On mediation advocacy, methodology, and milestones.

I am very pleased to share that I am now an IMI Certified Mediation Advocate,¹ thanks to IMI - International Mediation Institute, Sage Mediation², and Rajah & Tann Asia³.

And that's mediation advocate, not mediator.

Some of you may ask - what's the difference?

Well, a mediation advocate advocates on behalf of their clients at a mediation, whereas a mediator sits in the middle and tries to bring parties together.

That's perhaps the difference between a gladiator in the Colosseum, and the Roman emperor in the stands.⁴

Some of you may then ask - what's the point of certification?

Well, it serves as external validation of a lawyer's skill in helping clients achieve the outcomes they want in mediation.

And if you think of mediation as another arena in which disputes get resolved, wouldn't you want, as your gladiator, someone with a proven track record in that specific arena?

After all, just as a gladiator may excel in hand-to-hand combat, but may not do as well in a naval battle,⁵ the best courtroom advocates are not necessarily the best mediation advocates.⁶

And the best mediation advocates don't just draw on courtroom skills. They utilise a whole different toolkit before, during, and after mediations - scenario planning, BATNA / WATNA / MLATNA analysis, emotional intelligence, active listening, interest-based negotiating, the list goes on...

...all to maximise the chances of a dispute being resolved without clients having to incur the time, costs, and risks of trial.

And if you're embroiled in a dispute, the chances of the matter going for a mediation at some point are high.

And some of you may then ask - what's next?

Well, nothing different really. The plan is to keep learning and growing as a mediation advocate, and not rest on my laurels.

But it's a nice little milestone to mark my progress.

And thank you, dear reader, for being part of my journey.