Dispute Resolution and Arbitration Commons^™

Identifying Real Dichotomies Underlying The False Dichotomy: Twenty-First Century Mediation In An Eclectic Regime, Jeffrey W. Stempel

Scholarly Works

Some people (lawyers, scholars, judges, dispute resolvers, policymakers) are more concerned about fidelity to procedural protocols while others are more concerned with the substantive rules governing disputes and substantive outcomes. Those in the dispute resolution community preferring facilitation tend to be proceduralists. For them, the observance of proper procedure is a high goal, perhaps the dominant goal. They reason, often implicitly, that adherence to the rules of procedure is the essence of neutrality, fairness, and the proper role of a dispute resolving apparatus. At some level, usually subconscious, there is a post-modern philosophical aspect of this preference. Because humans cannot …

The Inevitability Of The Eclectic: Liberating Adr From Ideology, Jeffrey W. Stempel

Scholarly Works

The problem with viewing facilitation as the only legitimate form of mediation, of course, is that it borders on tautology: mediation is nonevaluative, therefore any evaluation in mediation must be impermissible. Although this view remains strongly held in many quarters, it appears to be in retreat, both within the mediation community and in the legal community at large. Courts and commentators have shown increasing favor toward some evaluative or advising component of mediation. More important, the eclectic style appears to be what takes place in the metaphorical trenches of mediation practice (although sound empirical data is necessarily hard to obtain …

Is Binding Arbitration A Form Of Adr?: An Argument That The Term "Adr" Has Begun To Outlive Its Usefulness, Jean R. Sternlight

Scholarly Works

Professor Frank Sander has, for many years, been one of the most prescient commentators on the alternative dispute resolution ("ADR") movement. His 1976 Pound Conference speech has been identified by many as marking the birth of the modern ADR phenomena. That speech, which compared some of the pros and cons of litigation and an array of other dispute resolution processes, has been summarized as proposing the concept of the "multi-door courthouse." In contrast, Professor Sander's more recent and very interesting review of the present and future of ADR makes little attempt to distinguish between mediation and binding arbitration, the two …

Understanding Conflict And Human Capacity: The Role Of Premises In Mediation Training, Robert A. Baruch Bush, Sally G. Pope

Hofstra Law Faculty Scholarship

In this article, the authors, point out that underlying mediator practices and techniques, there are deeper premises and values that guide and shape practice. The authors argue that mediation training should include articulation and explanation of the premises that underlie the transformative orientation to mediation practice and give examples of how these premises can be conveyed within an overall training design, and how doing so enriches the teaching of skills and techniques themselves.

Variations In Mediation: How - And Why - Legal Mediators Change Styles In The Course Of A Case, Dwight Golann

Journal of Dispute Resolution

I will seek to show in this article that professional legal mediators in fact use a variety of styles, and that they change their approach constantly during a single mediation, even within a single meeting with a disputant. I will argue that these stylistic changes are the norm rather than the exception in the mediation of civil legal disputes and that the use of evaluative techniques is also frequent, even among those mediators who favor a broad, facilitative approach. Finally, I will describe the contrasting styles that the filmed mediators used in the same dispute and argue that these variations …

Concern Over Confidentiality In Mediation - An In-Depth Look At The Protection Provided By The Proposed Uniform Mediation Act, The, Mindy D. Rufenacht

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This Comment will investigate the historical problems with confidentiality in mediation and evaluate the Proposed Uniform Mediation Act's (hereinafter "U.M.A." or "Act") approaches to remedying confidentiality issues. The reader should carefully note that the Uniform Mediation Act is in an on-going drafting phase at this time, and the content of the Act's drafts discussed herein are not final and are for discussion purposes only. This Comment's discussion will cover confidentiality in disclosure with respect to parties, waiver, and a mediator's duty of non-disclosure. This Comment will also compare the mechanisms the U.M.A. has put in place to govern confidentiality to …

Promoting The Best Interests Of Children Whose Parents Are Divorcing: The Next Steps For Arkansas, Kenneth S. Gallant

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Court Issues Major Ruling On Mediation Confidentiality, Richard C. Reuben

Faculty Publications

A prominent federal court judge has issued an important ruling on mediation confidentiality, one that promises to influence both doctrinal and legislative development.

The case is Olan v Congress Mortgage Co., 1999 WL 909731 (N.D.Cal.), and in it, federal Magistrate Judge Wayne Brazil ultimately compels testimony by a California mediator, despite California's categorical exclusion of evidence arising from mediations. The lengthy opinion is most scholarly, and well worth taking the time to read.

Mediation In The New Mexico Court Of Appeals, Richard Becker

The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process

A mediator gives a summary of the implementation of, procedure relating to, and role of lawyers in the New Mexico Court of Appeals’s mediation program.

