Alec Wisner

I just returned from San Diego, where I spent most of last week at the annual convention of the Association for Dispute Resolution (ACR), a leading international group of arbitrators, mediators (commercial, family, community,…more

Alec Wisner goes into great detail in explaining why he transitioned into mediation at a relatively late stage in his career. He discusses his personal experiences as a litigant, which provided him with his initial motivation. …more

Fanning the flames of uncertainty is often the key to conflict resolution. I've developed an Index of Over-Optimism to assist me in this task, but the job itself is much more an art than anything else. How your mediation tools…more

Mediation is not always about cutting up a distributive pie. Sometimes, the mediator has an opportunity to reach beyond the monetary issues that usually dominate commercial cases and, instead, discover the underlying…more

In this article, a mediator reflects upon the holiday spirit at this time of year. He points out that mediation is a very special way of giving of himself, with no real expectation of anything in return. At least that's the…more

In this article, the second of two, the author explains how certain ethical issues come into play when he considers employing a mediator's proposal. These issues illustrate the pitfalls and dangers of using this tool, which can…more

This article provides one mediator's inside view of the mechanics involved in creating a mediator's proposal as a tool to settle contentious litigated matters. It is worth noting that the author personally opposes the use of…more

The story told in this post reminds me of what I see far too often in mediation. I see participants who arrive with an agenda, hellbent on doing it their way, with no regard to communication skills or persuasive effectiveness. …more

This article evaluates the proponents of "original intent" Constitutionalism. By contrasting approaches taken by the United States Supreme Court on such issues as abortion and search and seizure, the author points out massive…more

Settling a lawsuit doesn't mean much if the settlement isn't respected by the parties. This article explores the importance of this by examining two different areas. In the first, it examines a common commercial situation in…more

A fascinating insider's account of the mediation of a complex litigated case. In this matter, the lawsuit was ostensibly about legal malpractice. However, the discussion eventually turned to the underlying matter, which was a…more

Mediation is an internal process that happens for every human being during every waking moment. It's involved in every interpersonal dealing and in every process involving more than one person. Mediation is such an integral…more