Mr. Fisher has also written several books on negotiation - some of which serve as the very core of the mediation process as it is being taught throughout our country. In 2000, Mr. Kulerski received advanced mediation training at Pepperdine Law School in Malibu, California. The negotiation training that Mr. Kulerski received at Harvard dealt with non-family law conflicts. It went directly to the task of understanding and improving the manner by which people and organizations deal with their differences. Whether the conflict is marital or corporate, the parties on both sides will always have differing senses of entitlement.
Feelings are still feelings and perspectives are still perspectives.
The mediator's role is to help parties and their lawyers to carefully evaluate the opportunities and risks of litigation and, by working together in a collaborative fashion, develop options for settlement which satisfy the parties' true underlying interests and needs. This is destructive, painful and costly. Effective mediation and facilitation services can restore harmony and save considerable pain and cost to everyone involved. Whether the conflict is between spouses or nations, the Harvard and Pepperdine experiences have taught Mr. Kulerski certain, effective process concepts which help disputants to build solid, future working relationships. The use and development of this set of ideas is applicable to the working relationships that might be present in any conflict.