370 Lexington Avenue
Suite 702
New York, NY 10017
(212) 967-6799 (ext. 125)
What You Can Expect
- Design and Manage the Mediation Process
- Facilitate Communication
- Develop Understanding
- Provide Feedback
- Challenge Assumptions
- Advise on Process Tools & Negotiation Strategies
- Uncover Options for Resolution
- Deliver Closure
Methodology
Obsessive Preparation
It’s not just about reading a pre-mediation statement. Preparation activity involves joint and separate calls with the Parties’ representatives, discussions about the issues in dispute, coordinated exchange of information, the parties’ expectations from the process, in-depth review of legal arguments and supporting jurisprudence, expert analysis, damages calculations and any other factor that appears relevant to the parties and their advisors in connection with the case. The goal is for the key questions to emerge before the discussion formally begins.
Listening Openly and Actively
I make a conscious effort to “empty my cup” before listening to the parties and counsel and remain curious about what other people see from their perspectives.
Digging deep to Find the Roots of the Conflict and to Understand the Parties’ Interests
I seek to identify the Obstacles to Resolution and the Settlement Drivers.
Maintaining the Process Flexible at all times
I think creatively about Process Strategies and keep challenging the assumptions regarding what will happen next in the process, to be prepared to shift gears or direction at any time. That may involve a change in the way negotiations are conducted, creating an opportunity for issue-focused meetings among lawyers/experts, or relationship-focused meetings between principals, or introducing a technique to break impasse, etc. – There is no “one size fits all” in Mediation.
Sticking with the process for as long as it takes
- That could mean making every effort to keep the momentum of the discussion alive well past the normal hours to reach closure with all stakeholders fully committed to the outcome, even if that occurs in the middle of the night;
- Or, shepherding a case to resolution after a mediation session concluded, through follow up work with counsel and parties until the case is fully resolved.
- Experience taught me that “the devil is in the details”, and I strive to being present to support the parties until all the essential terms of settlement are agreed upon and every “wrinkle has been ironed down”.