From the National Law Journal earlier today (available here): “1st Circuit deems plaintiffs who achieved settlement ‘prevailing parties’ entitled to fees” by Sheri Qualters Parties who achieve litigation goals through settlement, as opposed to a verdict or a formal consent decree, are nonetheless “prevailing parties” eligible for attorney fees, the U.S. Court of Appeals for … Continue reading Settlements and Fees for Prevailing Parties →

I don’t have anything new to say about what’s going on this week in Wisconsin–manuevers continue, it’s all very interesting.  But Jon Stewart last night was hilarious so I am linking to his take on Wisconsin in which he points out that not only is Governor Walker trying to take away benefits but then prevent … Continue reading Crisis in Dairyland–Or Why We are Not Tunisia →

Last week, the Nevada Supreme Court heard arguments in a case alleging that a lender participated in Nevada’s mandatory foreclosure mediation program in bad faith. The 2009 law that established the program allows district court judges to sanction parties if they are found to have acted in bad faith. The homeowners argued that the lender … Continue reading Question of “Bad Faith” Mediation reaches Nevada Supreme Court →

Russell Korobkin and I have been batting around ideas for how to teach multiparty negotiations–both new cases and particularly pedagogical ideas–and we are looking for some additional input and advice.  So this is a call to those of you who have ideas, have taught multiparty negotiations as part of your class or separately, and are willing … Continue reading Teaching Multiparty Negotiations →

Writing in the Huffington Post, lawyer and author Doug Noll reports on the appointment of Naguib Sawiris to act as a mediator between the opposition and the authorities in carrying through the political reforms. Sawiris is a Coptic Christian billionaire businessman who has criticized both the Mubarak regime and the Muslim Brotherhood, while praising Mohamed … Continue reading Egypt’s Mediator →

There is a joke from Belarus about the difference between a Belarusian optimist and a Belarusian pessimist.  The Belarusian pessimist says, “oh, this is as bad as it could possibly be, it couldn’t get worse than this.”  The Belarusian optimist says, “Oh, yes it can, it can get much worse.”  I have to admit, the … Continue reading An Egyptian Optimist? →

FINRA continues to revise its Codes of Arbitration Procedure in response to developments in arbitration practice. This week FINRA filed with the SEC two new rule change proposals: (1) to codify current practice that parties have the right to reply to responses to motions within five days of the response; and (2) to eliminate the … Continue reading More FINRA Dispute Resolution Arbitration-Related Rule Proposals →

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that a court cannot consider an arbitrator’s reputational interest in being appointed again in the future when determining whether that arbitrator is “disinterested” within the meaning of the parties’ arbitration agreement. Trustmark Ins. Co. v. Hancock Life Ins. Co. (USA), __ F.3d __, 2011 WL 285156 (7th … Continue reading Arbitrator’s “Reputational Interest” In Being Appointed Again Does Not Impact His Neutrality →

Many of us have students writing papers on ADR topics. There are at least two writing competitions taking submissions this spring for ADR papers. The best known is the James Boskey ADR Writing Competition, which is sponsored by the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution in conjunction with Jean Sternlight and UNLV’s Saltman Center. The deadline … Continue reading ADR Writing Competitions →