“Over the past decades, no area of practice has grown to have a wider impact on legal operations than dispute resolution.” -Brian Jerome The numbers don’t lie: 95% of pending personal injury lawsuits end in a pretrial settlement (according to Law Dictionary’s website), while legal news site Above the Law reports that only 1.5% of…
ADR
Avoiding Pitfalls During Mediation Settlement
It’s 6 PM after a long mediation and all the participants are cranky and tired…but an agreement on a monetary amount has been reached! The moment the parties heard “yes”, they began packing up their files, but the mediator insists that they stay long enough for him or her to prepare a mediation settlement agreement.…
MDRS Welcomes David A. Mills to the Neutral Panel
It is our great pleasure to announce the appointment of Judge David A. Mills to the MDRS Panel of Neutrals. Judge Mills’ remarkable background includes his service at the Massachusetts Appeals Court from 2001 to 2012. He has since then provided case evaluations in appellate matters, trial litigation matters, Single Justice practice, and pre-trial consultatons…
Mediation: Achieving Success
How can participants maximize their chances for a successful outcome in mediation? While there are many worthwhile opinions and no shortage of advice, the simple virtue of civility can advance your negotiations in a powerful way. Overlooked in so many cases is the personal factor. There are reports, claims, medical bills, evidence to be collected.…
Divorce Decree Can’t Compel Mediation
In a recent ruling on Ventrice v. Ventrice, a husband and wife could not be compelled to engage in mediation at their own expense as a condition of their being permitted to file actions in the future to enforce or modify the terms of their divorce. The husband argued that his right to free access…
What Happens in the (Mediation) Room Stays…
MDRS’ Brian Jerome was recently quoted in the Boston Herald in regards to the now-resolved Market Basket situation. During a phone interview with the Herald, Brian expressed the importance of confidentiality while in the mediation room. While his quote was referenced out of context in the published article, the interview brought up an important component…
MDRS Presents ADR Techniques to Nigerian…
MDRS is honored to again have been asked to present on alternative dispute resolution to a high-level delegation from Nigeria visiting the United States seeking out information on ADR so that they can further such implementation in their country. This is the third year that MDRS will have the honor of working with this admirable…
Jeanne M. Kempthorne selected for Super Lawyers
We are pleased to announce that one of our distinguished neutrals, Jeanne M. Kempthorne, has been recently selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers 2013 by Thomson Reuters. Super Lawyers is a rating system for lawyers in a range of practice areas that uses a patented multiphase selection method to choose only the best attorneys to…
Join us at the BBA Brown Bag Seminar on ADR
We invite you to join us on Wednesday, November 14, 2013 for a Boston Bar Association-sponsored seminar on ADR in Premises Liability Cases. You may know that MDRS has handled into the thousands of these types of cases. During this lunch-hour seminar at the BBA [16 Beacon Street, Boston], you will learn about what makes premises liability cases well-suited…
Foreclosure Mediation in Massachusetts
Although Foreclosure Mediation programs are not statewide in Massachusetts, three major cities have instituted mandatory programs through city ordinances as a means to help negotiate alternatives to foreclosures. Through foreclosure mediation, homeowners and lenders engage in guided negotiation with a skilled mediator who is also a foreclosure expert. Together they work to define new agreements…
MDRS Spotlight on Premises Liability
According to a recent statistic, the National Safety Council reported that slip and fall accidents account for 1 million visits to the ER per year. And these account for only a fraction of premises liability cases, which can occur from any injury suffered on property belonging to or maintained by another person or party. Premises…
Dissolving Business Partnerships with Mediation
When you are involved in a business partnership, it can be daunting to think about severing that critical relationship, however, there are uncounted issues that can lead to the necessary dissolution of a business partnership. Whether it’s simply one party’s loss of interest in the business, a desire to retire, a lack of commitment that…
NFL Concussion Case Heads to Mediation
In April 2013, a hearing was held in Philadelphia over litigation filed against the National Football League by more than 4,000 players who allege that concussions suffered during their careers have adversely impacted their health. Plaintiffs include players who want their future health closely monitored, those already suffering from dementia, depression, and/or neurological disorders, and…
