Toronto Conflict Resolution Tag

Mediating a complex, multi-party case is a lot like baking a cake. It's not enough to have the right ingredients. You need to observe careful direction and patience to blend the ingredients in the right quantities and at the just the right time to produce...

From beginning to end, taking part in a civil lawsuit can be similar to competing in a grueling marathon. Prior to attending mediation, the parties have likely spent several years in litigation. Throughout this period, they have spent money and expended energy to strengthen their...

If two is company, three is a crowd, and four is a party, what is more than a dozen? The answer, as I recently learned when conducting a multi-party mediation for a complex claim, is that more than a dozen is a challenge (and that...

It’s been said that there are no traffic jams on the extra mile. Putting in a little more effort in what we are doing is rarely a big sacrifice, and yet it can pay huge dividends. Consider the benefits of holding a pre-mediation caucus, for...

There’s a comic drawing making the rounds on the Internet that makes an interesting statement or observation about conflict. It shows two people, who have approached a number from different directions, beginning to argue. One observes a “6”. The other observes a “9”. The original comic...

“And now for something completely different.” No, this isn’t a Monty Python sketch; it’s the moment when participants who are engaged in our adversarial legal system attempt to co-operate and work together. When you say it like that, it sounds almost absurd as one of...

Cooper Mediation