W-A-I-T: these four letters remind you to ask yourself Why Am I Talking? Silence is often your most effective negotiation technique. Silence has two big benefits The first benefit of silence is to be better able to respond. Too many people come to mediation with their attitudes so entrenched that they don’t listen. You cannot […]
Why aren’t your cases settling? In his book, How to Talk to Strangers, best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell explains that we normally DTT, Default-To-Truth, when we receive communication. When we default to lies instead of to truth, we undermine our ability to get to resolution. The Litigation Defaults-To-Lies In almost every facet of our lives, most people […]
It’s summertime, and temperatures are high. So let’s look at a hot insurance coverage issue: business interruption caused by the coronavirus. Do you know about the business interruption insurance coverage test case in progress in the United Kingdom? To create some consistency and avoid a litigation morass, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has brought a test […]
Having trouble concentrating? Affected by shelter-in-place orders to contain the COVID-19, overlaid with curfews activated by civil unrest following the death of George Floyd? Join the club. For some cases, nothing is urgent right now. It’s easy to leave those cases on autopilot. What you focus on is what you get. If what you really want […]
Empathy, the ability to see a situation from a different point of view, is an important negotiation and advocacy skill. You must be able to anticipate and understand your opponent’s position to effectively counter it. Debate trainers assign students to argue the position opposite their personal beliefs to foster this skill. I’m Fine. To Hell With […]
Unquestionably, the COVID-19 pandemic is hurting a variety of businesses. As soon as the extent of financial loss started to become obvious, insurers started seeing lawsuits. Does the lockdown trigger business interruption insurance? What about pollution coverage? Special event coverage? Does actual notice of circumstance bring later claims within a claims-made policy period? Have workers […]
There’s a lot of interest lately in filtering out bad stuff. Of course, we use filters all the time: air filters in the ceilings in our houses, filters to keep the coffee grounds out of our drinks, water filters to improve the stuff that comes from our faucets, filtered cigarettes— well, you get the idea. […]
Mediation Is Critical Right Now Courts are closed. Attorneys and claims professionals are working from home as best they can. But disputes continue. If an employer is responsible for a claimant’s medical care, delivering that care during a “Shelter in Place” order is a challenge. How a dispute is handled now can determine how the […]
We’ve heard a lot about quid pro quo lately. But it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Quid pro quo is Latin for “this for that.” This is what negotiation is all about. In fact, the exchange of something of value, legally termed “consideration”, is a requirement for a contract to be valid. Settlement agreements are […]
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