The group, which was formed in May 2009, is now 1,008 members strong and is growing by the week.  Many different industries are represented, including the insurance and reinsurance industry.  The group enables members to share information; discuss and debate issues; directly access numerous excellent ADR-related blogs; and network with others in the domestic and international ADR community. 

The group welcomes new members, and encourages (but does not require) active participation.  The only requirement for membership is a bona fide interest in ADR.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group.  If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a user name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join up!

The group, which was formed in May 2009, is now 900 members strong and is growing by the week.  Many different industries are represented, including the insurance and reinsurance industry.  The group enables members to share information; discuss and debate issues; directly access numerous excellent ADR-related blogs; and network with others in the domestic and international ADR community. 

The group welcomes new members, and encourages (but does not require) active participation.  The only requirement for membership is a bona fide interest in ADR.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group.  If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a user name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join up!

The group, which was formed in May 2009, is now more than 800 members strong and is growing by the week.  Many different industries are represented, including the insurance and reinsurance industry.  The group enables members to share information; discuss and debate issues; directly access numerous excellent ADR-related blogs; and network with others in the domestic and international ADR community. 

The group welcomes new members, and encourages (but does not require) active participation.  The only requirement for membership is a bona fide interest in ADR.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group.  If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a log-in name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join up!

Some LinkedIn groups are a little dull, featuring little or no meaningful discussion and plenty of shameless self promotion.  But this group is a lively one that enjoys debating issues and sharing information and experiences.  Discussions have been frequent and spirited, the group is internationally and professionally diverse, and group members have access to several ADR blog feeds, as well as articles posted by other group members.  It is an excellent networking and learning opportunity for anyone interested in commercial and industry ADR.

The Group is co-managed by Don Philbin, Jr., Karl Bayer, Robert Bear, Victoria Van Buren and me.  Sharing the burden of group management makes it easier to keep up a steady flow of discussion and interaction. 

But the Group’s greatest strength is its membership, which is bright, talented, accomplished, friendly and willing to share to insights and information concerning arbitration, mediation, negotiation and other forms of dispute resolution.  It is a fine example of how social media can foster excellent professional networking communities.    

Membership in the group is recommended to those interested in keeping abreast of current events pertinent to arbitration (including consumer and international arbitration), tracking judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law, learning more about the subject, or simply sharing information.  We are proud to have as members a number of commercial and industry arbitrators, attorneys, law professors, industry people and arbitration professionals.   

Membership is also recommended if you are a mediator, a business person who utilizes mediation to resolve disputes, an attorney who represent clients in mediation or a person interested in learning about mediation or sharing information on the subject.  The group’s membership features a number of highly-accomplished mediators, dispute resolution professionals, ADR bloggers and professors.  Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group discussions.      

We welcome new members both from the United States and other countries.  The only requirement for membership is a bona fide interest in ADR.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches, and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group. If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a log-in name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join up!

The program will be held at the Melville Marriott, 1350 Old Walt Whitman Road, Melville, NY 11747. Breakfast and registration will be held between 8:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., and the seminar will begin at 8:30 a.m. It has been approved for 1.5 New York CLE credits.

Space is limited, so if you are interested in attending, please RSVP by e-mail or fax:

Email: events@ultimateabstract.com

Fax: 631-501-1370

Telephone: 631-423-1600

David is an experienced public speaker and a vigorous advocate of ADR, so the seminar promises to be a very good one.  You can learn more about David’s practice here. 

I’ll certainly be there, and I hope you’ll be able to attend, too.

Some LinkedIn groups are a little dull, featuring little or no meaningful discussion and plenty of shameless self promotion.  But this group is a lively one that enjoys debating issues and sharing information and experiences.  Discussions have been frequent and spirited, the group is internationally and professionally diverse, and group members have access to several ADR blog feeds, as well as articles posted by other group members.  It is an excellent networking and learning opportunity for anyone interested in commercial and industry ADR.

Membership in the group is recommended to those interested in keeping abreast of current events pertinent to arbitration (including consumer and international arbitration), tracking judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law, learning more about the subject, or simply sharing information.  We are proud to have as members a number of commercial and industry arbitrators, attorneys, law professors, industry people and arbitration professionals.   

Membership is also recommended if you are a mediator, a business person who utilizes mediation to resolve disputes, an attorney who represent clients in mediation or a person interested in learning about mediation or sharing information on the subject.  The group’s membership features a number of highly-accomplished mediators, dispute resolution professionals, and ADR bloggers and professors.  Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group discussions.      

We welcome new members.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches, and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group. If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a log-in name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join up!

Some LinkedIn groups are a little dull, featuring little or no meaningful discussion and lots of shameless self promotion.  But this group is a lively one that enjoys debating issues and sharing information and experiences.  Discussions have been frequent and spirited, the group is internationally and professionally diverse, and group members have access to several ADR blog feeds, as well as articles posted by other group members.  It is an excellent networking and learning opportunity for anyone interested in commercial and industry ADR.

