1 PerspectiveDecember 5, 2008

Get to the Point, and Get It Across, with a Mediation Mind Map

A sample Mediation Mind Map, available in .pdf format here.

You’ve been there before. You’ve done your homework to prepare for the mediation, ready to engage over the issues in the case. A trial bag filled with critical notes, important documents, and detailed spreadsheets sits within arm’s reach. But the other side speaks first, and offers something insightful like: “My client’s Widgetmaster doesn’t work; since you made it, you owe us money.” Now it’s your turn.

Sometimes it takes a little more effort to untell a story than to tell it. In most disputes negotiation success depends on a command of the details, and in your next mediation the outcome may hinge on your mediator’s ability to remember those details on the fly. Do you have a way to get them across to your mediator before she meets alone with the other side? More…

Categories: Communication,Mediation,Miscellaneous

1 PerspectiveNovember 16, 2008

The National Arbitration Forum Blog: A Great Resource Turns Four

In September I wrote Come on In, the Water’s Fine to mark the end of this site’s first month in the blogosphere. While Settlement Perspectives’ 30-day anniversary was hardly the time for a memoir, it still felt like a milestone. But on Friday I ran across The National Arbitration Forum Blog’s most recent post: Celebrate the National Arbitration Forum Blog’s 4th Birthday. Four years of great content. I am truly impressed.

The Forum’s Fourth Birthday Post lists “some of the most talked about posts of the last year,” and it links to some good ones.  I’ll say “Happy Birthday” by doing a bit of the same from my own perspective — the following are a few of my favorite posts from the past four years at The National Arbitration Forum Blog, in no particular order: More…

Categories: Arbitration,Blogging,Education,Fundamentals,Mediation,Miscellaneous

3 PerspectivesNovember 11, 2008

Better Docket Management Through Early Case Assessments: ECAs Part V

Early Case Assessments drive better settlements — we discussed why in Part IV, but we haven’t talked about whether an Early Case Assessment is a good idea if you don’t plan to settle. If yours is the lawsuit sure to go to trial, does an ECA still make sense? I think you know the answer.

It takes time, effort and money to make your way through the Early Case Assessment Checklist, but Early Case Assessments mean better case management — and more responsible docket management — even if your case goes the distance. This post will highlight how you’ll save money, and ultimately get better results overall, with Early Case Assessments whether you settle or not. More…

Categories: ECA,Miscellaneous

1 PerspectiveNovember 7, 2008

Better Settlements From Better Information: Early Case Assessments IV

“You can pay them, or you can pay me.  But don’t pay us both.”  My friend Robert Manley told me that as we sent him a new lawsuit a few years ago, and his quote sums up one of Early Case Assessments’ biggest benefits.  As we have discussed before, getting your ECA done — gathering the information required by the Early Case Assessment Checklist discussed in Part II and Part III of this series — requires an up-front investment.  This post will tell you why, if you plan to settle your case, a thorough Early Case Assessment will be worth that investment.

More…

Categories: ECA,Miscellaneous,Negotiation,Settlement,Strategy,Tactics