Mediation: Process and Practice in Hong Kong

Nadja Alexander is another academic, this time a Professor of Law at the City University of Hong Kong. Do not let this put you off though, as she writes with a refreshingly unacademic style (in a
good way) and keeps the reader interested by including many personal and some, one presumes, fictional anecdotes at the beginning of each chapter to introduce the subject to be  discussed. This serves to pique one’s interest and also provides a ‘real life’ context to the material that she is about to cover.

The book is divided into two parts. The first deals with ‘Process’, and is therefore of more interest to those practising as mediators.
The second part deals with ‘Practice’, that is the legal background and framework within which mediation operates. This part is perhaps of more immediate relevance to lawyers acting for clients in mediation, although mediators would find it worthwhile reading as well.

Of the books covered so far, this is the most Hong Kong-centric. The first part covers a lot of theory and applies it directly to Hong Kong culture or rather the mix of cultures that exists in Hong Kong.
As a mediator practising in Hong Kong, I found her discussion of intercultural mediation extremely interesting and it certainly left me with topics for further thought. As already mentioned, the first part
of the book is clearly aimed more at mediators than legal practitioners and at the end of each chapter there is a ‘Mediator Learnings’ section which recaps the lessons to be learnt from the material just covered and provides tools for good practice (or pitfalls to be avoided). Non mediator readers who are heavily involved in mediation or perhaps just interested in the subject of human conflict and the way it is dealt with in different situations should also pick up a copy of this book. It is very thought provoking.

Whilst the second part continues to focus on Hong Kong, it also develops the theme of looking and comparing practice and experience in other jurisdictions. As many of those jurisdictions have had court-related mediation for a long time there are clearly lessons to be learnt, and this makes for interesting reading.

The second part also takes a much more technical approach, looking at the rights and duties of those involved in mediation, and the consequences of breach in some detail. It considers and makes reference to a lot of the Hong Kong (and non-Hong Kong) case law.

In summary, this is a book that will prove useful to legal practitioners and to anyone who has recently qualified as a mediator and may be considering launching a career as a mediator. This book provides a lot of insight and practical guidance.

Susan Macnaughton
Consultant
Gall

December 2010 - Hong Kong Lawyer (Journal)