Dr Philipp Paech (Convener) NAB 7.21

Dr Jan Kleinheisterkamp NAB 7.09

This course is available on the LLM (extended part-time), LLM (full-time) and University of Pennsylvania Law School LLM Visiting Students. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

This course will be relevant to the following LLM specialisms: Commercial Law; International Business Law.

This course is capped at 30 students. Students must apply through Graduate Course Choice on LSE for You.

Students wishing to take Advanced Negotiation and Mediation are recommended to have taken LL4L1 - The Theory and Practice of Alternative Commercial Dispute Resolution, or have equivalent prior experience.

This course explores the dynamics of disputes and the use of negotiation and mediation to assist in their resolution. These techniques can allow parties to overcome antagonistic positions or disputes, refocus on their actual needs and to come to an agreement over how to align their interests and to allocate risk for the future – and to draw a line under tensions of the past. The course pays particular attention to understanding the dynamics of disputes; obstacles to their resolution arising from cultural differences and the role of language, including techniques such as non-violent communication; different theories and models of negotiation and mediation and their practical applications, such as facilitative, evaluative, narrative / transformative and transactional approaches; the sometimes/often problematic role of lawyers; the nature of settlement and its potential dangers for weaker parties or public interests.

In sum, the course aims to facilitate not only an advanced theoretical but also practical understanding of the processes and techniques involved in negotiation and mediation. For that purpose, case studies will illustrate some specific challenges, such as in negotiations of international transactions, family mediation, meditation in international crisis situations or policy negotiations in the context of public institutions. Experienced practitioners will be invited to share their insights from experiences in the field.

20 hours of seminars in the LT. 2 hours of seminars in the ST.

There will be a Reading Week in Week 6.

One 2,000 word essay.

R Fisher / W Ury / B Patton, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In (revised edn, 2011); W Ury, Getting Past No: Negotiating with Difficult People (1992); M Rosenberg, Non-Violent Communication (2015); O Fiss, ‘Against Settlement’ (1983/84) 93 Yale LJ 1073-1090; S Roberts / M Palmer, Dispute Processes: ADR and the Primary Forms of Dispute Resolution (2nd edn, CUP 2005).

Essay (100%, 8000 words) in the ST.