Negotiation Law Blog - Negotiating Gender: Why So Few Women Neutrals? - Comments

Jan Schau

Victoria Pynchon — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:51:52 -0800

Disappointed that I wasn't included in your "posse". It's a cruel world, ain't it?

Vickie

Victoria Pynchon — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:51:52 -0800

It's just because I had this group image from the old Complete Lawyer column!

Diane Levin

Victoria Pynchon — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:51:52 -0800

Vickie, thanks for saying what so urgently needed to be said - and for giving those posts of mine new life here in your own article.

At last year's ABA Section on DR conference, I heard one of our field's leaders (a man) stand before the crowd and reflect on how far we'd all come since the long-gone days when women were discriminated against in the ADR field. Hah! It's obvious how out-of-touch leadership remains. Meanwhile, here on the East coast, women and minorities remain grossly underrepresented on the prestigious ADR panels. If I had time enough, I could recount my own encounters with both open and implicit gender discrimination. It's the shameful secret in a profession that pays much lip service to fairness, justice, and the level playing field.

I am grateful that you're aiming a spotlight into the dark corners, to illuminate what lies there hidden. Well done, friend, and, again, my thanks.

Gini Nelson

Victoria Pynchon — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:51:52 -0800

Vickie, a good and important piece. It's a hard problem, and needs the kind of careful discussion you provide. Some additional thoughts -- retired judges coming off the bench and becoming mediators/arbitrators will also be mainly male since most judges are mostly male. The perception that judges will be good mediators will also affect their being selected for panels or individual mediations.
Gini

mary zachar

Victoria Pynchon — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:51:52 -0800

I know when I have mediated cases as an attorney with clients and parties for whom expense was not a limiting issue (so choice could be exercised), women - mainly you and Debra whom I know to be amazingly skillful - were my immediate choices. It was not because you are female but because I have observed you and know your intelligence and talent. You don't let your own gender get in the way of what you offer as a mediator - all the egoic stuff that might otherwise frankly waste a client's money and time! So am I biased towards women? Probably - but I also happen to be fortunate to know several skillful talented female mediators and so the choice is there. I know that when looking for co-mediators, my male opposing counsel has chosen a male while I chose a woman - a nice team, but this also suggests bias (and yet my male clients have supported my recommendation of the female mediator ~ progress!).
I recently attended a few prestigious copyright dinners in town and was surprised to see very few women in the room - very few. So may be we women lawyer folk in addition to career are equally enjoying our families, our hobbies, our passions - being holistically engaged in life which might limit the decision-making power we have in our day jobs. But this does not really explain why the adr panels are under representative of the warrior women who do show up and want to participate as equals in all ways.
Very interesting issue and really great to see your attention here - hard to believe we are still addressing these issues but they are so deep in our culture and our humanity that we will keep being in relation to them as limitations until we relate to them differently as a culture and profession. As individuals, we just must continue to show up as who we are - you and all of the women represented here do an excellent job of just this - being who we came to be, contributing our authentic views, skills, and talents toward a new view of who we are in this profession and in all of our relations to others.