This is an overview of mediation, from premediation conference through all stages of the mediation session. The book answers 100 questions frequently asked by new mediators. The section "Everything you never wanted to know about the rules of evidence" should prove useful for the non-attorney mediator, who sometimes deals with the evidentiary vocabulary of the legal profession. Learn to establish authority as a mediator; schedule the mediation session; deliver the mediator's opening statement; prioritize issues; preside during joint sessions; conduct private caucuses; overcome impasses; identify "hidden agenda" and "throwaway" items; deal with parties who lack settlement authority; and aid parties to achieve a viable settlement.
Allan H. Goodman is the author of two best-selling books in the area of conflict resolution, Basic Skills for the New Mediator (2d edition) and Basic Skills for the New Arbitrator (2d edition). Both titles are available in hard copy and as Kindle books on Amazon.com. The first editions were written in 1994 and were instantly received as practical guidebooks for new mediators and arbitrators. Published by Solomon Publications, the company Allan created to publish his own books, these titles are now in their second editions and are used extensively as self-training books and as textbooks in conflict resolution programs, in colleges, universities, and law schools.
Allan welcomes questions from his readers concerning mediation and arbitration. His books contain contact information so that he can communicate with his readers. He is currently writing another book on mediation which details his continued experience as a mediator. This book, the second volume in the Basic Skills for the New Mediator series, is scheduled for publication in January 2010.
For seventeen years, Allan was an attorney in private practice in the Washington, DC area. Early in his legal career, he developed a desire to resolve disputes. In addition to practicing law, he began serving as a private arbitrator in commercial disputes. Later in his legal career, as mediation became more prevalent, he became trained as a mediator and began serving as a private mediator.
In 1993 Allan left the practice of law when he was appointed a federal administrative judge on the United States General Services Administrative Board of Contract Appeals, where he served until 2007 as a trial judge and an alternative dispute resolution neutral in disputes between contractors and the federal government. In 2007 he was appointed as a judge on the United States Civilian Board of Contract Appeals where he continues to serve as a trial judge and ADR neutral.
Allan has served as a mediator in complex commercial cases that deal with major construction projects, nuclear waste clean-up sites, weapon systems, genetic research laboratories, intellectual property, and computer software. He successfully mediated one of the largest claims arising from the Big Dig Project in Boston, Massachusetts.
From 1987 to 2000 Allan was an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center, where he taught Construction Contract Law. He lectures frequently on alternative dispute resolution techniques. He is a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and the University of Toledo College of Law and a member of the bars of Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia.
