MACM

Part II of four questions posed to Dr. Schneider after he presented at MACM's Annual Conference in 2007.

MACM:  At MACM’s conference this year you presented a victim-offender mediation film clip. What can a domestic mediator learn from this?

Carl Schneider: Witnessing the victim-offender experience helps me to trust that mediation can work even in very difficult situations.  The victim-offender video showed a victim, Gary Geiger, and an offender, Wayne Blanchard, able to heal a decade-old unresolved injury through a face-to-face conversation supported by a third party witness, a mediator. If it is possible to heal wounds in which one party has almost killed another, then we should be looking for opportunities to bring healing in family situations where there may also be great injury and hurt, but personal rather than physical.

If it is possible to have meaningful apologies in victim-offender mediation, then it is also possible in divorce, where affairs and betrayals have so damaged a party. We have an opportunity, if we choose, to stay open to the possibility of not only getting an agreement, but helping parties reach some closure on their marriage.

Comments (3)

The Gary Geiger and Wayne Blanchard Story
written by Administrator, January 18, 2008

As an additional note, the video that Dr. Schneider refers to involving Geiger and Blanchard is also a book,Justice Restored: The Gary Geiger and Wayne Blanchard Story which is available through Amazon and/or your favorite bookstore.http://www.amazon.com/Justice-...1592991521

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Mediation!
written by Gary Geiger, March 10, 2008

Thank you for the comments regarding the question involving the mediation with my offender, it was a very cathartic experience which changed my life, I believe mediations of this nature are now called, "victim-offender dialogue".

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mr
written by kurtis gee, March 15, 2010

once arbitration hearing is complete in a divorce case, please advise:
1) within what period ruling must be issued
2) after ruling, does each party have right to raise objections? if so with in what period?
3) if this time overlaps trial/conference hearing date of court, what happens?

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