6 PerspectivesDecember 31, 2009

A Simple Thank You

Yesterday I got to spend a little time with Michael Maslanka, whose Blawg 100-listed Work Matters site many of you might know.  As Mike and I shared ideas and perspectives on Web 2.0, blogging in general, and the true sense of community that drives it all, I reflected a bit on 2009 and the people and personalities that make Settlement Perspectives what it is.

While that first post of 2009 seems like only yesterday, a lot has happened since then.  Through it all many of you have subscribed to, commented on and forwarded the posts you have seen here, and for that I cannot thank you enough.

In addition to the active readership we have at Settlement Perspectives, several prominent bloggers and publications have linked to our posts.  Following up on a great idea I saw earlier this week on the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum, I take this opportunity to highlight many of those blogs and publications as a way to say “thank you”.

Decision Tree Analysis And More

Early in the year we did a series on decision trees and how to use them more effectively in mediation and litigation.  The series generated some interesting discussions, including:

• The National Law Journal’s “Corporate Warfare Has to Make Business Sense These Days”, written by Michael Cavendish — a business litigator who knows what questions to ask and who understands where the practice of law is headed;
• Litigation Accounting for In-House Counsel at the IP ADR Blog, now Commercial ADR – Commercial Solutions to Justice Problems, which is a new initiative from talented trainer and mediator Victoria Pynchon;
• Diane Levin’s post A round-up of must-read articles for professional mediators, which highlighted Decision Tree Analysis in Litigation:  The Basics at her ever-insightful Mediation Channel blog;
• The Strategic Mediator’s article Mediation Preparation – Don’t Forget Your Decision Tree, which focused on Settlement Perspectives’ two-part interview with Marc B. Victor, who pioneered the application of Decision Tree Analysis to litigation in the 1970s; and
• Strategic Legal Technology’s The Inhouse Perspective on Litigation Risk Analysis and Decision Trees, which also highlighted our discussion of mediation mind maps.

Early Case Assessment

ECAs are always a popular topic, and this year was no exception.  Notable discussions included:

• Clearwell Systems’ article How to Reduce Electronic Discovery Costs Part III:  Early Case Assessment, which underscores the point that “early case assessment is a different approach to litigation”;
• Settle It Now’s article Best Early Case Assessment Practices;
• Don Philbin’s new ADR Highlight Reel, which recently linked to our latest post on the ECA Toolkit; and
• John Lassey’s interesting post on Impasse at Mediation Stuff.

Blogging and Web 2.0

I may be a bit behind the curve on Web 2.0, but it’s clear we’re all learning together.  The conversation has recently included:

• InsideCounsel’s “Using Web 2.0 to Advance Your Career”, which we followed up with In-House Legal Blogs, Social Media and Web 2.0:  Can They Advance Your Career?;
• Settle It Now’s Developing Your Business Without Spending a Dime — which includes marketing tips from one of the best in the business;
• Diane Levin’s Recommended reading:  24 alternative dispute resolution blogs to follow, which kindly listed Settlement Perspectives among some great ADR blogs out there, as well as Only Connect:  The Impact of Blogging on ADR in the ABA’s Dispute Resolution Magazine and Diane’s World Directory of ADR Blogs, which is a longstanding public service to the ADR community;
• The Strategic Mediator’s Blogging – Have You Gone There Yet? by Sandra Upchurch, whose “soccer mom” post on competing perspectives highlights how everyday lessons can be used effectively in mediation; and
• Strong Connections, a post on the Settlement Perspectives Newsletter by my friends at Unit Interactive.

Insurance Coverage

Late in the year we joined the discussion on insurance coverage from the policyholder’s perspective.  Follow-up included:

• Stephen Goldberg’s impressive Catastrophic Insruance Coverage Blog and “Common Sense Sometimes Wins the Day”;
• Victoria Pynchon’s  Commercial ADR – Commercial Solutions to Justice Problems, which cited Insurance Coverage: 4 Rules and 10 Tips for Policyholders in her post An insurance coverage negotiation case story; and
• Philip J. Loree, Jr.’s recent post Some Helpful Rules and Tips for Policyholders and Cedents Courtesy of Settlement Perspectives at Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum.

Other Topics and Sites

• Our friends at Mediate.com continue to list and promote Settlement Perspectives on their Featured Blogs Page — with an area dedicated to our posts here;
• Jeffrey Krivis and Mariam Zadeh at First Mediation did a great post on The Confidential Listener Technique, which expanded on the blind bidding enhancement concept we discussed early in the year;
• Christopher Annunziata at CKA Mediation & Arbitration wrote Exchange Your Bottom Line Blindly? in an effort to further explore the blind bidding enhancement concept;
• Settle It Now furthered the conversation about mediator’s proposals in Mediator’s Proposals:  the Good, the Bad and the Ugly;
• Legal OnRamp continues to feature Settlement Perspectives and other legal blogs;
• Keith Jones’ article The “Judicial Hellhole” Label and Managing Expectations at Mediating Certainty elaborated on managing expectations in an important context;
• Our friends at the Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group on LinkedIn, and
• Philip J. Loree, Jr.’s post with the great idea for this one — Acknowledging Some Kind Mentions from Our Fellow Bloggers — deserves a second mention.

As 2009 comes to an end, I will close as we began.  Thank you, and Happy New Year.

Categories: Blogging,Negotiation

I welcome comments on this or any post. Please feel free to comment in the “Add Your Own Perspective” area below, whether you use your actual name or pseudonym. If you don’t feel comfortable commenting directly on this site, I can easily be reached by email at jd@johndegroote.com.