Lawyer\u27s Skills in Negotiations: Justice in Unseen Hands

The purpose of this article is to identify and explore the processes and dynamics of lawyer negotiation at the skill level. Part I, Operational Skills in Preparation for Negotiation, examines processes and subprocesses of negotiation to develop a background for understanding the potential areas of lawyer skill involved in the operation of negotiation in Section A. Section B explores the preparation skills involved including the analysis and development of a negotiation theory of the case which requires an understanding of the substance of the negotiation, norms, precedent and power combined with fact management and effective characterization of the facts of the case. Section C examines the comparative values of negotiation as an alternative dispute resolution process prefatory to a discussion of skilled lawyer-client decision making, collaboration and counseling in Section D. Part II examines operational skills in a negotiation including communication skills in persuasion and reasoned arguments in Section A. Section B examines skilled use of language for learning, the exchange of information, concessions and questioning in negotiation. Management of the psychology of negotiation is assayed in Section C and Section D examines the issues in the ethics of negotiation. Section E looks at drafting and other skills in the process of closure of the agreement