Mark Hanna Speaks on Mediating Employment Disputes at ABA Labor and Employment Law Conference
Murphy Anderson’s Mark Hanna served as a panelist on “Best Practices for Mediating Employment Disputes” at the American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law’s 20th Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference in Washington, D.C. Hanna joined Hon. Natasha L. Abel (Ret.) of JAMS, who moderated, Hon. J. Mark Coulson, United States Magistrate Judge for the District of Maryland, Emily Litzinger of Fisher Phillips, and Nefertari Rigsby of Moss & Associates, LLC. The panel spoke to a standing-room-only crowd.
Mediation is a critical phase in many employment cases, and it demands skilled advocacy. Mediation has substantive, strategic, psychological, and emotional components, often in ways unique within litigation. The panelists shared techniques for each stage, from timing and mediator selection through preparation, the mediation day itself, and closing a settlement in writing.
Drawing on the firm’s wage theft and whistleblower practice, Hanna led the discussion of day-of-mediation strategy. He explained why wage-and-hour cases are especially well suited to early mediation after the parties exchange time and pay data. He also discussed why worker-side counsel benefit from sharing mediation statements and a draft settlement agreement with opposing counsel before the session.