In this episode, I’m joined by mediator and collaborative attorney Catherine Conner, a longtime teacher with the Center for Understanding in Conflict and one of the early practitioners of collaborative law.

Catherine has spent more than four decades helping people navigate conflict through curiosity, listening, empathy, and deeper understanding rather than coercion, positional bargaining, or adversarial escalation.

We explore:

• the understanding-based model of mediation;
• why so many legal processes focus on positions instead of human needs;
• the risks of “client control”, coercion, and pressure-based mediation;
• why active listening is far more difficult — and more powerful — than most people realize; and
• how conflict can become an opportunity for growth and healing rather than simply something to win or survive.

One of my favorite parts of this conversation was Catherine’s reflection that lawyers themselves can experience healing when they engage conflict differently — not just the clients.

This episode is a thoughtful and hopeful conversation about what becomes possible when understanding comes before resolution.

Learn more about the Center for Understanding in Conflict at:
understandinginconflict.org