Law Commons^™

Mosten And Scully’S New Book On Unbundled Legal Services, John M. Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post discusses Forrest (Woody) Mosten and Elizabeth Potter Scully’s book, Unbundled Legal Services: A Family Lawyer’s Guide. Unbundling involves providing specified services to legal clients rather than “full service” representation. Unbundling is particularly helpful in family matters because parties generally understand the issues and may represent themselves well if they have some legal help. Many family courts are overwhelmed with large numbers of cases involving self-represented litigants, so providing unbundled legal services can make a significant contribution to the legal system. In virtually all types of cases, some people have the interests in unbundling, not just family matters.

Takeaways From New Hampshire Mediation Training, John M. Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post highlights some key findings from survey data and focus-group-like comments from court mediation training for the training participants as well as readers of this blog.

Stone Soup: Learning How People Actually Prepare For Negotiation And Mediation, John Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post suggests questions in Stone Soup interviews that students can ask lawyers and mediators about how they prepare for negotiation and mediation.

Letter To Kelly, John Lande

Faculty Blogs

This is a letter I wrote to someone who was about to start law school. I advised keeping focused on their goals and how best to achieve them. I cautioned about portrayals of lawyers on TV and in the movies. I warned about the “hidden curriculum” which creates misimpressions by focusing on appellate cases. I encouraged them to remember what it is like to be a “normal” person, a perspective they may forget after being initiated in the legal tribe. I advised trying to see the world through others’ eyes.

International Investment Arbitration In Laos: Large Issues For A Small State, Romesh Weeramantry, Mahdev Mohan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Laos is no stranger to international investment arbitration. Despite its status as one of Southeast Asia's least developed countries, it has had an Investment Law for more than two decades and is also a party to several bilateral and Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)-related investment agreements. More recently, two investment treaty claims have been made against it, one of which has given rise to an award challenge that went all the way to Singapore's highest court. This article will examine the history, evolution and current iteration of Laos' relationship with international investment law and focus on the two …

Vicarious Liability, Non-Delegable Duty And The Ng Huat Seng Decision, Kee Yang Low

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In recent times, courts in Singapore and elsewhere have been grappling with the issue of delegability of duty of care. In the process, they have vigorously defended the conventional position that a duty of care is, in general, delegable. Accordingly, attempts at broadening the ambit of vicarious liability and non-delegable duty, respectively, have been carefully scrutinized. The recent Singapore Court of Appeal decision of Ng Huat Seng v Munib Mohammad Madni adds to the judicial thinking on this complicated and controversial subject.

Third-Party Funding In International Arbitration, Victoria Sahani

Shorter Faculty Works

Third-party funding, also known as litigation funding, is a financing method in which an entity that is not a party to a particular dispute funds another party’s legal fees or pays an order, award, or judgment rendered against that party, or both. Third-party funding is a growing phenomenon that is becoming more mainstream in both the litigation and the international arbitration communities. The leading jurisdictions worldwide — in terms of volume and sophistication of third-party funding arrangements — are Australia, the U.K., the U.S. and Germany. In the past, third-party funding was a smaller niche market, but in recent years, …

Prompting Deliberation About Nanotechnology: Information, Instruction, And Discussion Effects On Individual Engagement And Knowledge, Lisa M. Pytlikzillig, Myiah J. Hutchens, Peter Muhlberger, Alan Tomkins

Lisa PytlikZillig Publications

Deliberative (and educational) theories typically predict knowledge gains will be enhanced by information structure and discussion. In two studies, we experimentally manipulated key features of deliberative public engagement (information, instructions, and discussion) and measured impacts on cognitive-affective engagement and knowledge about nanotechnology. We also examined the direct and moderating impacts of individual differences in need for cognition and gender. Findings indicated little impact of information (organized by topic or by pro-con relevance). Instructions (prompts to think critically) decreased engagement in Study 1, and increased it in Study 2, but did not impact postknowledge. Group discussion had strong positive benefits for …

Lessons From The Aba’S Excellent Report On Mediator Techniques, John M. Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post highlights findings from the report of the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution Task Force on Research on Mediator Techniques. The report identified 47 studies from the past four decades that analyzed effects of particular mediator actions on certain mediation outcomes. The Task Force found that none of the categories of mediator actions has clear, uniform effects across the studies. In general, the studies found that some generally uncontroversial actions – such as eliciting suggestions, focusing on emotions and relationships, building trust, expressing empathy, praising disputants, and setting agendas – may or may not produce positive effects. It found …

230+ Law And Economics Professors Urge President To Remove Isds From Nafta, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

CCSI helped launch a letter signed by over 230 law and economics professors urging President Trump to remove ISDS provisions from NAFTA. As the letter notes, the ISDS mechanism “undermines the important roles of our domestic and democratic institutions, threatens domestic sovereignty, and weakens the rule of law.” The letter builds upon the center’s past work, including a similar letter published last year calling on Congress to reject the Trans Pacific Partnership for its inclusion of ISDS, and broader analyses of both the threat that ISDS poses to domestic US law and of the ISDS provisions that were included in …