Better Late Than Never: Settlement At The Federal Court Of Appeals, Mori Irvine

The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process

The Civil Justice Reform Act of 1990 encouraged all federal district courts to implement alternative dispute resolution programs. Federal Courts of Appeals implemented alternative dispute resolution programs as early as 1974. This article surveys federal alternative dispute resolution programsthen takes an in-depth look at the Eleventh Circuit’s program. The article provides advice for appellate advocacy during mediation.

On Teaching Mediation, Edwin H. Greenebaum

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In this article, I will delineate the issues and explore the implications of resolving them in different ways. Part I develops a taxonomy of variations in models of mediation. In Part II, I analyze choices and constraints in course design. In Part III, I specify the choices I have made in structuring my own course in mediation. I will relate those choices to the context of my school, to my students' backgrounds and interests, and to my competencies and goals. The initial version of this paper was written for my students to read as they entered my course. Pedagogically, the …

Use Of Mediation In Employment Discrimination Cases, The, Matt A. Mayer

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This Article will address the issues noted above. Part II discusses the realities for employers and employees created by the increased filing of employment discrimination claims. Part III encapsulates the procedural movement of a claim through the EEOC. Part IV summarizes the mediation process and notes why mediation is one of the methods used to deal with these claims. Part V highlights the pros and cons associated with the mediation of employment discrimination claims. Part VI discusses the inherent tensions between the goals of mediation and the goals of the anti-discrimination laws, as well as the inherent tensions that naturally …

Federal Court Positively Adopts A Federal Common Law Testimonial Privilege For Mediation: Is It Justified - Folb V. Motion Picture Industry Pension & (And) Health Plans, Ryan D. O'Dell

Journal of Dispute Resolution

Mediation is a popular means of alternative dispute resolution that has proliferated in recent years. Virtually every state has adopted some form of testimonial privilege to protect the confidentiality of private parties participating in mediation. The federal courts, however, have never adopted a mediation privilege protecting the confidentiality of mediation between private parties in federal court. Federal courts have relied on other evidentiary, procedural and contractual protections to ensure that communications articulated during mediation will not be used for purposes outside mediation proceedings. Finding these protections inadequate to insulate parties in private mediation proceedings from third party discovery, the United …

Within The Civil Law Tradition, Nadja Alexander

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

A review of the international literature on ADR reveals a wide spectrum of dispute resolution processes practised throughout the world. It also demonstrates significant differences among different countries’ application of ADR procedures; for example, mediation.

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 …

On Teaching Mediation, Edwin H. Greenebaum

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Lawyers' Representation Of Clients In Mediation: Using Economics And Psychology To Structure Advocacy In A Non-Adversarial Setting, Jean R. Sternlight

Scholarly Works

Many believe that lawyers' adversarial methods and mindsets are inherently inconsistent with mediation. Lawyers' emphasis on advocacy and winning is seen as ill-suited to mediation's nonadversarial, problem-solving approach to dispute resolution. Yet, as mediation grows increasingly common, lawyers are frequently accompanying their clients to mediation and often play a critical and direct part in the process. Particularly where disputes are complex or involve relatively large sums of money, it is likely that one or both disputants will be represented by an attorney at the mediation. This Article argues that attorneys need not and ought not to abandon their advocacy or …

Fundamental Misconceptions About Mediation Advocacy, Richard M. Markus

Cleveland State Law Review

This article discusses the need for mediation courses in law school. It begins by describing the initial resistance to implementing trial advocacy courses, and how that area eventually grew into its current prolific state. The article then moves to the need for more mediation courses, as well as why mediation should be used more frequently in dispute resolution generally. Next, the author discusses and corrects the primary misconceptions about litigation mediation, including: 1) mediation advocacy is much like trial advocacy, 2) all mediations are substantially the same, 3) mediations are desirable whenever they occur in the resolution process, 4) mediation …

Evaluating Bankruptcy Mediation, William J. Woodward Jr.

