Mediation Service Receives Its 1000th Referral
Brendan Donaghy, March 2012
The Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) mediation service is offered free of charge to tenants of the organisation who find themselves in dispute with a neighbour. Since its launch ten years ago, several thousand people have received help with their conflict. In addition, the mediation service has delivered training on principles of conflict resolution to hundreds of NIHE staff, as well as to staff from other organisations which work closely with the NIHE. Having just accepted our 1000th case referral, what lessons have been learned along the way?
Review: Family mediation - Appropriate Dispute Resolution in a New Family Justice System, 2nd edition
Roisin O’Neill, February 2012
Lisa Parkinson’s Family mediation 2nd edition ‘Appropriate Dispute Resolution in a New Family Justice System’ is, in my opinion, a must read for all conflict resolution and family justice practitioners. The very title of the book, in which the term Alternative Dispute Resolution is replaced by Appropriate Dispute Resolution, lets you know that this book is going to take a different approach.
High Hopes – What Lies Ahead for Mediation in Ireland in 2012?
Sabine Walsh, February 2012
As we head into a new year of mediation and managing conflict in the world it strikes me that, at least in this little corner of Europe, the discipline of mediation itself is at a crossroads. A combination of political and socio-economic circumstances and potential legal developments could lead to mediation taking a greater part in dispute resolution in Ireland than ever before. This month I have decided to look at just a few of these possible developments, and would be very interested to hear whether and how similar changes have occurred and have impacted upon mediation in other countries.
Read more: High Hopes – What Lies Ahead for Mediation in Ireland in 2012?
Building A Team Against The Problem
Bill Eddy, December 2011
Whether you are a manager, mediator, lawyer or other type of professional dispute resolver, one of the common problems you
face today is how to resolve high-conflict disputes when the disputants have an on-going relationship – such as in the workplace, as parents in a divorce or as family members in an elder mediation. It’s common for a professional to try to meet with the parties separately to resolve all the issues, in order to keep the tension down and to get to a solution as quickly as possible. Another approach is to meet with the parties together, but to be highly controlling of the discussion in order to keep the parties focused on the specific decision(s) at hand.
These approaches have their appeal and work in some cases. However, high-conflict disputes in families and workgroups have a way of prolonging themselves and simmering, rather than actually being resolved by any one decision. In this article, I suggest a slightly different approach, which focuses the dispute resolver on team-building and “managing the conflict,” rather than resolving any one specific dispute. This is especially important when working with high-conflict people who tend to resist dispute “resolution.” They often blame the dispute resolver for pressuring them to make decisions and undermine any resolutions as soon as they can.
ADR -The Future of Family Law?
Josepha Madigan, November 2011
'The most difficult subjects can explained to the most slow witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of a doubt, what is laid before him.' Leo Tolstoy
As a practising family lawyer I take heed of Tolstoy's words. None of us can nor indeed should remain impervious to change, particularly in these straightened times. There is a strong call for ADR (alternative dispute resolution) in all family law matters not alone from clients and practitioners but at a governmental and policy level too. Some of us who practice as Mediators and Collaborative Practitioners have witnessed our ADR practices increase significantly in the last year. This should not come as a surprise. Nor should we be surprised if other family lawyers change their mindset.
Mediation in Focus: A Celebration of the Family Mediation Service in Ireland
Brendan Donaghy, December 2011
This book has been produced to mark 25 years since the Family Mediation Service (FMS) first opened its doors and offered a helping
hand to couples going through the difficult process of separation. Established in 1986, it became the first publicly funded family mediation service in Europe. Some 250 couples a year went through the doors of its Dublin offices in the early days. Today the FMS has 16 offices scattered around Ireland and the number of couples availing of its service each year is closer to 1500. Ireland has changed since 1986 and the FMS has changed with it. In the early days its clientele consisted predominantly of married couples. Now it is as likely to see unmarried couples, same sex couples, couples of differing nationalities and couples in their second or third significant relationship. Some of the issues facing these couples and their children have changed: staff at the FMS have had to adapt and change their practice accordingly.
