Resources

What qualities should people look out for in their lawyer when going through a mediation? Read this month's newsletter to find out more.

This month, the newsletter highlights SMC's Mediation Charter and how it can benefit your organisation

Learn how mediation can bring about positive outcomes for businesses through cost reduction and resource allocation.

This month, we look at the Mediation Bill and its impact on the dispute resolution landscape in Singapore.

Our friends and mediators shared their thoughts and wishes for the year 2017. Find out more in our January Mediate newsletter.

SMC's Executive Director Mr Loong Seng Onn recaps SMC's achievements for the year.

At this year’s Singapore Mediation Lecture, we were given insights into the future of mediation, and the advances in ODR achieved internationally. ODR is simply the use of information and communications technology to help parties resolve their disputes. Mr Colin Rule, previously the director of ODR at eBay and PayPal, now co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Modria.com, an ODR provider based in Silicon Valley, shared his experiences with us.

In these challenging times, the maritime industry needs efficient and effective dispute resolution mechanisms. At SMC's by-invitation-only signature event Unfolding Conversations- Navigating Stormy Relationships on 28 September 2016, business leaders from the maritime community had the opportunity to observe and learn about the use of ADR processes to resolve their disputes.

This month, our guest writers Mr K Anparasan and Ms Sharon Lin of Withers KhattarWong LLP share their thoughts on mediation as an insurance law practitioner.

We’ve published many articles on how mediation can resolve disputes quickly and effectively, but did you know that there are also different styles of mediation? This month, we introduce three styles that are commonly discussed.

Drawing on SMC's 19 years of experience in facilitating mediations, this newsletter explores some factors that can lead to a higher likelihood of a mediation succeeding.

Using mediation to resolve disputes is most effective when parties are fully committed to the process. However, sometimes commitment alone will not suffice. In this issue, we look at common reasons why mediation may not result in settlement.

This issue, we shed light on some mediation myths so that you can arrive at the best possible decision for your business or client.

SMC consultant Lee Wai Pong shares his thoughts on the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution in the maritime sector.

Fresh off the first Global Pound Conference (GPC) held in Singapore, we share some of the highlights from this historic event.

This month's newsletter discusses the changes to the Supreme Court Practice Directions (Amendment No 1 of 2016) for civil cases in the High Court and Court of Appeal.

In the first newsletter of 2016, we begin with a year in review and take a peek at the new and exciting events to come.

As the year comes to a close, it is customary to take stock of what one has done and to articulate wishes for the New Year.

At the 4th Singapore Mediation Lecture held last month, SMC had the pleasure of hosting Dr iur Hans Peter Frick who addressed an audience on embracing a mediation culture when managing business disputes. Dr Frick was the former Group General Counsel of Nestlé SA and he shared his journey about how mediation benefited him and eventually the company.

In these challenging and uncertain times, how can businesses maintain control over their business outcomes? At SMC’s by-invitation-only signature event “Unfolding Conversations” on 7 October, more than 120 business leaders had the opportunity to explore strategies to maintain control over the outcome of their business disputes through a simulated mediation session and a panel discussion.

To ensure professionalism and to raise standards in mediation, the Singapore Government has decided to set up a new independent non-profit entity called the Singapore International Mediation Institute (SIMI). SMC is one of the first partners to come on board with SIMI, and its programmes are accredited by SIMI.

Resolving insolvency disputes as a mediator is hard work, but also immensely satisfying. The mediation skills required will vary from case to case. The Honourable James M. Peck, SMC Mediator, global co-chair of Morrison & Foerster’s Business Restructuring & Insolvency Group, New York, shares his experience and observations about what works well in insolvency cases.

With both mediation and arbitration gaining popularity as Alternative Dispute Resolution methods, it is not uncommon for disputes to go through both processes before the dispute is resolved. This luxury of choice can be a good thing for clients, but raises concerns over the role of the arbitrator in mediation.

We often say that a good mediator should possess 3 ‘P’s – Problem-solving skills, People skills and Process skills. A mediator needs to have problem-solving skills to grasp complex issues quickly, uncover their underlying interests, help parties with option generation and reality testing.

Do you know which is better - to make private arrangements (ad-hoc mediation) or seek the services of a dedicated mediation centre? Read on to find out more.

At SMC, we endeavour to build on Mr Lee’s vision of the legal system, by providing a host of quality alternative dispute resolution services to complement Singapore’s court system, providing access to justice for all in the process, and helping to put Singapore on the world map for premier legal services.

There is great potential for mediation to facilitate deal-making and transactional negotiations such as mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures.The mediator improves the overall quality and efficiency of negotiations by cultivating open dialogue and avoiding competitive or adversarial negotiations.

When parties are of different cultural backgrounds, it may be useful to have co-mediators of those same cultures to address the different communication styles, cultural norms and reservations.

Mediation had a bumper year in 2014. There was a 57% increase in the number of mediation matters as compared to 2013 (from 214 matters to 337 matters). We are confident that the numbers will continue to grow in 2015.

As the year comes to a close, we revisit the many new developments at SMC. This would not have been possible without the contributions and support of our dedicated mediators and business associates. We express our sincerest appreciation to you.

Are there benefits of mediation to lawyers? Read more on why some of our lawyer-mediators choose mediation in this month's issue. Also, as we are wrapping up for the year of 2014 in the next issue, we would like to hear your feedback in our SMC End-of-Year survey.

General Electric (GE) generates US$146b in annual revenue and has a presence in 170 countries. Why does an MNC like GE embrace mediation? Find out more from Mr Bradford Berenson, Vice President and Senior Counsel for Litigation and Legal Policy of GE.

In this inaugural issue, we have featured an article by Dr Joseph Sheares. Dr Sheares will provide his take on how subject matter expertise can be useful for mediation. In this regard, and in response to customer needs, SMC is introducing sub-panels of industry specialist mediators.