Mediation Seminar
SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL
FALL 2013
Instructor:
R. Lisle Baker
781-643-8186
Mediation is becoming an increasingly important vehicle for resolving disputes that might otherwise go to court, or if in court, to trial. While the framework of litigation is well established, mediations often are shaped by both the nature of the dispute the nature of the disputants and the nature of the mediator.
This course helps students understand mediation as a form of consensual dispute resolution that assists the disputants in negotiating a resolution that is preferable to the litigation alternative. To that end, students begin learning basic negotiation theory and practice and then move to applying that learning in the mediation context. Students keep an extensive journal about their readings and their experiences in course simulations that form the basis of a brief paper on their own mediation skills. In lieu of an examination, students also write a paper that can involve both library and field research on some aspect of dispute resolution which they present to the seminar. The course writing is not available to satisfy the legal writing requirement. Enrollment is limited to 18 students and not available to students who have taken other mediation or negotiation courses. (Tuesday 4:00-4:50 p.m.; Thursday 4:00-5:50 p.m.)