The Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School (PON) is an applied research center committed to improving the theory and practice of negotiation and dispute resolution. Put most simply, PON is working to change the way people, organizations, and nations resolve their disputes -- shifting the process from "win-lose" outcomes to "all-gain" solutions.

PON is an inter-university consortium involving faculty, graduate students, and administrative staff from a range of disciplines and professional schools at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, Simmons College, and other Boston-area schools.
Major goals of the Program on Negotiation are to:

• design, implement, and evaluate better dispute resolution practices;
• promote collaboration and communication among practitioners and scholars;
• develop educational programs and materials for instruction in negotiation and dispute resolution; and
• increase public awareness and understanding of successful conflict resolution efforts.

A popular training opportunity is provided by Harvard Law School's Program of Instruction for Lawyers (PIL). PON core faculty Roger Fisher, Robert Mnookin, Bruce Patton, and Frank E.A. Sander teach in the week- long beginning and advanced negotiation and mediation workshops offered as part of the Law School's "summer program." Despite its name, it is not necessary to be a lawyer to enroll in PIL. For courses utilizing the Understanding Based Mediation Model, please refer to Harvard Program of Instruction for Lawyers.
For more information, visit www.law.harvard.edu/programs/PIL.

The Center for Mediation in Law works closely with the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals to encourage and develop the practice of collaborative law in New York.

Collaborative law is a process for resolving matrimonial disputes whereby both parties and counsel commit themselves to resolving their differences fairly and equitably without resort or threat of resort to the courts. The assumptions underlying this practice are as follows:

• The adversarial judicial system is often ill equipped to handle the emotionally charged process of dissolving a marriage;
  
• The commitment of time, energy, and money to an adversarial case often does not achieve a cost-effective, quality solution to clients' problems;
  
• Many divorcing couples want to avoid litigation, yet are distrustful and/or fearful of the mediation process; and
  
• Mediation, as a marital dispute resolution method, may pose dangers in terms of power imbalance, absence of knowledgeable and informed consent, ability of the mediator to remain neutral, etc.
  

In an effort to accommodate the parties' desire to avoid litigation and at the same time avoid the concerns that some parties and lawyers have about mediation, family attorneys in other jurisdictions, particularly California, Ohio, and Minnesota, have developed the approach of collaborative law. The attorneys representing the parties in this model agree to assist them to resolve the issues in dispute using cooperative strategies rather than adversarial techniques and litigation. Attorneys utilizing this settlement model agree to take cases, on a case by case basis, for settlement purposes only. The model differs from traditional representation in ways designed to foster a positive context for settlement. Lawyers employed in this practice agree in advance:

• To remove litigation as an option. Collaborative attorneys do not use the threat of litigation as a negotiating tool; if settlement discussions fail, the parties must hire separate litigation counsel if they choose to go to court;
• To complete disclosure with full documentation but without formal proceedings;
• To the use of joint experts with respect to valuation questions;
• To settle custody differences without subjecting either the parties or the children to court-ordered forensic evaluations; and
• To focus their efforts and skills on creative problem solving and on obtaining win/win results which insofar as possible meet the legitimate interests of both parties and maximize the overall result.

Other aspects include an emphasis on four-way meetings, reasoned positions, utilization by the attorneys of interest-based negotiation skills, joint creation of options, and a point of view that includes both attorneys and both parties as a part of a settlement team where flexibility and sensible compromise are encouraged.

Lawyers engaged in this process are of the view that understanding rather than coercion can drive the negotiations and that it is not necessary to pit divorcing parties against each other.

These attorneys are committed to developing conflict resolution skill sets much different from those utilized in a settlement model or adversarial practice. The Center is currently creating training programs designed to further the development of these skills.

For further information please visit our website www.collaborativelawny.com or contact:
 

Barry Berkman 521 Fifth Avenue, 31st Floor, New York, NY  10175 Tel: 212-867-9123 Fax: 212-983-8526 Email:berkbot@aol.com

Elizabeth Reingold 204 West 84th Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY  10024 Tel:   212-712-1745 Fax : 212-712-1746 Email: ereingold7@aol.com

Steve Keeva, an Editor with the ABA, wrote a terrific book, Transforming Practices, about lawyers who are trying to integrate a greater sense of meaning into their work. The enthusiastic reception of the book by so many in the profession led Steve to create a website of the same name. He describes TransformingPractices.com as both a resource and an oasis for busy lawyers who sense that there must be a better way to live a life in the law, but need some inspiration and guidance to find it. It offers articles, excerpts, concepts and exercises that can help bring deeper meaning and more pleasure to legal work. For further information:www.transformingpractices.com

The Law Program of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society explores the relationship of contemplative practice, which fosters and encourages attention to the present moment, to the life of the law. The Law Program seeks to engage law students, legal academics, and others in the law in a meaningful and passionate exploration of the role of contemplative practice in contemporary legal practice and legal education. To explore the nexus between contemplative practices and the life of the law, the Law Program hosts retreats, conducts research, and acts as a national clearinghouse for pertinent information and activities. The Law Program hosted the Yale Law School Retreat in October 1998. Twenty students met for five days of instruction in meditation and yoga, coupled with informal, interactive discussions and exercises on law-related themes. In light of the success of this retreat, the Law Program hosted a second annual Yale Retreat in October 1999 and additional retreats in the spring and fall of 2000. The Center is also actively encouraging law school professors to develop relevant course offerings and curricula, in law school clinics and classrooms, linking contemplative practice to the law.

The Center is considering hosting similar retreats for other law schools around the country, as well as law retreats for judges, practicing attorneys, mediators, and other legal professionals. One-day workshops, lecture-presentations, "mini-retreats," and programs designed for private law firms are also under consideration.

The Center is committed to examining and developing the theoretical and intellectual underpinnings of the relationship of contemplative practice to the life of the law. Toward that end, the Law Program will conduct research on the application of contemplative practice to current legal theory. This research will seek to establish a more comprehensive understanding of the law.

The Program also serves as a national clearinghouse for related information and activities, and strives to play a positive and supportive role in the dynamic unfolding of interest in the deep wisdom of contemplative practices and the complex demands of the law in contemporary society.

For more information contact:

The Center for Contemplative Mind In Society
199 Main Street, 3rd Floor
Northampton, MA 01060
Tel: 413-582-0071
Fax: 413-582-1330
LINK: www.contemplativemind.org