On Bankruptcy and Mediation
A great idea (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson “Mandatory mediation” is a self-explanatory term. It means this: --A court (or a mediator with authority from the court) orders disputing parties to participate in a mediation process. There seems to be a reticence in the bankruptcy world, generally, toward mandatory mediation. I'm not... Continue Reading →
By Donald L. Swanson Attorneys make mistakes. It happens. Here’s a case where two competing attorneys each violate a court rule on mediation confidentiality: In re Anonymous, 283 F.3d 627 (4th Cir. 2002). The hand-slap The two attorneys get hauled before the Court to explain their dastardly deeds. But in the end, they only get... Continue Reading →
Inherent power (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson “[O]rdering mandatory mediation is a proper exercise of a district Court’s inherent power.” That’s the “core holding” of the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals in its In re Atlantic Pipe Corp. opinion.[Fn.1] What follows is a summary of that opinion. Facts The dispute is over... Continue Reading →
A coffee orchard: here's how it's done By: Donald L. Swanson There are many reasons to mandate mediation in certain circumstances. One is to improve the quality of justice. Another is to manage an expanding docket and burgeoning caseload. A third is to create a mediation culture where none currently exists. There are two ways to... Continue Reading →
Making it work -- Mandating action (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson Recent expressions of concern about courts mandating mediation reminded me of a mandated mediation process that worked well: the City of Detroit bankruptcy. An illustration of the success of mandated mediation in the Detroit case is this line: The Bankruptcy Judge... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson We’ve all wondered, over the years, about the advisability and effectiveness of mandatory mediation. Turns out that mandatory and voluntary mediation programs can achieve about the same results when: --judges in a mandatory system accommodate participants who don't want to mediate, and --judges in the voluntary system encourage mediation. Empirical Data... Continue Reading →
Adjustments to unique circumstances? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson The opinion is from In re The Diocese of Buffalo, N.Y., Case No. 20-10322, Western New York Bankruptcy Court (entered December 27, 2021, Doc. 1487). The Diocese of Buffalo asks the Bankruptcy Court to refer its Chapter 11 case and related adversary proceedings to... Continue Reading →
Reprinted with permission from the ABI Journal, Vol. XL, No. 9, September 2021. View the original publication here. By: Donald L Swanson Mandated mediation is authorized by federal statute. As such, 28 U.S.C. § 652(a) provides, “Any district court that elects to require the use of alternative dispute resolution in certain cases may do so only... Continue Reading →
Judge Irving Kaufman By: Donald L. Swanson Judge Irving Kaufman is famous for many things, such as presiding over the Rosenberg espionage trial and rejecting the U.S. government’s attempt to deport John Lennon to the United Kingdom. But Judge Kaufman’s greatest legacy may be for his role in developing mediation as a primary dispute resolution... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L Swanson October 31, 2018, was the 20th anniversary of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act of 1998 (the “ADR Act”). [Fn. 1] The ADR Act has had a profound impact on the practice of law throughout the federal court system. However, it also has shortfalls that are yet to be rectified. A Mediation Model:... Continue Reading →
MEDIATBANKRY 