Giuseppe de Palo and I first met in 1999 or 2000, when I was bowled over the first time I learned about his work with The ADR Center in Rome. Since that time, every occasion I meet Giuseppe I am reminded what a powerhouse of talent, ambition, energy and aspiration he is. Both his intellect and his physical energy make having a cup of coffee like saying hi to a tornado. His recent e-mail proves no exception. Read more »
Even those who find American baseball deadly dull will acknowledge the grip the sport has had on the American imagination. Its impact on the American language alone is beyond cavil, and students of the sport have been moved to profound philosophical observations. Now it has contributed to our understanding of conflict management.
“Baseball is like church,” said Dodger manager Leo “the Lip” Durocher, “many attend, few understand.” “It ain’t over ’til it’s over,” Yogi Berra is alleged to have said, along with smackers that capture the core truth of the entertainment industry: ”If people don’t want to come to a ball game, you can’t stop ‘em” and “That restaurant is so crowded nobody goes there any more.” Read more »
A recent article has been making the rounds of ADR professionals. The current issue of the American Psychological Association’s publication Psychology, Public Policy and Law (Vol. 16, No. 2, at 133-57) features a report of a study conducted by a group of scholars from Australia, Sweden and the United States. The group canvassed 481 American attorneys – in civil and criminal cases, both plaintiffs/prosecutors and defense – and found that lawyers are prone to overconfidence. That is, they predict outcomes of their cases that are not only erroneous, but generally too optimistic.
I’m wondering why this is news. I think that we mediators have known this all along; in fact, that’s why we’re hired. Read more »
Some time ago I brought to readers’ attention a case holding that an attorney who was alleged to have committed malpractice during a mediation could not be sued because confidentiality barred the introduction of evidence of the attorney’s behavior during the mediation.
Now we have the arbitration side of the coin: A party that engaged an arbitrator to render a final and binding award, and that participated in a series of evidentiary hearings, has no recourse when, at the end of the last hearing, the arbitrator declines to issue an award on the ground that he has become “too compassionate towards both sides.” The full text of the January, 2010 decision of the California Court of Appeals may be found here. Read more »
Business Conflict Blog
Conflict Management Expertise from F. Peter Phillips.
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