Membership in the group is recommended to those interested in keeping abreast of current events pertinent to arbitration (including consumer arbitration), tracking judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law, learning more about the subject, or simply sharing information.  We are proud to have as members a number of commercial and industry arbitrators, attorneys, law professors, industry people and arbitration professionals.   

Membership is also recommended if you are a mediator, a business person who utilizes mediation to resolve disputes, an attorney who represent clients in mediation or a person interested in learning about mediation or sharing information on the subject.  The group’s membership features a number of highly-accomplished mediators and well-known ADR bloggers.  Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group participation.    

We welcome new members.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches, and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the group. If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a log-in name and password, you can apply for membership in the group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group. 

We hope you’ll join the conversation!

Around the time we published that post, my friend, colleague and fellow LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group member, Theresa Hajost, told me that she had an article in the works that would treat in a very comprehensive fashion the issue of arbitrator authority to retain jurisdiction.  (For those of you who do not already know her, Theresa is a partner at the Washington, D.C. office of Halloran & Sage LLP, where she practices insurance and reinsurance litigation and arbitration.)  I thought that was a great idea and told her so. 

Theresa recently published the article, Does An Arbitrator’s Retention of Jurisdiction After The Issuance of a Final Award Subject That Award To Vacatur?,  in ADR Choices (Volume I Issue 10) (published by DRI).  We highly recommend it as it surveys and discusses cases from all over the country on the issue of an arbitrator’s authority to retain jurisdiction, organizes those cases into helpful categories and offers  insightful comments on the subject.  It is an excellent resource for anyone who is interested in arbitral power, or who is confronted with a scenario where there is a question concerning an arbitration panel’s authority to remain constituted post award.  You can read the article using the link Halloran & Sage has kindly provided here.

Great job, Theresa!

When I read John’s draft the first thing that struck me was that the rules and tips he offers are, for all intents and purposes, applicable to cedents pursuing reinsurance recoveries.  He stresses, among other things, the importance of honesty, good faith, open communication and not colluding with the claimant in an effort to obtain coverage.  These attributes are ones to which diligent, ceded claims personnel should aspire in their dealings with their company’s reinsurers, because they tend to increase the odds of achieving a successful recovery and avoiding time-consuming and expensive reinsurance disputes (all other things being equal). 

John was also kind enough to quote my comments in his article, which are reproduced below: 

As I discussed these rules with Philip J. Loree Jr. at the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum the other day, I learned that they don’t only apply to policyholders –  apparently insurers must live by these same rules to collect from their reinsurers:

You would be surprised how frequently reinsurers contend that the carrier colluded with the policyholder in direct insurance coverage litigation.  If the reinsurer can establish collusion concerning the fact, amount or allocation of coverage, or if the reinsurer otherwise shows that the carrier acted in bad faith, then the reinsurer will usually be relieved of liability for the claim.  Like policyholders making direct insurance claims, carriers making reinsurance claims need to avoid even the appearance of collusion or bad faith, and following rules analogous to yours helps them do that.

Whether you happen to be a corporate or individual policyholder, or a cedent wishing to increase the odds of successfully collecting from reinsurers, John’s fine article comes highly recommended.   In fact if you are at all interested in settlement and ADR, we highly recommend that you follow Settlement Perspectives.  John writes high-quality, insightful and practical  articles on a variety of pertinent topics.  Who could ask for more?

On May 21, 2009 Disputing and the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum announced the formation of the LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group (post available here), an open forum for the discussion of industry and commercial ADR.   At that time the group was 29 members strong, and we are pleased to report that the group has since grown to 404 members.  And about 150 of those new members have joined since August 29, 2009. 

Discussions have been lively, the group is internationally and professionally diverse, and group members have access to several ADR blogs, as well as articles posted by other group members.  It is an excellent networking and learning opportunity for anyone interested in commercial and industry ADR.

The group recently set up a subgroup — the Effective Negotiation and Settlement Subgroup — which is now more than 90 members strong.  This subgroup, founded by California mediator, arbitrator and blogger Michael P. Carbone, focuses on identifying and discussing the effective negotiation, mediation and settlement of disputes that are the subject of pending arbitration or litigation proceedings.  Membership in the main group is the only prerequisite to participate in the subgroup.   

Membership in the group is recommended to those interested in keeping abreast of current events pertinent to arbitration (including consumer arbitration), tracking judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law, learning more about the subject, or simply sharing information.  We are proud to have as members a number of commercial and industry arbitrators, attorneys, law professors, industry people and arbitration professionals.   

Membership is also recommended if you are a mediator, a business person who utilizes mediation to resolve disputes, an attorney who represent clients in mediation or a person interested in learning about mediation or sharing information on the subject.  The group is proud to have as members a number of accomplished mediators, including some well-known ADR bloggers.  Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group participation.    

We welcome new members.  The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches, and the like. 

If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click here to apply for membership in the Group. If you are not a LinkedIn member, click here, and you will be guided through the process of creating a profile (which does not need to be completed in one step).  Once your profile is started, and you have a log-in name and password, you can apply for membership in the Group (which entails no more than clicking on a button).  Joining LinkedIn is free, as is joining the group.

We hope you’ll join us and participate!