Negotiation Theory and Practice

This course examines the theory and practice of negotiation as a process used to put deals together or to resolve disputes and legal claims. Students learn about competitive positional bargaining and collaborative problem solving and acquire insight into the strategic management of the tension between the two approaches.

Through simulated exercises, students develop skills and confidence as negotiators, including an awareness of the psychological encouragements and barriers to consensus. Special challenges of multiparty negotiations are addressed with an emphasis on the attorney-client relationship, including applicable ethical standards, codes, and law.

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

Analyze theories of and demonstrate an understanding of the practical skills of negotiation by preparing a substantive research paper.
Demonstrate negotiation skills by engaging in simulated exercises and in multiparty negotiations.
Show an awareness of ethical rules and informal constraints regulating the conduct of lawyers and negotiators in certain settings.