Mediating High-Stakes Disputes: Theory Meets Practice
Please join the Fletcher School and the Program on Negotiation for a public talk and discussion with
Peter J. Hurtgen
the 15th Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
With an introduction by Fletcher Academic Dean Lisa Lynch and responses by Professors Jeswald Salacuse and Adil Najam
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
Cabot Intercultural Center
170 Packard Ave
Room 205 — Click for Map
Peter J. Hurtgen is the 15th Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). Nominated by President George W. Bush in May 2002, Director Hurtgen was confirmed by the United States Senate two months later and is responsible for FMCS operations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam, as well as FMCS’s International Program, through which the agency offers conflict resolution training and capacity development services around the world.
Director Hurtgen, a native of Madison, Wisconsin, previously served as a Member and later Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board, a position to which he was appointed by President Bill Clinton and confirmed by the Senate for a term that ran from November 14, 1997 to August 27, 2001. President Bush designated Mr. Hurtgen as Chairman of the NLRB on May 15, 2001 and gave him a recess appointment on August 31, 2001 to continue serving upon the expiration of his term.
In the fall of 2002, Director Hurtgen responded to a request by President Bush to become personally involved in the mediation efforts to help settle a West Coast ports labor-management dispute that had put approximately $300 billion worth of economic activity at risk. Under Hurtgen’s leadership, FMCS was able to facilitate resolution of the dispute that had closed all West Coast ports for 10 days. Since then, he has personally mediated a number of high-profile labor disputes across the country.
Director Hurtgen holds Doctor of Laws and Bachelor of Science degrees from Georgetown University, and since 1972 has been a partner in two national law firms Seyfarth, Shaw, Fairweather & Geraldson, and more recently, Morgan, Lewis & Bookius LLP. He has extensive experience representing clients in manufacturing, newspaper publication, radio and TV broadcasting, public and private educational systems, cities, counties and states, power generation, shipbuilding, transportation and telecommunications. He is the co-author of several publications dealing with specialized subjects within the general field of labor law and labor-management relations. Mr. Hurtgen is a Fellow of The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and a member of the National Executive Board of the United States branch of the International Society for Labor Law and Social Security.
This event is being sponsored by the Fletcher School’s Office of the Executive Associate Dean, Office of the Academic Dean, Center for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution, Institute for Human Security, International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Program, International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Student Organization, and the Program on Negotiation. It is intended to set the stage for ongoing institutional cooperation with FMCS.
