Sep 16, 2026 · 20 min · 6 segments
What happens when a mediator finds one of the lawyers in the room truly loathsome—and realizes that her own feelings may affect the outcome? In this episode, mediator and scholar Ellen Waldman tells…
Ellen WaldmanGuest
Lela LoveHost
Robyn WeinsteinHost
We have mediators who are from all over the world, including as far away as Singapore.
Well, part of our hope in creating this podcast is to broaden the way that people understand mediation.
Most people know about mediation in the context of divorce or maybe a workplace, but mediation is also happening in local communities, in courts, and even in the largest geopolitical conflicts.
The role of a mediator is to increase understanding among parties in conflict and to engage them in building a resolution that meets their needs.
At its best, mediation can also help address the harm, loss, and pain caused by conflict.
That's interesting, but you may be asking, why stories? Well, we think stories are the number one connector between human beings, transporting us to other cultures, introducing us to new people, offering religious insights and wisdom.
The world needs, we think, a light shown on what happens in mediation so we can all better understand not only what mediators do, but what we might do to bring more harmony and resolution to disputes.
The other thing we want to tell you is that confidentiality is an important part of mediation.
And the storytellers on this podcast have either changed the identity of the parties or obtained their permission to tell these stories.
For many years, she was a faculty member at Thomas Jefferson School of Law in California, where she founded and supervised the school's mediation program and clinic.
Like Robin and I, she taught and learned on the ground with real cases, taking her students right into the heat of disputes.
She's published over 25 articles and book chapters in the areas of alternative dispute resolution and bioethics.
Her book, Mediation Ethics, Case and Commentaries, provides the go-to in-depth treatment of ethical issues in many hard cases that can arise in mediation practice.
More recently, she has been vice president of advocacy and educational outreach for the International Center for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, a think tank for dispute resolution.
Ellen is an amazing writer, sensitive to the nuances of situations and to capturing complexities.
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We have mediators who are from all over the world, including as far away as Singapore.
Well, part of our hope in creating this podcast is to broaden the way that people understand mediation.
Most people know about mediation in the context of divorce or maybe a workplace, but mediation is also happening in local communities, in courts, and even in the largest geopolitical conflicts.
The role of a mediator is to increase understanding among parties in conflict and to engage them in building a resolution that meets their needs.
At its best, mediation can also help address the harm, loss, and pain caused by conflict.
That's interesting, but you may be asking, why stories? Well, we think stories are the number one connector between human beings, transporting us to other cultures, introducing us to new people, offering religious insights and wisdom.
The world needs, we think, a light shown on what happens in mediation so we can all better understand not only what mediators do, but what we might do to bring more harmony and resolution to disputes.
The other thing we want to tell you is that confidentiality is an important part of mediation.
And the storytellers on this podcast have either changed the identity of the parties or obtained their permission to tell these stories.
For many years, she was a faculty member at Thomas Jefferson School of Law in California, where she founded and supervised the school's mediation program and clinic.
Like Robin and I, she taught and learned on the ground with real cases, taking her students right into the heat of disputes.
She's published over 25 articles and book chapters in the areas of alternative dispute resolution and bioethics.
Her book, Mediation Ethics, Case and Commentaries, provides the go-to in-depth treatment of ethical issues in many hard cases that can arise in mediation practice.
More recently, she has been vice president of advocacy and educational outreach for the International Center for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, a think tank for dispute resolution.
Ellen is an amazing writer, sensitive to the nuances of situations and to capturing complexities.