I’m excited to be presenting to the XPX (Exit Planning Exchange) Fairfield County Chapter with Carolyn Beers on “Transitioning to Insiders: Family Business Planning and Continuity”. Join us on Friday, April 12, 7:30-9:30 in Norwalk for practical ideas for advisors and their clients. https://exitplanningexchange.com/fairfield-county/events
Reconciliation Day, April 2
Advice columnist Ann Landers declared April 2 as Reconciliation Day for family and friends. Thirty years ago, a reader wrote in to the syndicated columnist and suggested that a day be set aside for family and friends to extend – and to accept – the olive branch of reconciliation on a day named Reconciliation Day. […]
Dovetail and New Year’s Resolutions
All year long, my work with Dovetail Resolutions is devoted to helping intergenerational families and their businesses make and keep resolutions. Resolutions that reflect a determination to take concrete steps to create and execute a plan. Resolutions to conflicts that are damaging families, their businesses, and their wealth. The New Year is a […]
“Why every attorney should consider ADR” — my article published in the Conn. Law Tribune
On February 26, 2014, the Connecticut Law Tribune published my article, “Why every attorney should consider ADR.” As I hope the title suggests, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is an option that every attorney should consider — not just those in specific practice areas where mediation and arbitration have been common for some time. Sometimes, clients […]
Two Kinds of “Resolutions”
Throughout the year, my thoughts are on conflict resolution. Most of my work involves mediation, the type of conflict or dispute “resolution” where a dispute has come to a head and needs to be resolved effectively. Yet this time of year we hear a lot about New Year’s Resolutions. This type of “resolution” is more […]
Roger Fisher’s Impact on Conflict Resolution and Mediation
Roger Fisher’s death at age 90 provides an opportunity to reflect on his extraordinary impact on conflict resolution and mediation. According to his New York Times obituary, Professor Fisher decided to dedicate his life to helping avoid war after seeing some of the horrors of World War II and its aftermath. He is likely best […]
Dignity and Conflict Resolution
Last month, the New England Chapter of the Association for Conflict Resolution presented a program by Dr. Donna Hicks. She presented highlights from her work and recently published book, “Dignity: The Essential Role it Plays in Resolving Conflict.” Dr. Hicks’ research and direct conflict resolution experience have convinced her that parties in conflict are often […]
Today is Conflict Resolution Day
Today is Conflict Resolution Day, an annual celebration sponsored by the international Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR). As ACR describes the day: “The Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR)’s Board of Directors adopted a resolution designating the third Thursday in October annually as Conflict Resolution Day in order to increase public awareness about conflict resolution and […]
Mediation and Independence
Today is July 4, Independence Day, and my thoughts turn to the relationship between mediation and independence. No, I don’t believe that mediation would have resolved the dispute between England and the Colonies. Nor does it seem likely that mediators could have prevented the Revolutionary War with a mediated resolution. Conflict resolution does have its […]
The Dynamic Nature of Conflict
People thinking and talking about conflict often address the idea of the dynamics of a group that is in internal conflict. How these people have interacted in the past and their assumed roles within the group — whether a family, a business, or some other type of group — both have a profound impact on […]
