The Mediator's Tale: The CEDR Story of Better Conflicts

Written to celebrate the 30th anniversary of CEDR's emergence as the world's leading independent disputes consultancy, this book throws fresh light on the personal motivations and strategy behind a unique example of disruptive innovation in the legal system, while sharing their professional insight into how we can achieve better conflict management in our personal and professional lives.

The authors first chart the personal and organisational drivers behind the success of CEDR in the UK and internationally, drawing out important insights for other innovators and campaigners for change to a traditional system.

The main part of the book then draws on this 30 year experience to highlight key insights into how the mediation process, and other independent conflict intervention techniques, deliver results; how they can be made to work most effectively; how to adapt these skills and systems for old and new dispute contexts; and challenges for the future of better conflict management.

It also has tips to help readers analyse their own experiences in conflict and dispute resolution so that they can learn from the insights of leading practitioners, while becoming familiar with a fascinating and unique lifetime's professional practice, and the diverse experiences of a leading independent institution in the field.

Eileen Carroll KC

Eileen Carroll was one of the first commercial mediators in Europe and is today one of the most senior and highly regarded mediators in the UK and internationally. Over the last 20 years she has built a unique and first-class mediation practice and is recognised as a pioneer of mediation techniques in the U.K. In 2013 Eileen was awarded Queen's Counsel status in recognition of her outstanding work in the field (the first time this citation has been given).

Her career began in international chemical and industrial consultancy before moving into Law in 1981. She became a partner in a major London firm in 1987 and then spent several years working in San Francisco. Her experience of mediation in the US lead to her co-founding CEDR upon her return to the UK in 1989. She later became the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution's (CEDR) Deputy Chief Executive in 1996.

Throughout her career Eileen has been invited to give addresses and speak at many international events as well as making guest appearances on various national radio programmes. She is the author of several articles on ADR as well as contributing chapters to Butterworth's Mediators on Mediation. Her most notable publication is a guide to the effective resolution of international business disputes entitled International Mediation - the Art of Business Diplomacy which she co-authored with Dr Karl Mackie. Praise for International Mediation includes '…first rate… the kind of groundwork publication that is necessary to the institutionalisation of mediation and other interest-based dispute resolution into professional and business cultures.'

Dr Karl Mackie CBE is one of the first and most influential commercial mediators in the UK and Europe. In the course of his career he has mediated and facilitated over a thousand high value disputes and some of the most complex civil and commercial cases to go through the English legal system. He is also responsible for training many other leading mediators.

Karl began his working life as a business psychologist, before working for many years in university continuing education as a negotiation and business strategy consultant. During this time, he qualified as a barrister specialising in dispute resolution and employment law. He became the first and only CEO of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) in 1990, helping to create its international standing.

Karl is probably the best known commercial mediator in the UK and is frequently interviewed on television and radio about disputes in the public domain. He has edited or authored several texts on mediation; most notably International Mediation - the Art of Business Diplomacy, a guide to the effective resolution of international business disputes, which he co-authored with Eileen Carroll. It has been described as '… a landmark guide to practitioners in international mediation and is likely to form a reference guide to mediation procedures.'

In 2010 Karl became the only mediator ever to be given an honour by the state, Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), for services to mediation, both developing and delivering it.