Notable U.S. Mediation Cases

February 9, 2010

Notable Mediation Cases from Around the U.S.

After a year of mediation, insurance broker
Marsh & McClennan agrees to pay $400 million to
settle class action claims of bid-rigging. AmLawDaily (November 13, 2009)

Comverse agrees in mediation to pay $225 million
to resolve a securities class action case over backdated stock options. The long mediation first determined the
amount of settlement and then determined how payment would be made, with a
contingency plan in case the initial approach doesn’t work. Out of 39 options backdating class actions,
22 have now settled, nine have been dismissed and nine are still pending. AmLaw Litigation Daily (December 18, 2009)

The Kansas Attorney General announced that
successful mediation has prevented the closing of the only hospital in

Pawnee

County. While several due diligence and approval
steps remain, transfer of ownership is to be completed by March 1. Hutch
News.com (December 23, 2009)

A dispute over the terms for ongoing rebroadcast
of Sinclair signals over Mediacom stations – including New Year’s bowl games –
resulted in mediation that was not immediately successful but was followed by
postponement of the December 31 deadline and ultimate agreement. PNJ.com (December 22, 2009); TH
Online (December 31, 2009); National
Journal.com (January 7, 2010)

San Diego Gas & Electric Co. has begun a four month mediation with county officials, school
leaders, consumer advocates and firefighters to determine how to balance
cutting power to prevent wildfires against the burden on users of
electricity. The California Public
Utilities Commission encouraged a better balancing, finding the initial
proposal to cut power during certain weather conditions ill-conceived. Sign
on San Diego.com (December 19, 2009)

County government and public school officials
mediated for ten hours, but could not resolve a dispute over collecting taxes
for the school district, which one party lamented was a $7,000 issue that was
likely to cost $300,000 to $400,000 to litigate. Beeville
Bee (December 21, 2009)

A town meeting is scheduled to discuss an
agreement reached in mediation between the town and a former secretary who was
awarded $1.3 million after suing under the state’s whistleblower act. The town’s insurance will pay at least 50% of
the settlement, leaving the town to pay no more than $450,000. The Board of Selectmen must approve any
settlement before it is final, but doesn’t plan to act until after the
informational town meeting. Norwich
Bulletin (December 14, 2009); Norwich
Bulletin (December 16, 2009)

Mediation over attorneys’ fees yields $190,000
for ACLU’s efforts in bringing a class action against the county for conditions
in the county jail. The Canyon County,
Idaho board unanimously approved the compromise to keep from further increasing
costs. Idaho Statesman (November 19, 2009)

Litigation has been filed seeking a new
evaluation of the Federal Highway Administration’s plans for the Ohio River
Bridges Project, which is likely to cost over $4.1 billion. Both sides have agreed to seek the help of a
mediator to try to resolve the matter. Courier-Journal (December 23, 2009)
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Racially motivated attacks on three Asian
college students resulted in a confidential agreement between the victims and
four attackers after months of mediation. Despite the voluntary nature of the settlement, a national civil rights
organization complained about the secrecy of the process and the need for
publicizing the consequences to deter similar behavior. Lancaster Online.com (December 20, 2009)

The mediation program instituted in 2008 for

Montana grain shippers
to resolve disputes over grain freight rates with BNSF Railway has been
triggered by a signed complaint from a wheat producer. Under the program, the issues will be
mediated within thirty days and, if not resolved, will then go to binding
arbitration. Great Falls Tribune (November 24, 2009)

Louisiana is
seeking mediation over the refusal of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to use
the 60 million tons of sediment dredged from the lower

Mississippi
River each year to rebuild wetlands due to higher expense. The Coastal Zone Management Act permits a
state to seek mediation if federal action is inconsistent with the state’s
coastal management plan. Huffington Post (November 24, 2009); Nola.com (November 29, 2009)

Mediation is scheduled between the homeowners of
two islands and a local government in

Florida
about where sand to be dredged from Destin harbor by the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers should be placed; both islands seek beach replenishment. Destin
Log (December 18, 2009)

Keith Seat

Keith L. Seat is a full-time mediator and arbitrator who can effectively assist parties in resolving a wide range of telecommunications, antitrust and other commercial disputes. With over twenty years of legal experience as a mediator, arbitrator, litigator, advocate before executive branch agencies, and key staffer in the legislative and… MORE >