The Chair's Corner
by Scott S. Brinkmeyer

Welcome to the world of Zoom 2020. The Coronavirus pandemic has indeed wreaked havoc everywhere, and our court systems, government, and the State Bar have all imposed extensive restrictions on formerly common interpersonal transactions. The ADR Section and ADR practitioners overall are no exceptions. By now most ADR providers have adapted to the “virtual” reality of doing business by Zoom or other, similar media. For the past three months, the Section Council, the Executive Committee, and our Action Teams have all been meeting via Zoom. MORE

Editor's Note
by Erin Archerd

The other night, I sat on my front porch after putting my kids to bed and watched the fireflies dance their first light show of the summer. There is always beauty and wonder when we pause to look for it. At the same time, it feels like too many things have been put on pause. One of which, you have probably noticed, is this publication, which took a pause in its first issue of the year as I adapted to teaching my law students online. I am grateful to the ADR Section members, my authors, and my readers, for their patience as I put this issue together. MORE

BOOK REVIEW: Litigation Interest and Risk Assessment
by Edmund J. Sikorski, Jr.

This book first became available to the public in January 2020 exclusively through the American Bar Association. It is a compilation of nine prior publications by one or more of the authors and spans a decade’s worth of looking at litigation risk assessment. MORE

Eldercaring Coordination: The Time is NOW
by Linda Fieldstone, Sue Bronson, and Michelle Morley

Anyone supporting an older family member with dementia, a medical emergency, or a chronic illness knows the enormous weight of caring for another person. Complications arise when there are discrepancies among family members’ understanding of the older adult’s needs and preferences. Family members’ goals of safety and autonomy or efficiency and independence may also be at odds with one another, as well as thoughts about expenses and use of resources. This article discusses elder mediation and a new process called eldercaring coordination, an option worth considering in high-conflict eldercare cases. MORE

The “Win-Win” Scenario, a Practical Example
by Graham Ward

I have often wondered how trial attorneys, steeped in the “adversarial process,” reacted when Morton Deutsch first introduced the concept of the “win-win” scenario. Was it viewed as a challenge to their process? Was it a threat to their continued utility? Perhaps it was viewed as an academic exercise, sounding good, but impossible to achieve between parties in litigation. MORE

Assessing the Role—and Purpose—of ODR in Our Courts
by Doug Van Epps

If we didn’t realize this before, the COVID-19 pandemic has lent extra urgency to the idea: Online motions and settlement conferences will soon become standard court operating procedures, chiefly to eliminate the significant inconvenience and expense (and now, perhaps danger) of parties appearing in court in person. In Michigan’s State Court Administrative Office, we are even testing the potential for conducting jury trials online. MORE

Alternative Dispute Resolution: For Our Future
by Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack

Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack, a longtime supporter of Alternative Dispute Resolution, has contributed the following article to a compendium of ADR practices that will be published shortly. This compendium, entitled "The ABC’s of ADR and More; A Practice Guide for Judges and Attorneys," is in the final stages of editing by the authors, Richard L. Hurford, Paul F. Monicatti, and Lisa Taylor, and will be available in the near future. The authors thank Chief Justice McCormack for her contribution and for widely promoting ADR to benefit the bench, the bar, and the public. MORE

Labor Arbitration Opening Statement
by Lee Hornberger

This article reviews giving an effective opening statement in a labor arbitration case. The opening statement in a labor arbitration case is given in what may be a unique adjudicative environment. In court or civil litigation or employment arbitration, the parties will have provided information, including pleadings and briefing, to the adjudicator well prior to the evidentiary hearing. That is not usually the case in a labor arbitration. MORE

ADR Standing Action Teams 2019–2020

Thanks to our 2020 Annual Meeting Sponsors!

Upcoming Mediation Trainings

Diversity & Inclusion Pledge

Proposed Amendments to Case Evaluation Rules

Michigan Community Mediation Association Liaison Posting

The Michigan Dispute Resolution Journal is published by the ADR Section of the State Bar of Michigan. The views expressed by contributing authors do not necessarily reflect the views of the ADR Section Council. The Michigan Dispute Resolution Journal seeks to explore various viewpoints in the developing field of dispute resolution.

The Journal is looking for articles on ADR subjects for future issues. You are invited to send a Word copy of your proposed article to Editor Erin Archerd at archerer@udmercy.edu.