Category Archives: Mediation

Peacemaking: The fulfillment of the legal profession

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. – Matthew 5:9 Earlier this week my daily meditation focused on this Bible verse, spoken by Jesus as part of the Sermon on the Mount. The meditation narrative was a dialogue between the meditation author and his lawyer friend about the basic legal standard we learned in law …

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Thinking about using mediation to resolve your employment dispute without going through litigation first?

Recently I got a call from a small business employer. He knew I was an employment lawyer and that I represent small, closely-held or family businesses and that I was also a mediator handling all kinds of business, workplace or community disputes. He had received a letter from a lawyer representing one of his employees alleging sexual harassment in the …

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Is an adversarial process our best and highest good? The case for early mediation

Disputes are a part of life.  On all levels, in most relationships, we disagree about things. Disputes come up between spouses, siblings, parents & children, business partners, political parties/views, employers & employees, economic classes, races, genders, age groups, ethnic groups, religious denominations, and on and on.  Unless we are mindless clones or in a controlled society, conflict is normal and …

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Massachusetts Bar Association’s Conflict Resolution Week & Day Celebration October 16-20

An annual national tradition in the legal community is the celebration of “Conflict Resolution Week” (CRW) and “Conflict Resolution Day” (CRD) on the third week and the third Thursday of October respectively.  This tradition reportedly started here in New England by the New England Association for Conflict Resolution (NE-ACR).  It is a week and a day to shine a spotlight …

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Posted in Collaborative Law, Collaborative Mediation, conflict, Creative Solutions, Dispute Resolution Advocacy, Dispute Resolution Resources, Efficient dispute resolution, Massachusetts Bar Association (MBA), Mediation, Preserving Relationships, Respect and civility, Settlement Counsel | Comments Off

Situational Dispute Resolution is focus of Armenian Business Network Presentation

What do Bill Belichick’s coaching approach, grapevines and dispute resolution have in common?  They were all tied together in a creative and engaging way by employment lawyer and mediator Michael Zeytoonian, in his September 13 presentation to the Armenian Business Network (ABN).  Zeytoonian was the guest speaker for the organization’s program and meeting at Abbey Lane restaurant in Boston, and …

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Posted in ABN Armenian Business Network, communication, Community, Creative Solutions, Dispute Resolution Advocacy, Dispute Resolution Process, Efficient dispute resolution, Mediation, News-Articles, Preserving Relationships, Respect and civility, trust | Comments Off

The Case for Early Mediation; Part II of II

In our last blog post, the first in this two-part post about the case for early mediation, we discussed traditional, post-discovery mediation and its role as essentially an alternative to trial.  In this post, we look at the kind of mediation we are proponents of – early mediation (we call ours “3-D Mediation”) – used either as an alternative to …

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Posted in Audio, Case Evaluation, Collaborative Law, Collaborative Mediation, Collaborative Processes, conflict, Conflict partnering process, Creative Solutions, Cutting litigation costs, Dispute Resolution Advocacy, Dispute Resolution Process, Dispute Resolution Resources, Efficient dispute resolution, Mediation, Preserving Relationships, Primary Dispute Resolution (PDR), resolution, Respect and civility, Saving money in tough times | Comments Off

The Case for Early Mediation; Part I of II

Before We Talk About Mediation and the Value of Early Mediation, Let’s Start with Two Key Questions to Ask Yourself About Your Dispute: How quickly do you want to get your dispute resolved? Is most of the relevant information needed to resolve your dispute the kind that is (a) freely available or ascertainable and (b) are the parties willing and …

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Posted in Audio, Case Evaluation, Collaborative Law, Collaborative Mediation, Collaborative Processes, conflict, Conflict partnering process, Creative Solutions, Cutting litigation costs, Dispute Resolution Advocacy, Dispute Resolution Process, Dispute Resolution Resources, Efficient dispute resolution, Mediation, Preserving Relationships, Primary Dispute Resolution (PDR), resolution, Respect and civility, Saving money in tough times | Comments Off

Resolving a Dispute is like Traveling…

Resolving a Dispute is Like Traveling, Writing a Business Plan, or Choosing a Course of Medical Treatment: If you take the wrong road, you won’t get the result you want. My friend Liz Ferris, a marketing consultant who works with lawyers around the world, has often given us this simple but often overlooked advice: “If you want to achieve your …

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Posted in Arbitration, Case Evaluation, Choose Best Course, Collaborative Law, Collaborative Mediation, Collaborative Processes, Course of Action, Dispute Resolution Process, Dispute Resolution Resources, Efficient dispute resolution, litigation, Mediation, Primary Dispute Resolution (PDR), resolution, Resolve Conflict, Steps to Resolution | Comments Off

Active exchange on mediation and ADR at Suffolk Law School

Three experienced ADR practitioners recently joined Suffolk University School of Law Professor Ericka Gray for panel presentation on mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) attended by second and third year Suffolk Law students.  The program is part of a series of presentations offered to the area law schools by the MBA’s ADR Committee. Christine Yurgelun, Jeffrey Stern …

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Some food for thought over Labor Day weekend

Can you respond rationally to your dispute instead of emotionally? Fact: Over 95% of the cases filed in courts end up settling and never go to trial. If you know there is an overwhelming likelihood that your case will settle through negotiations or mediation – doesn’t it make sense to use a process designed to reach a settlement in a …

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Posted in deflategate, elephant, Family Law and Divorce, Financial Considerations of Dispute Resolution, labor day, Mediation, settling | Comments Off