This webinar will be held on Thursday, June 5, 2025 at 3:00pm Eastern
Life’s decisions are awash in daily negotiations observe Harvard professors Roger Fisher and William Ury in their seminal book, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. Like it or not, we are all negotiators: two lawyers try to settle a lawsuit; court leaders engage in budget discussions; a new discovery processes upsets some judges; or a court leader deals with a disgruntled staffer.
Leading with a negotiation mindset does not entail changing “hearts and minds” through persuasion as many other leadership models do. Rather, it is focused on collaboration and steering people toward better, fairer decisions based on the merits of an issue not what the parties say they will or won’t do. As an all-purpose leadership strategy, it is sometimes described as principled leadership since like principled negotiation it requires balancing the best interests of all parties to promote high-quality, ethical outcomes.
Principled negotiation or leadership can be boiled down to four basic points. These points will be reviewed in detail with examples from the trial court world. In essence, the points define a straightforward method that can be used under almost any circumstance as a leadership tool. Each point or step deals with a basic element of negotiation and suggests what you should do about it.
- Step #1: Separate the PEOPLE from the problem.
- Step #2: Focus on the INTERESTS underlying (below) the positions, not the positions themselves.
- Step #3: Generate a variety of OPTIONS (possibilities) for mutual gain.
- Step #4: Agree on one or more options and measure the results (outcomes) with objective CRITERIA.
Registration
- Register via Zoom – After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
- NOTE: You MUST register to receive the Webinar link, call-in number, etc.
- Questions? Please contact Nikiesha Cosby at .
Facilitator
- Hon. Dennis J. Smith, NAPCO Board Member
Former Chief Judge, 19th Judicial Circuit of Virginia (Fairfax County)
Panel
- Hon. Ketu Shah, Chief Judge
Superior Court of Washington in King County (Greater Seattle) - Mark Weinberg, Trial Court Administrator
Seventh Judicial Circuit of Florida (4 counties in east-central Florida) - Barbara Marcille, Trial Court Administrator
Circuit Court of Oregon in Multnomah County (Greater Portland)