By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Mediators have a delicate job. They know it isn’t their role to praise or blame a party. It isn’t their role to take sides. To do so means sacrificing their credibility and their effectiveness along with it. But the tougher question is whether a commitment to stick to facilitation, rather […]
Know When to Give Your Mediator a Voice: The Settlement Series, Part Three Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: There is a perspective on negotiations focusing on tactics, secret strategies, or tricks. The problem with this tricks-based approach is that once you have two sides who think they know the tricks – like “never make the first offer,” – then you’re headed for a stalemate faster than a game
Don’t Play Chicken With Your Case: The Settlement Series, Part Two Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: We all have an image in our heads of the way we expect cases to end: passionate presentations, gripping witness testimony, then a tense wait followed by the dramatic verdict. In the great majority of cases, however, the dispute will end not in a courtroom but in a conference room.
Break Through the Barriers: The Settlement Series, Part One Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: If you are like me, you have grown tired of hearing that sublime tautology of a catch phrase, “It is what it is.” I want to shout in response, “Of course it is! What else would it be?” But the expression perfectly captures the attitude of some litigators toward analogies.
Fight Fire With Fire (And Fight Bad Analogies With Better Ones) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Here is a piece of advice that works not only as a trial message, but also as a strategy for avoiding trials in the first place: When someone loses their job, make sure it is for reasons that meet the legal tests, even when those tests aren’t legally required. For
Treat Your Terminations as “For Cause” (Even When They’re “At Will”) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Your opening is a story, I’ve written before, about what happened and about what kind of case this is. The closing is a different story, not about what happened, but what is about to happen: deliberations and a verdict, hopefully in your favor. It makes little sense to go all
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: The Hippocratic oath also applies to doctors caught in the litigation process. In deposition, the rule is “first, do no harm” to your case. No one wins their own case in deposition. But a medical defendant might end up losing it by falling prey to some common mistakes. Depositions are taken in order
Turn in a Powerful Deposition, Doctor Defendant Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Lessons for litigation sometimes come from unlikely sources. Take the recent explosion of attention to the issue of marriage equality for gays and lesbians, ignited by the President’s recent statement of personal support. His evolution of opinion follows an important milestone in public support: The proportion of Americans who agree
Don’t Discount a Motivated Minority Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It will not go down as one of the doctor’s smartest Facebook updates. Returning to work at Wales General Hospital last December, Dr. Brendan O’Riordan added a note on his status: “Back and causing chaos,” he wrote, “Been in theatre this week slaughtering the innocent.” That stab at humor is
Vet Your Public Persona Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Not all witnesses are saints. While this is especially well-known in the realm of criminal prosecution, it applies in civil trials as well. A witness may carry some unsavory background, or the context may simply be such that their testimony – truthful or not – feels like betrayal. The same
Test the Credibility of Your Turncoat Witness Read More »