Practical Challenges for Mediators

  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…

I have in previous posts referred to the distinction between direct and indirect forms of communication. Mediators will certainly have encountered these forms of communication before. Without seeking…

It is the end of semester at the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore and I have just wrapped up the Mediation Workshop that I teach every year. This workshop is intended to equip senior…

 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…

There is a short period of time in any difficult mediation where the tension escalates and tough negotiation decisions have to be made. Some people call this a ‘do or die’ moment. Its like the last…

Mediation doesn't require special premises. It can be conducted in any type of place. There are Native Title mediations for Indigenous Australians that can happen at least in part on the land in…

The Kluwer Mediation Blog provides an excellent opportunity for all of us to learn more about the practice of mediation around the world. I’ve had the privilege of training mediators in a number of…

Picture a group of 30 trial lawyers in an almost empty room, loudly chanting, ‘Big Booty, Big Booty, Big Booty!’ Now imagine a pair of them trying to have a conversation without using the letter ‘S’…

[Author’s Note: Some of the ideas in this post are taken from Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s book “The Black Swan”. I highly recommend it. I have probably misunderstood and misrepresented some of what he…