Journal of Dispute Resolution

This Article aims to do several things. First, it will briefly describe a court sponsored mediation program developed several years ago by the court and bankruptcy bar in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The program depended on trained mediators who did their work on court-selected bankruptcy matters on a pro bono basis. Partly because of its "cost-free" nature, the program created a need for periodic evaluation to ensure the court and bar that it was delivering positive results without inflicting undesirable hidden costs on the participants or the local bankruptcy system as a whole.6

Defending The Weak And Fighting Unfairness: Can Mediators Respond To The Challenge?, Michael Coyle

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

As mediation gains in popularity as a tool for resolving civil disputes, and particularly as a substitute for court decisions, some have questioned mediation's ability to assure fairness of process and outcome. Others have argued that the main strength of mediation lies in the power it gives the parties to invent their own approach to resolving their dispute, leaving little room for mediators to impose their own notions of fairness on the process. This article examines the extent to which mediators have an obligation to address issues of fairness in the processes they manage. Through a functional and context-based analysis …

Protecting The Confidentiality Of Communications In Mediation, Owen V. Gray

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article explores the justifications for protecting mediation communications from disclosure. It reviews the existing legal protections for mediated dispute settlement discussions. The major issues that seem to arise when statutory reform is considered are identified, and a recent study of the issue by the Manitoba Law Reform Commission is described and critiqued. The author argues that a distinction should be made between circumstances in which a party is required or permitted to testify about what took place in mediation, and circumstances in which the mediator may be required to do so. He suggests that mere extension to mediation of …

Unwilling Actors: Why Voluntary Mediation Works, Why Mandatory Mediation Might Not, Gary Smith

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article examines the debate over the introduction of mandatory mediation in civil litigation. It analyzes why and how voluntary mediation works in order to measure how the process might change under the new regime being implemented in Ontario. The underlying narrative structures of mediation are exposed using semiotic theories commonly employed in the study of theatre. This article will show that mediation, when imposed on unwilling parties, will hinder its efficacy and compromise its theatrical processes. The author concludes that the best way to ensure that making mediation mandatory does not discredit the efficacy and benefits of the process …

A "Party Satisfaction" Perspective On A Comprehensive Mediation Statute, Chris Guthrie, James Levine

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

During the past fifteen years, the alternative dispute resolution movement has greatly altered the legal landscape. Courts, legislatures and administrative agencies have enacted more than 2000 laws dealing with mediation and other dispute resolution processes. The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) and the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution have recently formed a unique partnership to assess whether a model or uniform mediation statute might remedy some of the problems caused by the current patchwork of often confusing and conflicting mediation laws. The task of drafting a comprehensive mediation statute poses many challenges. The drafters …

Choppy Waters, Richard C. Reuben, Nancy H. Rogers

Faculty Publications

The movement toward a uniform standard for confidentiality in mediation among the states is one that from the outset casts off into choppy waters, marked by pitching cross-currents of remarkable force.

Confidentiality In Mediation, Jaime Alison Lee, Carl Giesler

All Faculty Scholarship

As mediation has become a more widely practiced method of dispute resolution, many jurisdictions have enacted rules forbidding participants to divulge information discussed during the mediation. Two recent cases, Paranzino v. Barnett Bank and Bernard v. Galen Group, are among the first to deal with the enforcement of such rules by judicial sanction. In both cases, participants in judicially required mediations were severely sanctioned for breaching confidentiality in violation of mediation rules and/or court orders.

A "Party Satisfaction" Perspective On A Comprehensive Mediation Statute, James Levin, Chris Guthrie

Faculty Publications

Mediation Statute, 13 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 885 (1998)

During the past fifteen years, the alternative dispute resolution movement has greatly altered the legal landscape. Courts, legislatures and administrative agencies have enacted more than 2000 laws dealing with mediation and other dispute resolution processes. The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) and the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution have recently formed a unique partnership to assess whether a model or uniform mediation statute might remedy some of the problems caused by the current patchwork of often confusing and conflicting mediation laws. The task …

Civil Justice Reform Symposium: Introduction, James F. Hogg

Faculty Scholarship

Many people in the United States are not happy about the way in which litigation proceeds. In a country sometimes thought to be overpopulated with lawyers, either one party or both parties in a significant percentage of civil cases apparently cannot afford, or decline to retain, legal counsel. Financing for legal aid seems to be less than adequate, pro bono services are helping to some extent, but the administration of civil justice is in danger of sinking in the swamp of pro se ("do-it-yourself') litigation. The articles in this symposium discuss ideas for reform, such as introductory resources directed at …

Time To Try Mediation Of International Commercial Disputes, Harold Abramson

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Informed Consent In Mediation: A Guiding Principle For Truly Educated Decisionmaking , Jacqueline Nolan-Haley

Faculty Scholarship

Informed consent has a central role to play in mediation. Without it, mediation's promises of autonomy and self-determination are empty. This Article has given the theoretical and policy justifications for a reform of mediation practice that honors the principle of informed consent. I have argued for a contextualized approach that takes into account mediation's location, the voluntariness of the parties' consent, and their representational status. This kind of analysis will lead to a more informed practice of mediation decisionmaking than exists currently and provide a perspective that can more prudently guide a mediator's conduct. The proposed approach promotes greater fairness …

Mediation In Kentucky: Where Do We Go From Here?, Vanessa Mitchell

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.