According to the post announcing the initial nominees (here):

As many of you know, there are blogs, and then there are blogs. When we consider a blog for membership in ILC’s annual Top 50, we look for frequent posts, timely topics, and quality writing. Only the best may gain admission. Our readers have come to expect nothing less, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.  (emphasis in original)

If you read and enjoy the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum, we would be grateful if you would post a comment at the LexisNexis Insurance Law Community site recommending us for inclusion in the final Top 50 list.  Instructions on how to do so are here. 

We also note that our good friend Marc Lanzkowsky’s blog, The Claims SPOT, was included in the initial list of nominees.  If you are not already familiar with Marc’s blog, then we urge you to check it out, because we think you’ll like what you see.  And whether or not you are already familiar with Marc’s blog, if you share our view that it should be included in the final top 50 list, then please be sure to let LexisNexis know here.

Many thanks to all of our readers for your continued support!

EDITOR’S NOTE:  LexisNexis has advised us that the comment period has now been extended to July 9, 2010. 

The Commercial ADR Blog reflects the high-quality writing and insightful analysis that we have come to expect from Victoria’s Settle It Now blog, and the IP ADR Blog.  It also has a very pleasing layout and uses pictures very effectively — another characteristic of Victoria’s blogs, especially Settle It Now.  In fact, every time I check out Settle It Now or Commercial ADR, I make a mental note to learn how to use effectively the pictures function in WordPress!   (By the way, another blog that uses pictures effectively is Disputing, Karl Bayer’s and Victoria VanBuren’s excellent blog.)  

Few in the ADR business are as indefatigable as Victoria Pynchon, but our friend, and LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group Co-Manager Don Philbin is in her league.  Don’s latest contribution to the world of ADR is the ADR Highlight Reel, which you can read here or access via the link in our blogroll.  Don avidly follows more than 100 blogs, many or most of which touch on ADR, or ADR-related topics, like brain science.  Don traditionally flagged articles that he thought were particularly interesting and distributed copies of them by snail mail, and later, by e mail.  With the advent of Twitter, Don set up a system that allows him to tag articles, which, along with a brief description, are automatically posted on Twitter via an RSS feed.  The ADR Hightight Reel consolidates in a single blog post the links to all of Don’s recommended ADR articles for a given period. 

Don’s is an incredibly valuable resource.  Many of us spend hours surfing the web or plowing through Google Reader to keep abreast of ADR-related developments.  Don does all of that work for us and makes it available in one highly accessible format.  Even if you already follow Don on Twitter, and receive his recommendations on a real time basis, article by article, having those recommendations in one spot is a real big plus. 

I suppose a skeptic might question whether he or she should rely on a third person to cull through the 100s of articles pertinent to ADR regularly posted in the blogosphere.  But I can assure readers that Don casts a very wide net with a fairly narrow mesh (I apologize — Sometimes I simply cannot resist fishing-related metaphors, even so-so ones like this!).  The chances of Don not featuring a truly relevant ADR article in his ADR Highlight Reel are, in my humble opinion and experience, slim to none.

Let us all extend our heartfelt thanks to Victoria Pynchon and Don Philbin for their wonderful, new contributions to the ADR blogosphere.

We would therefore like to take this opportunity to thank our readers for their support, and to express our sincere hope that our first 100 posts have proved to be a useful resource.  Having said that, it is time to get cracking on our next 100 posts!

First, our friend Chris Sherliker, a U.K. solicitor and blogmaster of the Silverman Sherliker Blog (here),  mentioned us in his excellent Blawgreview #243 submission, entitled “Fighting Back:  A Festive Meditation for Lawyers.”  Drawing inspiration from the likes of Winston Churchill, Chris discussed the importance of lawyers fighting the good fight.  Chris singled out a number of bloggers as fighters, including the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum:  “From the sublime to the subject of re-insurance and a particularly interesting blog by Philip J Loree Jr of Loree & Loree who is fighting back to ensure that the limits of arbitral power are kept within proper bounds. Fight on, brother.”  Thanks, Chris, and keep fighting the good fight on behalf of your clients!