India’S Revised Model Bit: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back?, Jesse Coleman, Kanika Gupta

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In December 2015, the Indian government approved the final text of its revised model bilateral investment treaty (BIT). Shortly thereafter, in February 2016, India published a joint interpretative statement to clarify its understanding of certain treaty provisions found in existing Indian treaties. These recent developments in Indian investment treaty policy are products of a multi-year review process ,prompted at least in part by the 2011 finding against India in the White Industries claim - the first such known finding against the state – and by several notices of dispute received following the determination in that case.

C-Drum News, Fall 2017

The C-DRUM News

No abstract provided.

Commercial Arbitration: Germany And The United States, Jill I. Gross, Christian Duve

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Arbitration has deep roots in the legal cultures of the United States and Germany--and is still an important option for resolving disputes in both countries today. As far back as Colonial times, US merchants used arbitration to settle industry disputes, and in the early 19th century, American stockbrokers resolved intra-industry disputes through arbitration at the New York Stock Exchange. In Germany, a country with a civil law rather than a common law tradition, commercial arbitration has been practiced for centuries: the first draft of the German Code of Civil Procedure from 1877 included a section establishing the legal foundations of …

Empowering Consumers Through Online Dispute Resolution, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

We transact online every day, hoping that no problems will occur. However, our purchases are not always perfect: goods may not arrive; products may be faulty; expectations may go unmet. When this occurs, we are often left frustrated, with no means for seeking redress. Phone calls to customer service are generally unappealing and ineffective, and traditional face-to-face or judicial processes for asserting claims are impractical after weighing costs against likely recovery. This is especially true when seeking redress requires travel, or for crossborder claims involving jurisdictional complexities. This situation has created a need for online dispute resolution (“ODR”), which brings …

Kiser’S Soft Skills For The Effective Lawyer, John Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post describes Randall Kiser’s book, Soft Skills for the Effective Lawyer. He defines soft skills as including “intrapersonal and interpersonal competencies such as practical problem solving, stress management, self-confidence, initiative, optimism, interpersonal communication, the ability to convey empathy to another, the ability to see a situation from another’s perspective, teamwork, collaboration, client relations, business development, and the like.” He presents research showing that legal clients especially value these skills in lawyers.

Can Nfl Players Obtain Judicial Review Of Arbitration Decisions On The Merits When A Typical Hourly Union Worker Cannot Obtain This Unusual Court Access?, Michael Z. Green, Kyle T. Carney

Faculty Scholarship

Several recent court cases, brought on behalf of National Football League (NFL) players by their union, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), have increased media and public attention to the challenges of labor arbitrator decisions in federal courts. The Supreme Court has established a body of federal common law that places a high premium on deferring to labor arbitrator decisions and counseling against judges deciding the merits of disputes covered by a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). A recent trend suggests federal judges have ignored this body of law and analyzed the merits of labor arbitration decisions in the NFL setting.

NFL …

Cultural Confusion — A Good Thing For Mediation?, Nadja Alexander

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Greg Bond’s recent post on mediation cultures reminded me of an encounter I had with a group of mediators several years ago. Allow me to share with you my recollection of what happened.I was conducting a workshop on international and intercultural approaches to mediation for 15 freshly-minted mediators from a European country — all participants were nationally accredited and had completed more than 350 hours of training and assessment. As part of the first day I played a DVD of a real mediation conducted by a people’s mediator in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. The dispute involved a wife who wanted …

Published Versions Of Tower Of Babel Symposium Articles, John M. Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post provides links to the articles in the Tower of Babel Symposium.

Dealing With Causes As Well As Symptoms Of Law Students’ And Lawyers’ Lack Of Well-Being, John Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post discusses the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being’s report, The Path to Lawyer Well-Being: Practical Recommendations for Positive Change. The report recommends that faculty “assess law school practices and offer faculty education on promoting well-being in the classroom.” It cites research suggesting that “potential culprits that undercut student well-being includ[e] hierarchical markers of worth such as comparative grading, mandatory curves, status-seeking placement practices, lack of clear and timely feedback, and teaching practices that are isolating and intimidating.” This post notes that legal practice is inherently stressful and recommends changing legal practice culture. Individual practitioners may reduce their …

Message For Students Interested In Adr, John Lande

Faculty Blogs

This post provides suggestions for things that law students interested in ADR might read and do.