Read more: Mediation in Focus: A Celebration of the Family Mediation Service in Ireland
The Use of Shuttle Mediation in Parades Disputes in Northern Ireland
Michael Doherty, December 2011
In conversations with other mediators, attendance at conflict resolution workshops and reading about styles of mediation, it is my understanding that there is no clear definitive style of mediation process that is a 'fit for all types of disputes'. There are many
styles of mediation that can be used separately, or a mix of many, to suit a particular situation. The three styles or models of mediation that I have used in my practice have been a Facilitative model, and Evaluative model and a Shuttle mediation model. These three models have helped form my skills as a competent mediator / trainer and have been instrumental in shaping my practice which has given me the privilege of mediating a range of disputes from neighbourhood, relationships, family disputes, to more complex divorce and custody issues as well as traveller / settled community issues, to issues in Northern Irelands conflict such as parades and protests. This article will look at Shuttle Mediation and how it can be used in the context of parades disputes.
Read more: The Use of Shuttle Mediation in Parades Disputes in Northern Ireland
Embedding Mediation in Our Dispute Resolution Culture: MII Conference 2011
Brendan Donaghy, November 2011
The Mediators' Institute of Ireland (MII) held its 13th Annual Conference in the Grand Hotel, Malahide, Dublin, on Friday 4th and Saturday 5th November 2011. The Conference theme this year was 'Embedding Mediation in Our Dispute Resolution Culture' and nearly 200 delegates attended to take part in a range of workshops delivered by senior members of the judiciary, mediation practitioners, trainers and health professionals. The keynote presentation was delivered by the Honorable Mrs Justice Catherine McGuiness, former President of the Irish Law Reform Commisssion, who spoke about the growing use of mediation in tandem with the legal system and the implications for mediation of recent legislative changes.
Read more: Embedding Mediation in Our Dispute Resolution Culture: MII Conference 2011
Mindfulness, Deep Listening and Stories: The Spiritual Core of Peacemaking
Dr Mark Umbreit, November 2011
The journey of peacemaking and spirituality is about honoring the enormous healing power of story; listening deeply to the
woundedness within others and ourselves; acknowledging the pain of others without judgment, assessment, advice or problem solving; and nurturing the innate strength, wisdom and yearning for peace that is within each of us. The journey is about being ever mindful of the power of unintentional negative consequences if we cannot tame our egos and their endless thirst for recognition and control; learning to tame our minds and their endless thoughts and chatter so that we can be fully present with each other through the turbulence of inter and intra-personal conflict.
Read more: Mindfulness, Deep Listening and Stories: The Spiritual Core of Peacemaking
Interview With Sue Williams
Sue Williams was amongst friends last month, when she visited Northern Ireland to facilitate a training event with local peacebuilding practitioners . Sue and her late husband Steve , American citizens both, lived in the north of Ireland for nearly 20 years, from the mid 1980s through to 2006, during which time they provided support for a variety of reconciliation and peace initiatives, including political mediation and dialogue, through their work for organisations like Quaker Peace and Service, Responding to Conflict and INCORE. In her time, Sue has worked extensively on various projects in countries such as Uganda, Rwanda, Cambodia, Guatemala, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Myanmar. She has also served as special consultant to Folke Bernadotte Academy in Stockholm, Sweden, providing training for the new Mediation Support Unit of the UN Department of Political Affairs. Sue's publications include joint authorship of "Working with Conflict: Skills and Strategies for Action" (Zed Books, London, 2000) and - with Steve - "Being in the Middle by Being at the Edge: Quaker Experience of Non-Official Political Mediation" (York, Sessions, 1994).
While she was here, Rob Fairmichael took the opportunity of interviewing Sue for Mediation Northern Ireland's in house magazine 'Media-tion' and you can read the full discussion below. Many thanks to both Rob and MNI for allowing me to reproduce it here.