Good Neutrals Are Hard Working: “No J.D. NEEDED…”?
CLICK HERE: Daily Business Review 9.8.14 hard copy
The Daily Business Review decided to look at civil mediation and the Florida Supreme Court’s change in 2007 to remove the restriction allowing for non-attorneys to mediate civil cases. What is a good for the mediation, the process, and the public? The answer is….. YES. I am a featured contributor to this article as well as some of the states most well-known trainer and mediation practitioners. Perry Itkin was a Primary Trainer and a lawyer for 41 years when this article was originally published. For those who do not know who Perry Itkin is, since 1992 he was one of Florida’s most sought-after mediation Primary-Trainers until he retired in 2015. In this article, he states that effective mediation is not about the law since it is not a mediator’s job to determine right or wrong… It’s most important that the neutral have common sense, an inquisitive mind, and excellent interpersonal skills…
This is a good short article that in my opinion starts the conversation and shows that, there are a lot of good mediators that are members of the bar, and there are a lot of mediators who are not members of the bar. A good mediator should bring a broad set of skills and have a heightened awareness of interpersonal communication and how to assist people to move beyond conflict. Mediation is a uniquely flexible process that is not as limited and rigid as people initially think.
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