The Red Velvet Lawyer

3/16 An Analysis of Qatar’s Mediation Law No. 20 of 2021, Cultural Disclaimer As I launch into the analysis of Qatar's new mediation law, I am mindful that my perspective is deeply embedded in a Western, common-law perspective, and further embedded in the "core values" of mediation as spelled out in U.S. state statutes, rules, and ethics codes, as well as model acts developed by national organizations of U.S. mediators. What is Culture? Culture is the cumulative result of experience, values, religion, beliefs, attitudes, meanings, knowledge, social organizations, procedures, timing, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe and material objects and possessions acquired or created by groups of people, in the course of generations, through individual and group effort and interactions. Culture manifests itself in patterns of language, behavior and activities and provides models and norms for acceptable day-to-day interactions and styles of communication. Culture ena

2/16 An Analysis of Qatar’s Mediation Law No. 20 of 2021, My Interest and Expertise in the Subject Matter Before I launch into an analysis of the Qatari mediation law, I want to explain why I am taking on this project.   When I moved to Qatar in 2015, I already had 16 years of experience in the mediation field as a law professor, scholar, professional trainer, mediation ethicist, and practitioner.  I had seized the highest opportunities to serve within the Commonwealth of Virginia, U.S.A., as noted below.  But, my law school offered decreasing resources for faculty travel, conference fees, and scholarship, making it difficult for me to leverage that experience and reputation to a national level that might have led to leadership positions in the  Dispute Resolution Section of the American Bar Association.  So, I thought a move to Qatar would give me an opportunity to scale up my mediation practice to an international level.  Sadly, it never happened. I left Qatar in 2021, only a few mon

1/16 An Analysis of Qatar’s Mediation Law No. 20 of 2021, Introduction On October 18, 2021, The Emir of the State of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, issued a mediation law ushering in the era of modern mediation in Qatar.    This law provides an important part of the “infrastructure” needed to expand the use of high-quality mediation services in the region.      Law No. 20 of 2021 has two parts: “On issuing the Mediation Law in Settlement of Civil and Commercial Disputes” (Article Nos. 1 to 4) and, “Mediation Law in Settlement of Civil and Commercial Disputes” (Article Nos. 1 to 33).  A copy of an unofficial English-language version of the law is available here .  An Arabic version of the law is available at www.almeezan.qa the legal portal for Qatari laws.   Over the next several weeks, I will analyze the law and assess its strengths and weaknesses.   I will focus first on: my expertise in analyzing mediation laws here , and providing a cultural disclaimer here . Next, I'll cover

Rugged Individualism versus People Concerned About their Role in the Collective Well-being of Family I plan to retire to Thailand in the summer of 2020.  My weekly treatments with a talented Thai massage therapist, Mena, have suddenly involved language lessons and cultural translations over our two hour sessions together. Today, we skipped the language lessons.  Instead, I raised a question arising from my look at the postings on various Thai-related Facebook groups.  Male-dominated groups regularly discuss relationships with Thai women, both spouses and girlfriends.  I'll spare you the seedier details. One recent post, by a thoughtful 72-year old Western man, asked whether "farang" men had a hard time getting their Thai spouses or girlfriends to open up emotionally.  He had studied and written books about relationships, and so came at the topic with a scholar's curiosity. I asked Mena what she thought in response to the question.  I have kno

Call for Papers Dear colleagues, Qatar University Press has asked me to move forward with a proposed book that addresses the legal consequences and solutions arising from the blockade imposed on Qatar by its neighboring countries.   The working title of the book is: “The Arab Gulf Conflict: Legal Consequences and Solutions.” It is my pleasure to invite you to contribute a chapter to the book.  Please email me at pyoung@qu.edu.qa for background information about the blockade. Topics I expect to discuss in the book include: A Dispute Resolution Analysis of the Causes of the Dispute. Arab Conflict Resolution Strategies. 2103 and 2014 Riyadh Agreements. Thirteen Demands and Six Principles. Do Gulf Countries have the Unilateral Legal Right to Impose Sanctions on Qatar? Legal Concepts of National Sovereignty Laws Governing Military Conflict. Laws Governing Efforts to Force a Change in a Country’s Leadership. Qatar’s Air Transport Rights under Internationa

How to be the Best  . . .   and Learn from the Worst Doha does not have a deep collection of print books for sale.  I was at Doha Festival City twice last week.  After touring the entire mall, I found a book I did not expect to see in Doha. It's Robert I Sutton 's Good Boss, Bad Boss .  The book builds on his research that supported an earlier book called The No Asshole Rule .  I read the earlier book, several years ago, when I served on a law school's hiring committee.  We tried to use the advice in the book.  Overall, we built a small faculty of dedicated teachers.  Sadly, we did hire a few jerks along the way, and frankly, the institution paid for it. Amazon  describes the new book in this way:   If you are a boss who wants to do great work, what can you do about it? Good Boss, Bad Boss is devoted to answering that question. Stanford Professor Robert Sutton weaves together the best psychological and management research with compelling stories and cas

 Peace Be With Us All This article , Principles and Practices of Peace and Conflict Resolution in Islam , provides a very interesting synthesis of the role peace plays in the Muslim community.  It also discusses the role of conflict resolution in Muslim cultures, with a focus on Morocco. The author, Claudia Maffettone is a conflict resolution practitioner and a certified mediator. She trained the New York Peace Institute, Harvard Law School, the New York City Bar, Soliya and the International Institute for Restorative Practices. I have suggested that she present this synthesis at the next conference of the ABA Section on Dispute Resolution.  I think my colleagues would find it valuable.  

My Home Town's Journey This recent communication from my mediation community touched me deeply. From: Sandy Heierbacher [ mailto:sandy@NCDD.ORG ] Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2014 8:11 AM To: NCDD-UPDATES@LISTS.THATAWAY.ORG Subject: [NCDD-UPDATES] What can the dialogue & deliberation community do after Ferguson? Message to the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation community, from NCDD’s Director... Hi, everyone. Many of us are reeling from the events in Ferguson. Some of you may be involved in protests in your own cities right now. Last night, President Obama addressed the nation after it was announced that Darren Wilson would not be indicted. In his remarks, I couldn’t help but think he was talking about the work that many of you do. The juxtaposition on the split screen of Obama encouraging protestors to stay peaceful on one side, and tear gas canisters being thrown by police in riot fear [sic?] on the other side was bizarre. But what Obama ta

My good friend and mediation colleague, Geetha Ravindra, has published a new book focused on Indian marriage in the modern world:   Shaadi Remix – Transforming the Traditional Indian Marriage (Wheatmark, Tuscon, AZ: 2013). I am reproducing her promotional description of the book.   Marriage is one of the most sacred institutions in India. Traditionally, parents and other family members have arranged marriages for their children based on caste, matching horoscopes, family status, or dowry. Over the past few decades, however, divorce rates have grown significantly. It would seem that the old way of doing things is no longer working—but why? Drawing on her experience with hundreds of families struggling with marital discord, attorney and mediator Geetha Ravindra explores the breakdown of Indian marriage within a rapidly changing culture, explaining why the conventional criteria used to arrange marriages no longer ensure lasting, healthy relationships.  With stories of how real