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Enforcing Class Arbitration In The International Sphere: Due Process And Public Policy Concerns, S. I. Strong Oct 2008

Enforcing Class Arbitration In The International Sphere: Due Process And Public Policy Concerns, S. I. Strong

Faculty Publications

This article appears to be the first to address the unique issues relating to international class arbitration and to discuss the status of class arbitration in other countries. To date, the only published articles on class arbitration - a dispute resolution mechanism that has been in existence in the United States since the early 1980s - have focused on domestic arbitration. However, with a number of known international class arbitrations in progress, all seated in the United States, questions concerning the transnational legitimacy of the class arbitration process and the ability to enforce class awards under the New York Convention …


Ethical Considerations In Drafting And Enforcing Consumer Arbitration Clauses, Amy J. Schmitz Oct 2008

Ethical Considerations In Drafting And Enforcing Consumer Arbitration Clauses, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

Attorneys face mixed messages regarding consumer arbitration: Mixed professional responsibility rules; mixed legal enforcement; mixed messages from commentators and policymakers; mixed evidence regarding efficiency, cost-savings and fairness. It is therefore doubtful that attorneys would face discipline for drafting or enforcing onerous consumer arbitration provisions they believe in good faith to be lawful. Professional discipline rules, however, merely set the floor for ethical conduct and can only go so far in dictating morals or teaching values. Indeed, an attorney's commitment to ethics and public service "must begin at home." Moreover, the bottom line is: "If you have the wrong values, your …


Curing Consumer Warranty Woes Through Regulated Arbitration, Amy J. Schmitz Oct 2008

Curing Consumer Warranty Woes Through Regulated Arbitration, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

This article proposes legislative procedural reforms accounting for the realities of consumer arbitration that have threatened and denied consumers' access to remedies for companies' violations of public, or statutory, warranty remedies under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (MMWA). Furthermore, the Article proposes to clarify and expand the MMWA's current dispute resolution template in order to resolve judicial disagreement regarding the template's application and foster beneficial use of finding arbitration. Accordingly, this is not a call to ban all pre-dispute arbitration clauses in consumer contracts, but is instead an invitation for more politically palatable reforms that preserve both companies' savings and consumers' …


State Legislative Update, Gregory Cassens, Matthew D. Decker, Carly Duvall, Claire Mcguire Jul 2008

State Legislative Update, Gregory Cassens, Matthew D. Decker, Carly Duvall, Claire Mcguire

Journal of Dispute Resolution

The purpose of this Bill is to provide an alternative approach for individuals with a cause of action against a municipality.' Rather than the costly and time-consuming traditional method of hiring an attorney and filing a lawsuit, House Bill 2631 offers individuals an opportunity for Alternative Dispute Resolution ("ADR") in the form of arbitration. The Bill would allow any individual with a claim in contract or tort against a municipality to require the municipality to submit to the arbitration of the claim. The purpose of House Bill 2631 is to facilitate the resolution of individual claims against a city. However, …


Confronting Adr Agreements' Contract/No-Contract Conundrum With Good Faith, Amy J. Schmitz Jul 2008

Confronting Adr Agreements' Contract/No-Contract Conundrum With Good Faith, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

This Article explores the intricate problem, or conundrum, of enforcing "Alternative Dispute Resolution ('ADR') agreements" that require mediation or other non-binding dispute resolution procedures. Although public policy supports ADR, courts' inadequate analysis of ADR agreements is threatening their vitality. Instead of properly considering the flexible nature of these agreements, courts assume formalist contract or no-contract conclusions similar to those they impose on what Professor Charles Knapp has termed "contracts to bargain." ADR agreements and other contracts to bargain pose enforcement problems because they require parties' cooperation without specifying what cooperation means or how to enforce such flexible duties. This Article …


When Perception Changes Reality: An Empirical Study Of Investors' Views Of The Fairness Of Securities Arbitration, Jill I. Gross, Barbara Black Jul 2008

When Perception Changes Reality: An Empirical Study Of Investors' Views Of The Fairness Of Securities Arbitration, Jill I. Gross, Barbara Black

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Arbitration in securities industry-sponsored forums is the primary mechanism to resolve disputes between investors and their brokerage firms. Because it is mandatory, participants debate its fairness, and Congress has introduced legislation to ban pre-dispute arbitration clauses in customer agreements. Missing from the debate has been empirical research of perceptions of fairness by the participants, especially investors. To fill that gap, we mailed 25,000 surveys to participants in recent securities arbitrations involving customers to learn their views of the process. The article first details the survey's background, explains the importance of surveying perceptions of fairness, and describes our methodologies, procedures, and …


