Today I attended a panel discussion on public and private initiatives for dispute prevention innovation and practice hosted by the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution and the University of São Paulo. There were numerous highlights for me: having just flown in from London this morning the Brazilian breakfast spread was a life saver, and the venue of the faculty of law in the University of São Paulo was stunning. But mainly it was fantastic to be surrounded by an international community of conflict resolution specialists and encouraging to hear how Brazil is promoting and developing dispute resolution and mediation. With over 80 million pending law suits, alternative dispute resolution is greatly needed here and positions Brazil as a fascinating case study in how we could move away from the traditional court based justice system.
It was inspiring to hear Diego Faleck speak of his impressive work and of the need for a broader view of dispute prevention. He talked of prevention as understanding the root cause of an issue and improving relationships. He discussed what it is to design dispute systems and fellow panel member Caolina Hannud goes by the title ‘legal designer’. I love this reference to design in relation to dispute for two reasons: Firstly, I don’t think we should be striving to eliminate disputes as healthy conflict is necessary, but rather we need to learn how to manage and resolve it, to design strategies for all types of dispute in our lives. Secondly, I like the creativity implicit in the term design. Mediation and dispute resolution is about the law, business and finance yes, but it is also about people, relationships, stories, language and the arts. It is both about the creativity in our lives and societies and also I believe great conflict resolution is a creative path, requiring the mediator to design something bespoke to the needs and characters of the parties involved and requiring creativity from the parties too, in exploring what solutions may be available. (Also - full disclosure, I was going to go to art school before I switched to law school, so this combination appeals to me!)
