Just as mediation is an art, not a science, there is an art to advocacy in mediation. I have developed the following “pointers” during the course of over 30 years as a trial lawyer in complex commercial and business disputes, and 25-plus years serving as mediator in such cases. Although they reflect my personal experience as lawyer and mediator in commercial cases, the essential learning points cut across practice lines.
Below is my suggested format for an agreed mediation plan to be filed in those King County cases slected for the Early Mediation Pilot Program. A Word version is available here: Agreed Mediation Plan ****************************** SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON FOR KING COUNTY CAPTION AGREED MEDIATION PLAN COME NOW the parties to this case, by and through their attorneys of record,…
Historically, only 3-5% of civil cases filed in King County Superior Court proceed to trial. Some are disposed of on motion, some plaintiffs simply withdraw their complaint; most are resolved by settlement – often through mediation. While mediation offers a proven and effective means of resolving a dispute prior to trial, the later it occurs in the “life” of a…
Most of us are familiar with the typical forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), mediation and arbitration, but how many of us are familiar with a relatively new form of ADR called Early Neutral Evaluation (aka Neutral Evaluation)? Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE), for certain types of cases, or at certain points in a case, can be more beneficial to a…
An edited version of the below article was published in the King County Bar Bulletin in December 2006. Below article © Phil Cutler 2006; published version © King County Bar Association 2006. Book Review: BUSINESS AND COMMERCIAL LITIGATION IN FEDERAL COURTS, SECOND EDITION (Robert L. Haig, Editor-in-Chief) Published by ABA Section of Litigation and Thomson/West, 2005 Review by Phil Cutler…
An edited version of the below article was published in the January 2007 issue of the King County Bar Bulletin. Below article © Phil Cutler and Tom Brewer (2006 and 2007); published article © King County Bar Association (2006 and 2007). In 2005 Washington joined a short but growing list of other states that have enacted the Revised Uniform Arbitration…
by Bob Nylander Copyright Robert G. Nylander, Cutler Nylander & Hayton, P.S., 2001-2010 “In Washington, wrongful death actions are strictly creatures of statute.” Atchison v. Great W. Malting Co., 161 Wn. 2d 372, 376, 166 P.3d 662, 664 (2007). “Only after examining the weighty considerations that underlie the stare decisis doctrine, which has at its core the need for predictability…