Philippine Community Mediation, Katarungang Pambarangay, Gill Marvel P. Tabucanon, James A. Wall Jr., Wan Yan Jul 2008

Philippine Community Mediation, Katarungang Pambarangay, Gill Marvel P. Tabucanon, James A. Wall Jr., Wan Yan

Journal of Dispute Resolution

First, we present a brief overview of the process, followed by a delineation of the history, purpose, operational structure, jurisdiction, venue, procedure, and time frame for this mediation approach. Finally, we report on interviews we conducted with mediators who have served on these panels. Their accounts reveal intriguing details as to how the mediation process unfolds and the benefits of this dispute resolution process. Our goals in this article are threefold: (1) to describe this grassroots mediation approach; (2) to expand our knowledge about mediation; and (3) to reflect on the advantages of this approach so as to improve mediation …


On Becoming A Collaborative Professional: From Paradigm Shifting To Transformative Learning Through Critical Reflection And Dialogue, Richard W. Shields Jul 2008

On Becoming A Collaborative Professional: From Paradigm Shifting To Transformative Learning Through Critical Reflection And Dialogue, Richard W. Shields

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In Part II, I provide a brief overview of CL and its underlying assumptions. A description of CL training and learning objectives follows in Parts III and IV. In Parts V and VI, I review the paradigm shifting and transformative learning literature. I provide an overview of the study in Part VII, followed by my analysis of the data in Parts VIII and IX. In Part X, I conclude with a discussion of critical reflection and dialogue in a CL training context.


From Kneecappings Toward Peace: The Use Of Intra-Community Dispute Resolution In Northern Ireland, Patrick Cody Jul 2008

From Kneecappings Toward Peace: The Use Of Intra-Community Dispute Resolution In Northern Ireland, Patrick Cody

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Violence has been a way of life in Northern Ireland for many years as communities were divided by separate warring paramilitary factions. Each side believed that it existed for the benefit and protection of the local community against the forces on the other side. The Irish Republican Army ("IRA") pledged itself to the defense of Northern Irish Catholics from persecution by those loyal to the British government. Similarly, groups such as the Ulster Volunteer Force ("UVF") and the Ulster Defense Association ("UDA") formed to defend Protestant citizens against IRA attacks. Policing of local neighborhoods fell largely to these groups. Enforcement …


Elevator Company Goes Down: Mandatory Arbitration Provisions As Applied To Pending Civil Rights Claims In The Employment Context, Miranda Fleschert Jul 2008

Elevator Company Goes Down: Mandatory Arbitration Provisions As Applied To Pending Civil Rights Claims In The Employment Context, Miranda Fleschert

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In Goldsmith v. Bagby Elevator Company, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals carved a distinction in the employment context between mandatory predispute arbitration agreements and compulsory arbitration agreements as applied to pending claims of discrimination. In doing so, the court warns employers that any effort to terminate an employee's rights with respect to a pending Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") claim by instituting a mandatory arbitration provision will be seen as impermissibly retaliatory. Amid the backdrop of a case in which supervisors routinely called black employees "monkeys," "slaves," and "niggers," the court makes a well-meaning attempt at preserving employees' statutorily …


No Exceptions: How The Legitimate Business Justification For Unconscionability Only Further Demonstrates California Courts' Disdain For Arbitration Agreements, Thomas H. Riske Jul 2008

No Exceptions: How The Legitimate Business Justification For Unconscionability Only Further Demonstrates California Courts' Disdain For Arbitration Agreements, Thomas H. Riske

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In Davis v. O'Melveny & Myers, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals considered whether an arbitration agreement adopted by a law firm and distributed to its employees was enforceable. When interpreting an arbitration agreement, how the contract doctrine of unconscionability should be applied by state courts, is an essential element of this case. While the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") has been interpreted to preempt any state law in conflict with it, state laws governing the necessary foundation to revoke a contract remain unaffected. In considering these principles, state courts have applied the doctrine of unconscionability to arbitration agreements in the …


Expanding The Use Of Collaborative Law: Consideration Of Its Use In A Legal Aid Program For Resolving Family Law Disputes, Lawrence P. Mclellan Jul 2008

Expanding The Use Of Collaborative Law: Consideration Of Its Use In A Legal Aid Program For Resolving Family Law Disputes, Lawrence P. Mclellan

