Arbitration

Property issues in Family Law can now be resolved quickly by leading family lawyers acting as Arbitrators following changes to the Family Court rules from April 2016.

The Family Court supports the use of Arbitration to resolve property matters in a timely and cost effective way.

Arbitration is a process  ( other than a judicial process ) in which parties to a dispute present arguments and evidence to an Arbitrator , who makes a determination to resolve the dispute.

Parties can choose their own Arbitrator and cases can be scheduled at a time and place to suit the parties. A hearing can be convened quickly and a decision handed down soon after the hearing.

The process can be adapted to meet the needs of the case.

The award when made can be registered with the court and takes effect as if it were a court order.

Brisbane Mediations supports Arbitration as a further way of unclogging the courts and saving parties the cost, stress and delay of court proceedings.

Arbitration is likely to be particularly attractive as a quicker and less expensive option for resolving modest property pools and more straightforward cases.

Brisbane Mediations has qualified Arbitrators available on our panel and can also access other qualified and experienced Arbitrators if the parties so desire.

Parties should direct any enquiries regarding Arbitration to our able assistants who will be happy to help.

Birdman - A clever portrayal of psychosis, black humour injected with fantasy, or an attempt to demonstrate the psychological fragility of actors in general?

I saw Birdman on the weekend. I'd like to see it again now that I know it was up for an award in the Comedy or Musical section at the Golden Globes.  I didn't realise it was either, although there were definitely a lot of quite funny bits (I won't spoil it for you by detailing them).


To me, a Psychologist and Mediator, the lead role of Riggan Thomson, brilliantly played by Michael Keaton, is that of a late middle aged actor feeling washed up and surrendering, at times in dramatic style, to his alter ego Birdman - a character of his from a successful series of science fiction/super hero type films.


Riggan presents as being in the grip of psychotic visual and auditory hallucinations, delusions of grandeur and paranoid ideation and demonstrates an obvious cognitive blurring of the line between reality and fantasy.


At least, he did until the last scene .....


What do others think?


Could any of the many "interesting" characters in this movie have been helped by timely mediation or therapeutic counselling?


By the way, I have just discovered that congratulations are in order for Michael Keaton for winning "Best Actor in a Comedy" at the Golden Globes.

PEACE TALKS- Egypt's extensive mediation efforts have failed.

US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns has left Cairo, having made no headway in finding a compromise between the army-installed government and supporters of deposed Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/mediation-has-failed-egypt-presidency/story-e6frfkui-1226693026975#ixzz2bLEqWMtW

For a mediation process to be successful, there needs to be a mix of essential ingredients:-

•  A skilled mediator who is seen by all parties to be unbiased
•  Willingness on all sides to make concessions and to compromise in the interests of a peaceful solution
• The capacity on the part of the mediator to facilitate expression by all parties of their underlying perspectives and needs, whilst also maintaining ultimate control over the process
•  Preparedness of each party to listen to the other parties
• An understanding by all that resolution is preferable to at least some of the potential options should the conflict continue

At Brisbane Mediations we wonder what was left out of the mix in respect of the Egyptian mediation process?

Are you getting the full 8 hours?

Despite popular belief that productivity is in the amount of hours we work, Huffington Post founder Arriana Huffington argues that while we’re bragging about how little sleep we got the night before, we have actually decreased our productivity by not getting the full 8 hours.

In The Harvard Business Review, Huffington discusses the direct impact sleep deprivation has on facial cues, employee safety, health and well-being, and most interestingly, can stimulate unethical behaviour in the workplace, an effect we see all too often in workplace mediation cases. This behaviour in turn can lead to a number of workplace conflict issues and a decrease in productivity.

While Huffington suggests the eventual implementation of ‘nap rooms,’ rooms especially assigned for a midday snooze, in the meantime large and small businesses can work on the health and wellbeing of employees by encouraging yoga, meditation, and stressing the importance of sleep.

We could all take a leaf out of our US counterpart’s books and make a stand for a healthier generation of workers and productivity, and according to Huffington “change the workplace culture so that what's stigmatized is not napping but walking around drained and exhausted.”

If you have encountered what you believe to be unethical behaviour in the workplace or believe your workplace is unfairly promoting an unhealthy lifestyle, contact Brisbane Mediations for a fast and inexpensive solution. 

By Katie Prowd

(07) 3839 7400

resolve@brisbanemediations.com.au

   

http://www.womensagenda.com.au/talking-about/world-of-women/awaken-your-career-success-arianna-huffington-on-the-need-for-sleep/201306192351

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/06/getting_naps_ahead_of_the_comp.html?nomobile=1

lawyers and Mediation

One of the hallmarks of the success of Brisbane Mediations has been our ready acceptance of lawyers and their involvement in our process.

Whilst we offer mediations without lawyers, we positively encourage parties to bring their lawyers should they wish. This is in marked contrast to some other recognised public mediation providers and relationship centres where lawyers are not only actively discouraged, but excluded from the process.

