There is much that the latest developments in neuroscience can teach legal professionals about negotiations. This is particularly true when it comes to how people process information and make decisions. Economists have long lamented the fact that people do not make important financial decisions based on cold, rational self-interest. This dilemma will sound familiar to many lawyers who have tried hard to defuse emotional investments when the time comes to assess a settlement. Mediators and lawyers alike can benefit particularly from what neuroscientists have revealed about priming and framing, two potent filtering mechanisms that can either inflame the emotional barriers to settlement or potentially defuse them.
In any civil settlement scenario, it is vital that clients be able to make important financial decisions in an atmosphere that is often emotionally charged and moving at a rapid pace. Lawyers who are guiding clients through this process face a unique set of challenges, as do the mediators who facilitate settlement talks and midwife resolutions to complex disputes.