Journal of Dispute Resolution

From Perry Mason and Law & Order to Judge Judy, many American consumers believe that legal conflict is resolved by trial--exciting, antagonistic, adversarial fights between lawyers. Yet common experience and research demonstrate that most legal conflict is not resolved between gladiators in the courtroom.' Many consumers come to the legal process with this Hollywood portrayal as their only knowledge of the process. Those engaged in the legal process know that there are alternatives to the courtroom for resolving dispute. Finding alternatives to litigation is especially important for legal aid programs, as the increased time and expense of litigation reduces the …


Knowing And Voluntary Standard: Is The Sixth Circuit's Test Enough To Level The Playing Field In Mandatory Employment Arbitration, The, Christina Semmer Jul 2008

Knowing And Voluntary Standard: Is The Sixth Circuit's Test Enough To Level The Playing Field In Mandatory Employment Arbitration, The, Christina Semmer

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Most courts require that for an individual to waive her Seventh Amendment right to trial by jury, she must knowingly and voluntarily waive that right. This heightened requirement for waiver exists because the United States Supreme Court has found that "[tlhe trial by jury is justly dear to the American people... and every encroachment upon it has been watched with great jealousy." Seemingly this standard should apply to mandatory employment arbitration agreements, as shifting the venue from the courts to the arbitral tribunal implicitly means waiving the right to trial by jury. However, because the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") requires …


Untimely Death Of Wrongful Death Claims: Ohio Removes Decedent-Employee Wrongful Death Claims From The Arbitral Forum, An, Christopher D. Vanderbeek Jul 2008

Untimely Death Of Wrongful Death Claims: Ohio Removes Decedent-Employee Wrongful Death Claims From The Arbitral Forum, An, Christopher D. Vanderbeek

Journal of Dispute Resolution

When Bob dies, Bob's representative could file either action in order that his estate (in survival) or beneficiaries (in wrongful death) be compensated for losses stemming from his injuries or death. But in Peters v. Columbus Steel Castings Company, a more complex issue arose-what if Bob signed an agreement to arbitrate all of his claims against his employer? Would that bind Bob's representative to arbitrate an action in survival? In wrongful death? Both? The Ohio Supreme Court answered that Bob's representative would be compelled to arbitrate the survival claim, but not the wrongful death claim, as the latter is independent …


Thoughts About Spiritual Fatigue: Sustaining Our Energy By Staying Centered, Wayne D. Brazil Jul 2008

Thoughts About Spiritual Fatigue: Sustaining Our Energy By Staying Centered, Wayne D. Brazil

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Spiritual fatigue can afflict seasoned mediators and judges who have hosted many settlement conferences.' It can sap the energy we need to do our work well. It can reduce our patience, shorten our anger fuses, and impair our ability to listen to and to connect with the people we are trying to help. Worse, it can lead us into procedural or ethical temptation-inviting us to cut comers and compromise values we hold dear. If it persists too long, it can drive us away from this field. Thus, for those of us who experience it, spiritual fatigue can pose a serious …


An Appreciation Of Marc Galanter's Scholarship, John M. Lande Apr 2008

An Appreciation Of Marc Galanter's Scholarship, John M. Lande

Faculty Publications

This brief essay highlights three of Marc Galanter's works to illustrate qualities that seem especially worth emulating. Galanter's classic article, Why the “Haves” Come Out Ahead: Speculations on the Limits of Legal Change, focuses on how the legal system actually operates in daily life and challenges a conventional wisdom that simply providing have-nots with more lawyers would substantially reduce inequality. The article is particularly relevant to the dispute resolution field, focusing on the vast majority of legally-oriented behavior that occurs outside of court. It distinguishes truly private dispute resolution (such as self-help, withdrawal from relationships, and intra-group processes) from settlement …


The Movement Toward Early Case Handling In Courts And Private Dispute Resolution, John M. Lande Jan 2008

The Movement Toward Early Case Handling In Courts And Private Dispute Resolution, John M. Lande

Faculty Publications

This article identifies early case handling (ECH) as an important general phenomenon in dispute system design theory and practice, catalogs the major ECH processes, and urges practitioners and policymakers to encourage use of and experimentation with ECH processes when appropriate.The key element of ECH is that people intentionally exercise responsibility for handling the case from the outset. ECH processes in courts include early case management procedures, differentiated case management systems, early neutral evaluation, and other early alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes. ECH in the private sector includes ADR pledges and contract clauses, early case assessment and ADR screening protocols, settlement …


Collaborative Law Practice: An Unbundled Approach To Informed Client Decision Making, Forrest S. Mosten Jan 2008

Collaborative Law Practice: An Unbundled Approach To Informed Client Decision Making, Forrest S. Mosten

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This article is intended to explore the commonality of the development of informed decision making/consent for unbundled legal services and Collaborative Law utilizing the unbundled approach of bifurcating the attorney role between advisor and provider to give clients a full and balanced education of the process of Collaborative Law, the various models of Collaborative Practice available, and to help the client make an informed decision prior to commencing a Collaborative Law engagement.


