Charlie Irvine

Professions (and hence professionals) are both blessed and cursed with high expectations. The upside is clear: the public expects high standards, expertise and care, and in return is prepared to pay…

  I find myself writing this blog from South Africa, at the annual conference of the International Association of Conflict Management - http://www.iacm-conflict.org/. It is a fantastic melting pot…

This week the 5th World Summit on Elder Mediation is taking place in Glasgow: see http://www.eldermediation.ca/styled-2/index.html. It is an inspiring gathering, bringing together mediators from…

Scotland is a practical nation. The list of its inventions includes penicillin, anaesthetics, steam engines, tarmac roads and even the decimal point (see http://www.magicdragon.com/Wallace/thingscot…

 I was recently given an extraordinary birthday present: a day at the Nick Nairn Cook School (www.nicknairncookschool.com). Nick Nairn is one of Scotland's most famous celebrity chefs, known for his…

It is not uncommon to hear lawyers speak warmly of mediation in general, but when asked if they would recommend it for a particular case respond that they could not see it working. Related to this,…

I was pleased to read that this year's ICC Competition went so well. Having hosted the UK Law Student Mediation Competition in Glasgow in November I was first-hand witness to the wholehearted,…

Like many of us I am constantly torn between simplicity and complexity. The world is complex: that's a given. But a beautiful morning or a lover's kiss is simplicity itself, and it's a fool who…

This blog is inspired by a page from Monty Python's 'Big Red Book' entitled 'Why Accountancy is Not Boring.' (Apologies to those who have not come across the Pythons' rather English form of humour -…