…at least, we think that the Court Rule amendments adopted last week will improve the mediation process, at least marginally. The State Court Administrative Office convened a committee back in 2007 to review the ADR Court rules and recommend possible amendments. I had the privilege of serving on that committee, along with other mediators, attorneys, […]

     An article in the Summer 2011 issue of Conflict Resolution Quarterly investigates the long-held tenet that mediators should not bring religion into the conflict resolution process, and concludes that it’s time to change our stance on this topic. In “God in the Process: Is There a Place for Religion in Conflict Resolution?”, authors Rachel […]

Eleven years after adopting its initial rule regarding confidentiality in mediation (the identical provisions appear at MCR 2.411(C)(5), General Civil mediation, and 3.216(H)(8), Domestic Relations mediation), Michigan will have a new rule, MCR 2.412, effective September 1, 2011. The new rule addresses concerns raised by practitioners that the current rule is overly-broad, protecting communications made […]