RESOURCES

What are the essential skills of a junior lawyer using AI in mediation

Imagine finding yourself in conflict with someone else. You want the issue resolved, but you also want an outcome that feels fair—one you can live with, explain to others, and look back on with confidence. In an ideal world, deciding whether to accept or reject a settlement offer would be simple. But what should your reference point be when making that decision? In their influential book Getting to Yes , Roger Fisher and William Ury of the Harvard Program on Negotiation defin

'The man who says he is willing to meet you halfway is usually a poor judge of distance.' Author Unknown Although a mediation is very much "the client's day", an representative with experience of the mediation process can be an important asset in helping the client to achieve a satisfactory and acceptable settlement. A basic understanding of essential negotiating techniques and terminologies, such as "anchoring", understanding "BATNAs", "WOTNAs" and "ZOPA" and the framing off

Mediation training can help organisations to save money. Understanding why mediation works leads to a different way of approaching negotiations. Anyone involved in negotiations can benefit from this enhanced negotiation training. For those in business including in house lawyers Mediation has developed as a process to resolve conflict, but techniques such as encouraging parties to look to the future rather than raking over the past are particularly appropriate in many other co

'A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.' Winston Churchill "I would like to appoint a mediator" Has the court ordered you to resolve your dispute by mediation? Are you keen to explore the use of mediation before going to court? Has the other party to the dispute asked you to go to mediation? Do you have a workplace dispute that is causing disruption, where mediation would help? Do you have a conflict situation in wh

Can I use mediation to resolve conflict in a Family Business? Mediation is a particularly good approach for resolving Family Business Disputes because they have a number of distinctive features in addition to a legal dispute. For example, There is usually a breakdown in at least one key relationship; There is often a long family history leading to the conflict; There can be high emotion, and perceptions of inequality; There is a tension between family loyalty and the commerci

'Conflict grows out of ignorance and suspicion.' Gordon B. Hinckley Are you an HR Manager struggling to find effective ways to address conflict within the workplace? Do you worry that you in-house trained mediators do not have enough relevant experience to deal with the dispute in your workplace? Are you having difficult finding someone independent to carry a workplace mediation? Are you looking to introduce mediation into the workplace, so as to reduce the stress and conflic

The recent case of Abberley-v-Abberley [2019] EWHC 1564 (Ch) illustrates the importance of taking care when the parties are drawing up the terms of a mediation settlement agreement at the conclusion of a mediation. The document entitled “Heads of Terms” was found to be binding on the parties in relation to a dispute involving a family farming partnership. Mediation Settlement Agreement The situation will be a familiar one for litigation lawyers who have been involved in m

The scope for disputes arising following the death of a family member is much wider now than in the past for a number of reasons. In particular Marriage is less common than previously; Where marriage has taken place, families are more complex, involving children from different relationships; Substantial increase in the value of the family home; An increase in wealth. Amongst other things, the disputes can involve challenging the authenticity or validity of a will, the lack o