The National Arbitration Forum Blog

Negotiation skills are valuable and many younger lawyers, and older lawyers, lack them says a Minnesota Lawyer article (Dan Heilman, 1/18/2008). Lawyers can greatly benefit a mediation by shortening a lengthy dispute and increasing the chance of an outcome that satisfies both parties.

In Mediators offer tips for better negotiation, seasoned mediators give advice to client attorneys on how to better their negotiating role for a mediation session. Here are nine tips distilled from the article:

1. Learn to Compromise. This can be the hardest part for some lawyers. You "lose nothing by considering compromise," said mediator Michael C. Black.

2. Be Flexible. "Come to mediation prepared to be flexible in your thinking," noted Kevin Carpenter.

3. Know the Case. "The lawyer cannot be credible with the client if the lawyer pretty clearly does not know enough about the file," James Sander said.

4. Know the Interests at Stake. "Not knowing what each party is after in a negotiation can be costly," said Geri Napuck.

5. Break Case into Sub-parts. "Start with the topics that are most likely to result in an agreement," stated Napuck, "any agreements on smaller topics tend to build momentum on more important topics."

6. Don’t get Settlement Fever. This is a danger for inexperienced negotiators. "You have to know when to walk out, and how to ignore an ultimatum," advised Rebecca M. Picard.

7. Keep the Eye on the Prize. "The risk, cost or opportunity going forward should be the focus,” said Sander, “not the money that’s already been spent in the case."

8. Let the Clients Lead the Way. "Attorneys who can’t check their egos negatively impact the ability to negotiate a resolution," said Black.

9. Be Aware of Human Nature. "Both parties should perceive that they’ve gotten a good deal, that they’ve been respected, and that the outcome was equitable," Picard said. "It’s just human nature to want those things."