I’ve been thinking about condominiums.  Or more precisely, about the people in condominiums.

What is a condominium anyway?  Or more precisely, who is a condominium?  What is this human system, this group of people? (more…)

We all know that people have different ways of looking at the world. But especially when we are in conflict with another person, it’s hard to remember that they might actually think differently.

(more…)

“Soft.”  Warm & Fuzzy.  Nice.  Even “nicey-nice.”  Respectful. Gushy & Squishy.

Isn’t this how many of us in dispute resolution and mediation describe our work?  Isn’t it how many skeptics describe it?

Yet is this real?  Is this the way it is? Language forms our thinking, and this language is amorphous, disassociative, ephemeral.  Is this how we view our work?  How others see it?  How our clients see it?

What if we used different language? (more…)

Here’s a great post from Daniella Schilling on how — and why — to consult with an attorney in mediation.  Her practice and context is divorce, but her good advice applies to any mediation.

[Here’s a revision of a pre-hack blogpost. And now it has a pic! JB.]

As a mediator, there’s a lot of powerful symbolism in just holding the Beer Summit.  It shows that talking about our differences has value.

The press was not allowed in for more than a few seconds to take some pics and see that it was actually happening.  But even that little bit allowed us to see that there’s more to be learned there.  Take a look: (more…)

For those who thought that conflict resolution was for a few iconoclastic individuals, take note.

Economic turmoil, technological advances are gathering to create A Perfect Storm that “will force lawyers to change their attitude and perspective.”  Gone are the days of blank-check litigation.  ““Resolvers” will replace “litigators.”

Who’s saying these things?  The authors are in-house legal counsel for twelve multinational corporations.

Lawyers: ride out the storm by providing a new service for your clients. Get a new dispute resolution tool for your lawyer’s toolkit to go with your litigation hammer. Your clients are moving beyond litigation and beyond the courthouse – can you keep up with them?