Arbitration And Fine Dining: Two Faces Of Efficiency, William W. Park

Faculty Scholarship

A restaurant meal might turn into disappointment either when good food arrives late, or when prompt service delivers bad food. The chef cannot become preoccupied with any one aspect of fine dining to the exclusion of others. Likewise, arbitral proceedings implicate proportionality and balance among a multitude of factors which can make the experience good or bad. Several elements play key roles in evaluating any arbitration, namely: accuracy, fairness, cost, speed, and award enforceability. An inevitable tension exists among these goals. Decisions reached quickly and cheaply will do few favors if the award gets it wrong on the substantive merits. …

Soft Law And Transnational Standards In Arbitration: The Challenge Of Res Judicata, William W. Park

Faculty Scholarship

In international proceedings, a transnational “soft law” often finds expression in rules, guidelines and canons of professional associations which serve to supplement the “hard law” of national statutes and court decisions. Memorializing the experience of those who sit as arbitrators or serve as counsel, such standards contain a degree of circularity, in that relevant norms both derive from and apply to cross-border arbitration. Neither the nature nor the limits of “soft law” always present themselves with clarity. Often the litigants’ agreement fails to provide standards on controverted questions whose answers fall beyond common practice. In such instances, the integrity of …

Newsroom: Rwu Law Welcomes New Director Of Business Law Programs And The Corporate Counsel Externship Program July 19, 2017, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Life of the Law School (1993- )

New

Mlb Calendar 2017-2018, Edmund P. Edmonds

MLB Calendars

No abstract provided.

Comment On Us Trade And Investment Agreements Submitted To Ustr, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Comments to USTR Re: Review of US Trade and Investment Agreements (July 17, 2017): CCSI, in response to the United States Trade Representative’s request for public comment to inform its performance review of US trade and investment agreements, submitted Comments that focused on the impact that investment protection provisions, enforceable through investor-state dispute settlement, have on rights-compliant, inclusive sustainable development within the United States and abroad.

Legal Barriers To Supply Chain Connectivity In Asean, Locknie Hsu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This is an Interim Report published pursuant to a Tier 1 research grant from SMU, examining legal barriers to doing business in ASEAN countries. The Interim Report presents research material and findings on such barriers and a number of actionable preliminary recommendations for policy-makers to consider and utilise. The main areas of barriers examined are corporate, trade, investment, land use, dispute settlement and legal information barriers encountered in the region. The Final Report is expected to be published in March 2018.

Do You Believe In Magic?: Self-Determination And Procedural Justice Meet Inequality In Court-Connected Mediation, Nancy A. Welsh

Faculty Scholarship

Proponents of the “contemporary mediation movement” promised that parties would be able to exercise self-determination as they participated in mediation. When courts began to mandate the use of mediation, commentators raised doubts about the vitality of self-determination. Though these commentators also suggested a wide variety of reforms, few of their proposals have gained widespread adoption in the courts.

Ensuring the procedural justice of mediation represents another means to ensure self-determination. If mediation provides parties with the opportunity to exercise voice, helps them demonstrate that they have considered what each other had to say, and treats them in an even-handed and …

Congress And Commercial Trusts: Dealing With Diversity Jurisdiction Post-Americold, S. I. Strong

Faculty Publications

The treatment of commercial trusts reached its nadir in early 2016, when the U.S. Supreme Court held in Americold Realty Trust v. ConAgra Foods, Inc. that the citizenship of a commercial trust should be equated with that of its shareholder-beneficiaries for purposes of diversity jurisdiction. Unfortunately, the sheer number of shareholder-beneficiaries in most commercial trusts (often amounting to hundreds if not thousands of individuals) typically precludes the parties' ability to establish complete diversity and thus eliminates the possibility of federal jurisdiction over most commercial trust disputes. As a result, virtually all commercial trust disputes will now be heard in state …

Some Reflections On The Willem C Vis And Vis East International Commercial Arbitration Moots: Negotiating And Bridging The Civil-Common Divide, Siyuan Chen, Bethel Ruiyi Chan, Eden Yiling Li

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article draws from the co-authors’ personal experiences of competing in the Willem C. Vis and Vis East International Commercial Arbitration Moots and highlights the importance of awareness of diversity in legal traditions. The article focuses on points of divergence between the civil and common law jurisdictions in three main aspects: substantive law, procedural rules and advocacy techniques. Specifically, the article discusses the doctrine of good faith in the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, the group of companies doctrine, and the concept of discovery and disclosure in the International Bar Association Rules on the …

Reconsidering Prejudice In Alternative Dispute Resolution For Black Work Matters, Michael Z. Green

Faculty Scholarship

In the 1985 foundational article Fairness and Formality: Minimizing the Risk of Prejudice in Alternative Dispute Resolution, Richard Delgado and his co-authors identified major concerns with the growing use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to resolve disputes involving people of color. The seminal findings from that article highlighted the power differentials exacerbated by informal dispute resolution, and the article contributed immediately to a surge of robust critiques of the increasing use of alternative dispute resolution for those most vulnerable in our society.

More than thirty years after the Delgado article, a community of respected and prominent ADR and discrimination scholars, …