Well through time. The podcast about mediation, conflict coaching and organisational consulting.

Jörg Schneider-Brodtmann, Lawyer at Menold Bezler in Stuttgart and certified mediator. WirtschaftsWoche 34/2019 described the negotiation expert as one of the most renowned lawyers for IT law (co-author of the IT law commentary in the Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt KG), who has been advocating the advantages of mediation for years, even in conflict-prone, complex contractual relationships – and recommends mediative (contractual) process support, even if an (escalated) conflict situation has not yet arisen. In this episode with Sascha Weigel, Jörg Schneider-Brodtmann explains the extent to which this mediating, all-party approach on this side of a conflict is „mediation work“ and what effects it has that the German Mediation Act constitutively „requires a conflict“.

Contents:

• "Deal mediation" - mediation without conflict? In contract mediation, a neutral third party supports the parties in the negotiation process – up to the intended conclusion of the contract. The process is essentially characterised by the fact that there is no (manifest or escalated) conflict at the start of the process, but at most a – mutually recognised – clash of interests, which, however, is not in the foreground due to the potential alignment of interests for jointly created gains, but rather wants to be taken into account. Potential conflicts that arise when something new is to be created together are therefore taken seriously – and the contractual agreements are supported from the outset with the help of a neutral, impartial third party.

• Benefits of deal mediationBasically, every dispute resolution through mediation is aimed at reaching an agreement, i.e. a contract. The application of mediation principles to contract negotiations that are not based on a (manifest) conflict is therefore consistent from a methodological point of view.  Als Vorteile der Deal Mediation werden u.a. hervorgehoben, dass sich die Parteien bei Hinzuziehung eines Mediators mehr auf die Verhandlungsinhalte als den Prozess konzentrieren können, wertschöpfende Aspekte gegenüber der bloßen Wertverteilung stärker betont werden, Unterschiede im Verhandlungsstil und der Verhandlungsmacht der Parteien ausgeglichen, sprachliche und kulturelle Hürden überwunden und aus dem „Verhandlungsdilemma“  resultierende Verhandlungsblockaden leichter aufgelöst werden können. Ein weiterer, nicht zu unterschätzender Vorteil liegt darin, dass der einmal ausgewählte Vertragsmediator im Falle eines erfolgreichen Vertragsschlusses den Vertrag über dessen gesamte Laufzeit hinweg begleiten und beim Auftreten von Störungen und Eskalationen jederzeit zur Konfliktbeilegung eingesetzt werden kann. Der Vertragsmediator agiert in diesem Sinne als "Counsel to the Deal".

• History and concept: The concept of deal mediation was first developed in the USA as a new field of activity for lawyers, primarily in complex cross-border transactions, and was subsequently adopted in Europe. In Germany, this development was already taken up and favoured in the run-up to the Mediation Act, although it was not legally enshrined in the Mediation Act.

Left:

• Website Jörg Schneider-Brodtmann: Menold Bezler