Interest Arbitration Clauses In Sec. 8(F) Pre-Hire Agreements: Effective For Achieving Genuine Collective Bargaining Or Enabling Parties To Underhandedly Gain Majority Bargaining Power, Thomas Riske Jan 2008

Interest Arbitration Clauses In Sec. 8(F) Pre-Hire Agreements: Effective For Achieving Genuine Collective Bargaining Or Enabling Parties To Underhandedly Gain Majority Bargaining Power, Thomas Riske

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In Sheet Metal Workers' International Ass'n, Local Union No. 2 v. McElroy's Inc., the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit considered whether an employer was required to submit to interest arbitration with a union under the pre-hire agreement entered into by the parties. The applicability of the statutory standards for pre-hire agreements to bargained-for labor and employment contracts is an essential element of this case. When interpreting federal statutory law, the majority of jurisdictions permit unilateral repudiation upon the expiration of a pre-hire agreement and a small minority of jurisdictions allow for the agreement to be repudiated …


Suing For Small Potatoes: Consumer Class Action Waivers In Arbitration Agreements Distinguished By The Ninth Circuit, Jaimee Conley Jan 2008

Suing For Small Potatoes: Consumer Class Action Waivers In Arbitration Agreements Distinguished By The Ninth Circuit, Jaimee Conley

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In Shroyer, the Ninth Circuit laid a foundation for looking at consumer class action arbitration waivers with greater scrutiny, using a much narrower test. In doing so, it communicates a clear message to large corporations that arbitration agreements that include class action waivers for the purpose of cheating consumers out of small amounts of money will not be tolerated. This case note will address the significance of the Ninth Circuit's decision and the policy arguments supporting such an approach.


Developing Better Lawyers And Lawyering Practices: Introduction To The Symposium On Innovative Models Of Lawyering, John M. Lande Jan 2008

Developing Better Lawyers And Lawyering Practices: Introduction To The Symposium On Innovative Models Of Lawyering, John M. Lande

Faculty Publications

This article provides an overview of a symposium sponsored by the University of Missouri Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution in 2007 that featured leading practitioners and scholars to analyze innovative models of lawyering, including Collaborative Law and other processes. The authors include David Hoffman, Nancy Welsh, Julie Macfarlane, Richard Shields, Pauline Tesler, Scott Peppet, Forrest ("Woody") Mosten, Jeanne Fahey, Kathy Bryan, Lawrence McLellan, and John Lande. The articles address issues including: teaching law students to "feel" like lawyers and not just "think" like them, using "conflict resolution advocacy" (which is not necessarily oriented to the courts), developing lawyers' …


Practical Insights From An Empirical Study Of Cooperative Lawyers In Wisconsin, John M. Lande Jan 2008

Practical Insights From An Empirical Study Of Cooperative Lawyers In Wisconsin, John M. Lande

Faculty Publications

This article reports on a study of members of the Divorce Cooperation Institute (DCI), a group of Wisconsin lawyers who use a "Cooperative" process to provide a constructive and efficient negotiation process in divorce cases. The study involved in-depth telephone interviews and several surveys of DCI members. Although DCI members use this process only in divorce cases, it can be readily adapted for other types of cases.DCI's approach generally involves an explicit process agreement at the outset, based on principles of: (1) acting civilly, (2) responding promptly to reasonable requests for information, (3) disclosing all relevant financial information, (4) obtaining …


Table Of Contents - Issue 2 Jan 2008

Table Of Contents - Issue 2

Journal of Dispute Resolution

No abstract provided.