Using ADR to Resolve Slip and Fall Accidents
Premise liability occurs when injury is suffered on property belonging to another person or business. Whether it is the conditions of the land, or activities performed, issues often arise in determining fault. When personal injury occurs it is often the first response to assign causality for the accident, but it can be difficult to prove…
Deaths from Workplace Injuries Honored in Boston
This past April, the Massachusetts State House honored those who died from workplace injuries in 2012. Nearly 100 advocates came together on April 26 in honor of Workers Memorial Day to pay their respects to 32 people who recently lost their lives to workplace injuries. The numbers have fortunately been on the decline, down from 58 deaths in 2011.…
ADR and Automobile Claims
Founded in 1991, MDRS has perhaps mediated and arbitrated more automobile claims of all types than any other ADR provider in Massachusetts. Automobile related claims are particularly suited to the processes of alternative dispute resolution, which are designed to meet the parties’ interests in resolving these cases equitably, economically and skillfully, and avoiding the time,…
MED-ARB: Sculpting the ADR Process To The Case
Both mediation and arbitration are now familiar and popular ADR processes used to resolve an ever broadening array of disputes. Over the past years, these two processes have literally transformed the legal landscape such that parties and their counsel are viewing ADR as a more appropriate manner of resolving disputes than is offered by Courts.…
Recent Cases in ADR – April 2013
Keep updated on the most recent cases and latest developments in Alternative Dispute Resolution. What’s new this April? Find out here. Arbitration – Arbitration Clause in Employee Handbook Not Enforceable. The plaintiff brought suit alleging that her employer, its owner and her former supervisor interfered with her request for maternity leave under the Family and…
ADR for Auto Accidents
Proving fault in an automobile accident with another vehicle is often difficult. The circumstances surrounding car accidents vary greatly and each involves unique elements that should be examined. If you are involved in an automobile accident, you may be in shock and unable to fully process what is going on around you. It is…
ADR for Prescription Drug Errors
According to the Institute of Medicine, medication errors affect more than 1.5 million Americans each year in hospitals alone. Similarly, in a study published by the Journal of American Pharmacists Association in 2003, it was found that American pharmacies make over 30 million drug administration errors a year. Errors can occur for a multitude…
Looking for Signs of Nursing Home Abuse
Taking care of aging parents is a difficult job. Turning to adult day care and nursing homes for assistance are sometimes unavoidable arrangements. This decision is often times inescapable – whether it is because of hectic work schedules, caring for young children, or medical handicaps that make home care impossible. At MDRS, we understand…
Focus on Elderly and Nursing Home Abuse Cases
One of the most common types of cases or disputes that we help to resolve are cases involving elderly nursing home abuse or neglect. One of the challenges involved in these cases is that often times if there is an abuse or mistreatment, the injured parties often suffer from a loss of trust. It is…
Mediation Didn’t Spoil the Twinkies
Unless you stocked up in November or have been trolling the snack food selection on eBay, it has been quite some time since you last bit into a Twinkie. But lucky for junk food aficionados, that spongy yellow delicacy may be back in time for summer. Last November, Hostess, the original manufacturer of the…
Working with today’s students, tomorrow’s lawyers
Remembering law school can invoke memories across the spectrum, from being overwhelmed to learning about all the things that first excited us about the law. Attorney Brian Jerome regularly invites local law students to observe real-life mediations and arbitrations. Today’s students are very well prepared by their professors, ask all the right questions, and are…
MDRS Appointed ADR Provider to the Superior Court
We are pleased to announce that MDRS has been approved to serve both the Superior Court and the Land Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a court-connected provider to their Alternative Dispute Resolution programs. It is an honor to have been chosen for these three-year terms, and we are looking forward to assisting the…
NADN Membership for Brian Jerome
The National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (NADN), an invitation-only association of exceptional Alternative Dispute Resolution professionals, has announced the induction of Brian R. Jerome, Esq. to its esteemed group. The NADN recognizes mediators and arbitrators who have met stringent practice criteria, and whom stand out among firm- and peer-reviews. The Academy has made its directory of…
