For both sides of a mediation, 10 points to consider

Ten tips for litigators to succeed in mediation

By Dolan Media Newswires
Published: May 7, 2013
Tags: ADR

After observing parties succeed and fail in hundreds of mediations, I’ve come up with a top 10 list of tips for litigators to have a successful mediation. 1. Select the appropriate mediator. Mediators vary in approach and style. Some use the facilitative model while others are more evaluative. One mediator may prefer to keep the [...]

Workers’ comp commission goes small for mediation

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: April 1, 2013
Tags: ADR

The Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission is renewing its push for alternate dispute resolution of injured workers’ claims. The agency has long touted the benefits of ADR for claimants and carriers by outlining agency mediation services on its website and promoting alternate dispute resolution through its communications with parties. In recent months, the commission has stepped [...]

Mediation safety in spotlight after Arizona shooting

By Peter Vieth
Published: March 4, 2013
Tags: ADR

A settlement conference aimed at ending a court conflict unexpectedly turned into a scene of death in Phoenix in late January. The bloody outcome of that meeting has prompted many alternative dispute resolution professionals to take a second look at safety procedures. As details become available about the Phoenix incident, it appears there were few [...]

Online arbitration tool launched by the AAA

By Correy E. Stephenson
Published: February 4, 2013
Tags: ADR

The American Arbitration Association has announced the launch of what it calls the first online arbitration and mediation tool, known as ClauseBuilder. The tool – which can be found at www.clausebuilder.org – provides parties with the AAA’s standard arbitration agreement. It then offers options if parties want to customize specific clauses like the number of [...]

Bill strengthens family mediator confidentiality

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: February 4, 2013
Tags: ADR, Domestic Relations, General Assembly

Family law mediators’ right to keep certain information confidential will be enhanced under a bill passed by the Virginia House of Delegates and awaiting action in a Senate courts committee. House Bill 1795, which passed the full House on Jan. 22, eliminates two provisions that require disclosure of financial information obtained to complete a child [...]

Compelled mediation: Showing your good faith

By Dolan Media Newswires
Published: January 7, 2013
Tags: ADR

Driven by crowded dockets, a desire to avoid having to resolve difficult cases, or a desire to protect perceived vulnerable populations from likely adverse outcomes in courts of law, statutes, rules, court orders and judicial decisions that force disputing parties into mediation have caught hold. The Alternative Dispute Resolution Act of 1998, 28 U.S.C. § [...]

Shaping a ‘mediation’: It’s not in the name

By Dolan Media Newswires
Published: December 3, 2012
Tags: ADR

It is fair to say there are about as many ways for counsel to use a third party to assist their settlement negotiation as there are creative and determined counsel, parties and neutrals. And, fair to say, lawyers are apt to refer to many of these as “mediation.” So here are some observations as a [...]

Baseball arbitration: It isn’t just for baseball

By Deborah Elkins
Published: November 5, 2012
Tags: ADR

In 1966, Marvin Miller, a labor economist with various unions, became the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, serving in the position until 1982. No less an authority than Red Barber has said that Miller, along with Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson, are among the “two or three most important men in [...]

The VLW 2012 ADR Survey

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: August 27, 2012
Tags: ADR

Virginia Lawyers Weekly is pleased to provide the results of the VLW 2012 Alternative Dispute Resolution Survey. This project provides information about ADR providers across Virginia. For a fee, participants had the opportunity to provide basic information about their ADR businesses or practices. And for an additional fee, some providers opted to take an enhanced [...]