securities Litigation is the most recent case that touches upon the issue of damage allocation among settling and non-settling defendants. This Note will address competing policy considerations which drive courts to choose different allocative methods.

Shackling The Secretary's Hands: Limits To Authorizing Whistle-Blower Settlements Under Section 210 Of The Energy Reorganization Act - Macktal V. Secretary Of Labor, Jay M. Dade

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In seeking to encourage nuclear industry employees to report safety concerns, Section 210 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 (ERA) acts to protect such "whistle-blowers" in the event they are terminated or discriminated against because of their whistle-blowing activities.2 When an employee and an employer negotiate a Section 210 "whistle-blower" complaint and subsequently submit the settlement for approval, the Secretary of Labor faces certain encumbrances when reviewing the agreement . This limitation on review arises when certain provisions may be in violation of public policy.4 In Macktal v. Secretary of Labor, the United States Court of Appeals for the …

Is Settlement Conditioned On Vacatur An Option - Should It Be, Elizabeth L. Anstaett

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Currently, whether a court grants or denies a motion to vacate resulting from settlement depends more on the particular court in which the request is made, than on the facts of the case and the effect of vacatur. Courts not permitting vacatur have expressed the fear that parties sensing they are going to lose will "buy their way out of an unfavorable precedent often at the relatively cheap price asked by the single opponent they face in that appeal."1 Other courts routinely grant requests for vacatur. Settlements conditioned on the court's granting vacatur, and thereby avoiding precedent or issue preclusion, …

Valuation Of Cases For Settlement: Theory And Practice, Peter Toll Hoffman

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Trial lawyers frequently talk about the value of their cases when they are counseling clients' negotiating with opposing counsel, or conversing with their fellow attorneys. The term "value" may have several definitions when referring to cases, but most attorneys intend it to mean the amount at which they expect a case to settle. However, despite the frequency with which they speak of value, the subject remains cloaked with a miasma of lawyer folklore.

Public's Need To Know Vs. Effective Settlement Techniques: The First Amendment Confronts The Summary Jury Trial - Cincinnati Gas And Electric Co. V. General Electric Co., The, Anne E. Billings

Journal of Dispute Resolution

With the proliferation of alternative dispute resolution, the summary jury trial (SJT) has become popular in many federal courts as an alternative to litigation. 2 Because of the SJT's trial-like nature, members of the press argue that the first amendment 3 gives the press the right to report on SJT proceedings. In Cincinnati Gas and Electric Co. v. General Electric Co.,4 the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals addressed the issue of whether the first amendment right of access attaches to a SJT proceeding.

Effective Lawyering In Judicially Hosted Settlement Conferences, Wayne D. Brazil

Journal of Dispute Resolution

The purpose of this article is to describe in detail the most effective approaches and techniques that I have seen lawyers use in settlement conferences. Having hosted hundreds of negotiations, I have seen many different lawyering styles. In the pages that follow, I share with interested litigators my ideas (unconfirmed by scientific tests) about what works in the settlement dynamic and what does not. I write informally; the "you" that I address so often are the litigators I hope to reach.

Quality Of Settlements, The, Marc Galanter

Journal of Dispute Resolution

When I was a law student, some 30 years ago, I don't recall hearing much about settlement. I am sure that my teachers knew there were a lot of settlements, but they were not worthy of much attention. They were part of the realm of practical nuts and bolts detail that lay outside learning about the law; law school was about cases that were adjudicated.