Karl Bayer's Disputing Blog

Special Masters: How To Make the Best of Both Worlds, Part IV

By Merril Hirsh, James M. Rhodes, Karl Bayer - December 23, 2014

In Part Three we urged that, notwithstanding rules, admonitions and the fervent desire for efficient resolution of disputes, our current system of litigation creates incentives to drive up the costs of litigation. So how do we change these incentives?

Special Masters: How to Make the Best of Both Worlds, Part I

By Merril Hirsh, James M. Rhodes & Karl Bayer - November 12, 2014

An article in the Spring 2014 issue of the ABA’s Dispute Resolution reports on the sad results of a 2011 Fortune 1000 ADR survey. The survey updated a 1997 study. The bottom line: in 1997, Fortune 1000 companies, tired of the expense and inefficiency of litigation, were overwhelmingly interested in using arbitration. In 2011, Fortune 1000 companies, tired of the expense and inefficiency of arbitration, were really more interested in mediation.

Summary of Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution (Part III)

By Renee Kolar - August 29, 2014

In part III of Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution, Professor Stipanowich highlights five trends that are likely to have a growing impact on our lives, on law practice and the management of conflict. Those five trends are: technology, globalization, insights through behavioral science and "big data," longer productive lives (active retirement), and education and credentialing in the professional practice.

Summary of Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution (Part I)

By Renee Kolar - August 25, 2014

Professor Stipanowich has recently completed another article for The Construction Lawyer titled Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution which discusses the evolution of different dispute resolution methods in the construction industry. While his paper focuses on the evolution of these methods in the construction industry, several of his findings are also indicative of trends in ADR evolution more generally. In

Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution

By Renee Kolar - August 22, 2014

Thomas J. Stipanowich, Academic Director of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, William H. Webster Chair in Dispute Resolution, and Professor of Law at the Pepperdine University School of Law just completed yet another article for a special issue of The Construction Lawyer titled: Managing Construction Conflict: Unfinished Revolution, Continuing Evolution; Pepperdine University Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2014/22.

Three Surveys Offering New Insights into ADR Practices

By Renee Kolar - July 22, 2014

Professor Thomas Stipanowich recently published information regarding three major surveys conducted by the The Straus Institute’s Theory-to-Practice Research Project that produced a wide array of new information on arbitrator and mediator practices as well as insights into corporate use of ADR.

Does Mediation Still Promote Settlement?

By Renee Kolar - July 21, 2014

Experienced and well-renowned mediator, Jeffery Krivis, just posted an article on the current role of mediation in achieving efficient and cost-effective settlements entitled The Settlement Drift. Check it out!

ABA / Straus Institute Survey of Corporate Counsel

By Thomas J. Stipanowich - July 18, 2014

One of the three recent surveys undertaken by the Straus Institute in 2013 as part of the Theory-to-Practice Research Project was a survey of corporate counsel co-sponsored by the American Bar Association’s Section on Public Utilities, Communication and Transportation (PUCAT) ADR Committee. The Institute’s work was conducted pursuant to a contractual agreement with PUCAT.

International Academy of Mediators (IAM) / Straus Institute Survey on Mediator Practices and Perceptions

By Thomas J. Stipanowich - July 16, 2014

The IAM-Straus Institute Survey on Mediator Practices and Perceptions, was conducted in the spring of 2014 and is one of the three recent surveys carried out by the Straus Institute under the umbrella of the Theory-to-Practice Research Project. It was facilitated by a grant from the IAM.

The Settlement Drift, Part II

By Jeffrey Krivis - July 15, 2014

The dilution of the process by mandatory mediation programs. The institutionalization of mediation into court programs has resulted in way too many cases going to mediation that did not belong in that process in the first place. Why?