We recognize that mediation is not a substitute for independent legal advice.

Lawyers can help their clients understand the law, make informed agreements and write up the final agreement. However, their role extends well beyond that.

Just as mediation has grown in acceptance as a worthwhile method of dispute resolution, so too have lawyers adapted their skills in many instances so as to better represent their clients in mediation and assist them to resolve their disputes at an early stage.

Rather than feeling threatened by mediation, lawyers are increasingly adapting to the new legal culture and finding a role for themselves in the dispute resolution process.

Furthermore, many lawyers entrust their clients to our processes with confidence in our neutrality and independence, knowing that we will encourage them to contact and consult with their lawyers as appropriate at any stage of the process.

Furthermore the lawyers know that if agreement is reached in principle, then we will forward the terms of the agreement to the lawyers or invite the clients to do so. Lawyers can then formalize the terms in consent orders and ensure that the agreement reached is both understood by the parties and genuinely reflects their wishes before they sign off on the agreed terms.

Involved lawyers realise that satisfied clients are their best marketing tools and lead in many cases to further referrals to the lawyer.

We would not hesitate to say that the involvement of lawyers in our process and their acceptance of our service has been an important aid to the establishment of our business.

Mike Emerson Co-Principal Brisbane Mediations

Family Mediation - One Size Doesn't Fit All

When there is conflict between separated couples over parenting and/or property, Mediation is a means of dispute resolution which can be adapted to the needs of the mediating parties and the nature of their dispute.

Sometimes, it is to the advantage of all concerned for a mediation to be conducted and completed over the course of one day, a comprehensive agreement being signed that same day.

In other cases because of: the personalities of the parties, the stage they have reached in respect of their emotional separation, the complexities of their dispute or the availability of the parties or their legal advisers, mediation might be best conducted over a period of time in smaller chunks.

The latter approach allows for parties struggling to adjust to their separation to deal with and adapt to changes in their lives one step at a time. For some, to attempt to make overarching decisions about financial or children's matters once and for all at their first mediation session is simply overwhelming and too daunting.

Time to consider and adapt is something that should never be denied to mediating parties if this is what they believe they need.

Most experienced mediators sensitive to their clients' needs know that some people need to discuss the options on the table with trusted advisers before signing off on an agreement.

Others like to trial the success of new arrangements (particularly in respect of children) before reviewing them and taking a further step. This is especially the case in matters involving very young children whose routines will be significantly altered by the proposed agreement.

Similarly, some parties will want their mediator to give them advice on what is best for their children or what is likely to happen should they not agree at mediation and go to court instead. Others want a mediator to only use their mediation skills to effect a resolution and would prefer to seek counsel from their own advisers.

Some want their children's views ascertained by a qualified child consultant who informs the mediation. Others see this as unduly stressful for their children.

If a mediation service has a "one size fits all" approach to mediation, then there is reason for concern. Mediation is about the needs of the parties, not those of the mediator.

Look for suitably qualified, experienced and flexible mediators willing to tailor their processes to the needs of their clients. Remember the old adage, "If all the workman has in his toolkit is a hammer, then every job he does will require a nail."

Denise Britton
Co-Principal and Psychologist
Brisbane Mediations

Mediating relationship disputes involving small property pools

Property settlements involving small pools are often among the hardest disputes to mediate.

The "pool" is the term lawyers use to describe the net value of the property arising from the relationship after deducting the liabilities.

The mediator must of course recognise that even a very modest pool is important to the parties.A problem that can arise is the proportion that the legal costs of the parties bears to the total size of the pool if the dispute is not resolved at mediation and has to go to court.

Regardless of the small size of the pool, the emotional issues between the parties can be just as intense and sometimes more so, with an additional layer of anger arising from a party having to move on from a low asset base.

If the matter has to proceed to court, then it must go through the same steps and stages as a more complex dispute and consequently the legal costs will still be significant, further depleting the already small pool.

The difficulty for the mediator is that he or she may know that it does not make sense for the matter to go to court, however unfortunately the disputing parties may be driven by emotion rather than logic.Regardless of the legal costs that may flow from proceeding to court, pride, emotional pain or wanting to rectify a past wrong may come between a party and settlement, with one or other or both parties refusing to compromise.This is not of course to suggest that one party should compromise for the sake of it where the other party is being totally unreasonable, however if the gap between them narrows to the point where settlement is possible then potential costs should become an issue.

The mediator can only point out the importance of trying to reach a resolution to preserve as much as possible of the pool for the parties.The mediator can feel additional pressure in these circumstances to help the parties achieve a resolution in their own interest, and feel disappointment if not successful.

Sometimes where parties are clearly acting emotionally rather than logically, the answer may lie in referring them to counselling to deal with their emotional issues before attending or returning to mediation and sense may eventually prevail with a settlement being reached before significant costs accrue.

Ultimately however it is the parties' dispute and if a resolution is not achievable then court with consequent costs may unfortunately result.

Mike Emerson