Second, our friend Diane Levin, an accomplished mediator, veteran blogger and social media pro,  mentioned us in one of Mediation Channel’s recent Fallacious Arguments of the Month Posts, entitled “In Pursuit of the Red Herring.”  Diane characterized me as “a fierce defender of rational discourse and a highly insightful ADR blogger.”   Thanks Diane — you are far too kind!  You and your blog lead the fight for rational discourse here in the ADR world.  Fight on, sister! 

Third, our friend Tom Johansmeyer, professional writer and blogmaster of  the Reinsurance Blogger,  recently featured the Forum in his feature, “Four Reinsurance Blogs You Can’t Live Without.”    Tom said “The focus here is definitely on the legal side of the business, which means [the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum is].  .  . packed with important, though somewhat dense, information (at least for a simple marketing guy like me). But, if you’re watching reinsurance litigation and dispute resolution, it’s an absolute must-read.”  Tom, thanks so much for giving us the thumbs up! 

Fourth, as we mentioned in a recent post (here),  our friend John DeGroote, the blogmaster of Settlement Perspectives , sought and published our comments in his excellent article “Insurance Coverage: 4 Rules and 10 Tips for Policyholders.”  John, thanks again for thinking of and mentioning us! 

Finally, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld’s excellent SCOTUSBlog – one of our favorite legal blogs and a go-to source of information on United States Supreme Court litigation – mentioned us in its December 24, 2009 Thursday Round-up feature written by Rhoades Scholar Adam Chandler:  “Finally, at the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum, Philip J. Loree, Jr. offers a detailed analysis of the oral argument in Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds International Corp., a class action arbitration dispute that was argued on December 9.”   Thanks, Adam!

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?

Please be assured that there are posts in the works and that pretty soon we will be churning them out at a respectable rate once again.  

Stay tuned….

We were flattered that Diane included the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum on her list, and described it as a “niche blog” that is “distinguished by scholarly, sophisticated discussion and analysis of issues in reinsurance and commercial litigation and arbitration.”   We, like most bloggers (and certainly all of those on Diane’s list), work hard to produce material worthy of publication, and it always makes you  feel appreciated when your efforts are publicly acknowledged.  Thank you, Diane! 

By the way, any list of alternative dispute resolution blogs to follow would be incomplete without mention of Diane’s own blog, the Mediation Channel, and her catalogue of worldwide ADR blogs, ADRblogs.com.  Diane is a very talented writer, and as we have said before (here), her posts really make you think.  She’s been blogging for a number of years now, and she’s one of the best.  But don’t just take our word for it, read her posts! 

She is also an expert on social media, and I have learned much from her about it (and am still learning).  For example, I initially had some reservations about joining Twitter, which I shared with the LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group in a discussion post.   Diane’s helpful and informative response convinced me to give it a try, which I did.  I have been on Twitter for just over a week now, and I couldn’t be more pleased with it.  People like Diane are what make social media work, and only a select few are in her league.

Disputing is an excellent ADR blog and, on behalf of the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum, we congratulate Karl and Victoria on this special day.  Both of them have made an enormously valuable contribution to the ADR blogosphere, and continue to produce a steady stream of timely, interesting, thoughtful, and well-written posts. And they have a very impressive following, as well.

As co-founders of the LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group, they have helped provide an excellent forum to the ADR community for the discussion of issues pertinent to the field.  The group continues to grow, and the discussions keep flowing, even in the dog days of summer!

Karl and Victoria:  Congratulations and keep up the excellent work!

The Supreme Court’s decision in Stolt-Nielsen may have some important ramifications for both commercial and consumer arbitration.  And soon-to-be Justice Sotomayor may provide the swing vote in the case.  So for advance coverage, tune into Disputing….

On May 21, 2009 Disputing and the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum announced the formation of a 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 200  members.  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.

Membership in the group is useful to those of us that are following the unfortunate developments plaguing consumer debt arbitration, and for those who want to keep abreast of  judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law.   A number of industry arbitrators, attorneys, industry people  and arbitration professionals are members. 

Mediation is another key area that is the subject of group discussions and the posting of articles.  The group is proud to have as members a number of accomplished mediators.  Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group participation.    

We welcome new members.  Persons who should consider joining this group include arbitrators; mediators; in-house and outside counsel; law professors; dispute-resolution consultants; members of ADR organizations; business entity representatives and principals whose day-to-day responsibilities include dispute resolution; law students and other students of commercial and industry ADR; and anyone else interested in the subject.  The Group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not worry 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 have 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!