As many of you loyal readers of Musings are well aware, I am a huge fan of mediation. A few years ago I got certified by the Virginia Supreme Court as a mediator. I would love to help construction professionals and their attorneys resolve construction disputes in a creative and business like manner. I thank […]
If You’re Negotiating a Raise or Resolving a Construction Dispute. . . Read this Book
Are you a lawyer, real estate pro, contractor, or just a person negotiating his or her way through life? If you didn’t answer “yes” to this question, I would be surprised. We don’t all think of ourselves as negotiators or mediators, but any attorney or individual who has to work through any situation of conflict […]
Headline: Voluntary Construction Mediation Works
Well, I’m back. After a busy week of meeting with clients, college visits with my daughter and a successful mediation (this time as co-counsel), I am back to what I hope to be a more consistent posting schedule. Luckily for me, my friend Seth Smiley stepped in with a great Guest Post Friday post on […]
Mediation Musings From the Trenches
As I posted quite a while ago, I have been going through the Virginia Supreme Court mediation certification training. Part of that training is a series of co-mediations where I get to essentially mediate a dispute with the supervision of a trained and experienced mentor helping smooth the edges. This past week, I was able […]
Sometimes Fraud and Construction Contracts Mix
As I have discussed at Musings on several occasions, the general rule in Virginia is that fraud and construction contracts do not mix. In other words, most of the time, even where a contractor clearly misrepresents the work performed, an owner can only recover in contract, and not for fraud with its potential for punitive […]