Overview

Mediation is one of the most effective and cost-efficient forms of dispute resolution. The format of mediation can range from informal to formal and structured, and the issues can range from simple to very complex. This highly interactive seminar provides training to manage and conduct a mediation either as a mediator, or as a party, or as an advocate assisting a party to a mediation. Through an in-depth analysis of theory and practice with the emphasis on building skills, and by conducting a simulated-mediation, participants will acquire the skills and knowledge essential to handling the mediation process, also managing a multiparty mediation, reaching agreement, and utilizing strategies and tactics to further their own positions and interests. Leaders, Managers and Practitioners, and all who are involved in mediation or who may become involved, either within a domestic or an international framework, will benefit from this seminar.

Mediation Principles and Process:

• When to Mediate, Institutional Arrangements;
• Advantages of Using Mediation;
• Choosing an Appropriate Mediator;
• Stages of the Mediation Process;
• Mediation Approaches; Confidentiality; Neutrality;
• Types of Mediation.

Mediation Skills and Techniques:

• Setting the Tone;
• Identifying the Parties’ Underlying Positions and Interests;
• Breaking Deadlock; Managing Difficult Parties; Dealing with Tricky Tactics; Asking the right questions; Understanding Communication (including Body Language);
• Facilitating Cyber Mediation.

The Role of the Mediator:

• Facilitating the Process and Parties’ Joint Decision Making;
• Structuring the Parties’ Negotiations;
• Managing Caucuses;
• Facilitating the Direction of the Discussion with the Aim of Finding a Mutually Acceptable Solution;
• Managing Relationships.

The Role of the Advocate and/or Parties:

• Determining the Overall Goal, Strategy and Theme for the Case;
• Effective Opening Statement in Mediation;
• Applying Negotiation/Mediation Tactics (knowing what to do and when);
• Deriving the Most Advantage From Caucuses;
• Persuasion Through Effective Communication;
• Drafting Structured Settlements;

Mediation in the context of Investor-State Dispute Settlement.

The Singapore Convention

Course Advisor

Gerhard Botha is the Director of Programs at the International Law Institute in Washington D.C. Previously, he worked for the World Bank as a senior sector specialist in legal and judicial reform and private and financial sector development. Gerhard specialized in labour/employment law and relations, conflict resolution and negotiations, both in private practice and within a large corporate environment in Southern Africa. At the start of his career he served as a Law Officer in the Army; and subsequently as a Public Prosecutor, and then as a State Attorney in the Department of Justice in South Africa. Dr. Botha has over 36 years’ experience in legal and labour relations practice, and in international development. Gerhard holds B.A. and LL.B degrees from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa, an LL.M in labour law, from the University of South Africa and an LL.M focusing on labour/employment law and alternate dispute resolution, from The George Washington University Law School in Washington DC. He also holds a Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University.