Developing Better Lawyers And Lawyering Practices: Introduction To The Symposium On Innovative Models Of Lawyering, John Lande Jan 2008

Developing Better Lawyers And Lawyering Practices: Introduction To The Symposium On Innovative Models Of Lawyering, John Lande

Journal of Dispute Resolution

To examine innovations in legal practice, the University of Missouri Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution and the Journal of Dispute Resolution held a symposium on October 12, 2007, featuring leading practitioners and scholars to analyze innovative models of lawyering, including Collaborative Law and other processes. David Hoffman gave an outstanding keynote address, which was followed by two panels of experts. This issue of the Journal of Dispute Resolution presents papers from that symposium was so productive that we did not have time for presentations from some participants and do not have space for all the papers in this …


Looking Down The Road Less Traveled: Challenges To Persuading The Legal Profession To Define Problems More Humanistically, Nancy A. Welsh Jan 2008

Looking Down The Road Less Traveled: Challenges To Persuading The Legal Profession To Define Problems More Humanistically, Nancy A. Welsh

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This essay will focus on three factors that may help to explain why it seems to be so difficult for many lawyers to escape the confines of a narrow, legalistic framing of issues-or more poetically, why they may be predisposed against looking down "the road less traveled by." These factors should be taken into account as challenges to the widespread adoption of innovative, more humanistic approaches to lawyering. First, the essay will turn to research regarding the psyches and psychological needs of the people who choose to attend law school and become lawyers. Second, the essay will consider what is …


Evolution Of The New Lawyer: How Lawyers Are Reshaping The Practice Of Law, The, Julie Macfarlane Jan 2008

Evolution Of The New Lawyer: How Lawyers Are Reshaping The Practice Of Law, The, Julie Macfarlane

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In this paper, I shall first briefly examine some of the most significant changes affecting legal practice, especially civil litigation, and ask what adjustments in the professional identity and role of the lawyer these imply or perhaps even require from lawyers. I shall also consider what evidence we have for the evolution of the "new lawyer." I shall then approach these questions from a practice-based perspective, looking specifically at client advocacy, legal negotiation, and the lawyer-client relationship.


Why Should Businesses Hire Settlement Counsel, Kathy A. Bryan Jan 2008

Why Should Businesses Hire Settlement Counsel, Kathy A. Bryan

Journal of Dispute Resolution

As a former in-house litigation manager, I hired separate settlement counsel in only a few cases and with varying results. With responsibilities for hiring and managing a large portfolio of outside firms, I was loath to increase case-staffing ranks for many reasons-and cost was only one factor. Internal resources must oversee litigation, and having another set of outside lawyer relationships on the same case generally seemed duplicative. Worse, it demanded more of my scarce time to manage both the relationship and the primary litigation firm


Collaborative Family Law, The New Lawyer, And Deep Resolution Of Divorce-Related Conflicts, Pauline H. Tesler Jan 2008

Collaborative Family Law, The New Lawyer, And Deep Resolution Of Divorce-Related Conflicts, Pauline H. Tesler

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Unlike many of the contributions to this Symposium issue, mine is a speculative, idiosyncratic opinion piece. I want to explore what we know, what we think we know, what we do not know, and what we need to know about Collaborative Law and interdisciplinary team Collaborative Divorce Practice as they presently exist in the field of family law, in two respects: what these processes offer to clients (the "deep resolution" part of my title) and what effect the practice of these processes has on lawyers (the "new lawyer" part of my title). Instead of citing to authority, this essay draws …


Colliding Worlds Of Dispute Resolution: Towards A Unified Field Theory Of Adr, David A. Hoffman Jan 2008

Colliding Worlds Of Dispute Resolution: Towards A Unified Field Theory Of Adr, David A. Hoffman

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In the essay that follows, I advocate for greater acceptance of the diversity of belief and practice in the field of dispute resolution and contend that the unifying elements of law and dispute resolution practice predominate over those elements that divide practitioners. After providing definitions of some of the primary forms of dispute resolution (in Part II), the article describes tensions in the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) field (in Part III), quoting some of the harsh criticism that mediators, Collaborative practitioners, and other dispute resolvers have leveled at each other. Part III also expresses the concern that demonization and harsh …


Rejecting The Intertwining Doctrine: Favoring Adr While Hindering Judicial Efficiency And Economy, Michael Bekesha Jan 2008

Rejecting The Intertwining Doctrine: Favoring Adr While Hindering Judicial Efficiency And Economy, Michael Bekesha

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Often the scope of arbitration clauses does not include all potential claims. When the provision fails to provide for all disputes, courts may proceed in one of two ways to resolve both arbitrable and nonarbitrable claims: enforce the arbitration clause with respect to arbitrable claims, or ignore the private contract and litigate all issues at once. The Colorado Supreme Court, in Ingold v. AIMCO, chose the former - rejecting the intertwining doctrine. In doing so, Colorado aligned itself with the position that the United States Supreme Court embraced over twenty years ago. This casenote will discuss whether the Colorado Supreme …