Discovering Agreement: Setting Procedural Goals in Legal Negotiation

Abstract

There are no rules of procedure for legal negotiation. Negotiators have to make them up. The procedures for legal negotiation have to fit the context of each unique case. Moreover, they have to be acceptable to the other side. Every negotiation addresses the procedural goals of the negotiators as well as the substance. But how do negotiators decide which procedures to propose? This article examines the tasks that contribute to effective negotiation and how lawyers and their clients can devise procedures to accomplish them.