tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31663584092231056812023-06-20T06:20:33.411-07:00ForeverCareMediationForeverCareMediationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09006497813361150725noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166358409223105681.post-8569421314355812502016-05-04T10:41:00.000-07:002016-05-04T13:02:43.178-07:00A Fulfilling Experience<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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A Fulfilling Experience </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s a case that shows that at least on some blessed occasions
things really do work out. I received a call from a call from a friend who
often helps people and dogs, especially pit bulls find good solutions. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The
owner of the pit bull (call him Joe) lived in a trailer park and was just
barely making it through life. He had lots of personal challenges, was seeing a
counselor, on medication etc. but not causing any trouble and somehow surviving
on a part time job. He was one of those beings on the margins but somehow doing
OK. His dog was his faithful companion and functioned as a therapy dog for him
for 5 years since the dog was a puppy. There had never been any issues with his
dog. </div>
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<br /></div>
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He had a tenant at his place and it did not go well. He
evicted the tenant and as the tenant was leaving let the dog out without a
leash. This was the first time this had ever happened. The dog jumped on a
neighbor’s dog grabbed her fur with his mouth but did not penetrate the skin.
The owner of the attacked dog was freaked out for the moment but grabbed her
dog and that ended the incident. However, all this was viewed by the on-site
manager of the trailer park who insisted that a letter be written to Joe
stating that either the pit bull must go or both Joe and the pit bull must go.
Those were the rules of the trailer park. The letter was sent by the trailer
park’s lawyers.</div>
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</div>
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Working with my good-hearted friend, the dog was brought to
a dog behaviorist to immediately begin further training. To our pleasant
surprise, the behaviorist said that the dog was already well trained and the
dog passed a good citizenship test that requires the dog to perform a variety
of tasks as well as obey many commands. The dog was issued a good citizenship
certificate. The neighbor, whose dog was attacked, knew Joe and his dog and had
never had any problems. She wrote a very kind letter saying that she had only
had prior good experiences and asked that Joe be allowed to remain in the
trailer park with his dog. We gathered police reports that clearly showed it
was the tenant who inappropriately let the dog out and that the tenant was
evicted and no longer there. We obtained a letter from his therapist /counselor
saying how important the dog was for Joe’s mental health. Finally we took some
photos of Joe and his dog simply and peacefully hanging out together.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Even with all this information in hand, the lease would
definitely have allowed the trailer park to force Joe to get rid of his dog. So
our strategy was to appeal the better nature of the trailer park owners through
their legal counsel.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I simply called their lawyer who had sent the original
letter. And then as sometimes happens in life, a little surprise occurred. The
lawyer was away on vacation but the office manager who had been there for 20
years and clearly ran the everyday affairs took the call. The luck was that she
loved dogs and clearly understood the situation. I organized and sent her all
the information we had gathered. When the lawyer returned they forwarded the
information to the trailer park management with the recommendation that it
might be best to drop the case. And the management agreed! I spoke with Joe who
was highly relieved, cried tears of joy on the phone and hugged his dog!!!</div>
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<br /></div>
ForeverCareMediationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09006497813361150725noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166358409223105681.post-40272028408770492442013-09-28T12:42:00.002-07:002013-09-28T12:42:10.785-07:00Pit Bull Mediation Case<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pit Bull Mediation Case</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I recently mediated a “classic” pit bull bites child case. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just for full disclosure, besides being a
mediator / lawyer, I am also certified in therapeutic dog massage and have a
great love and affinity for all dogs. I also think that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">responsible </b>dog ownership is the obligation of the owner. It has
been years since I overcame the cultural conditioning of being afraid of pit
bulls. However, I do understand how pit bulls are portrayed in the culture and the
effect that can have.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The background</b>: The
plaintiff is a mother who lives across the street from the defendants, a young
couple who have two pit bulls. At the time of the incident, two years ago, the
couple (defendants) was expecting their first child. Until that moment, the pit
bulls had never caused any problems and were well loved and socialized dogs
with children and other dogs. On the day of the incident, the plaintiff
(mother) was away and her brother (child’s uncle) was taking care of her 4 year
old. The pit bulls had met the child many times before with no incident. The
uncle was playing next to the pit bull’s home and tossing the child around and
the child was having fun making lots of noise. The pit bulls got out of their
yard (there was no fence enclosure) and ran toward the child and uncle. The
uncle lifted the child away from the pit bulls who jumped up and bit the child
on his side. (Were they trying to “protect” the child and get him away from the
uncle? - who can say).There was lots blood and the child was taken to the hospital.
The wound healed and there was no permanent damage. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The plaintiff hired a local attorney who brought an action
against the defendants but the lawsuit simply lingered. Two years passed. The
lawyer had instructed the plaintiff not to speak with the defendant so the many
phone calls from the defendant were not answered. The plaintiff eventually
moved from that house (not because of the dogs) but carried a lingering anger
and frustration that the matter had not been resolved to her satisfaction.
There were some expenses for the hospital $500 but half of that was covered by
insurance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The case</b> - I was
volunteering as a co-mediator for a community based program in Massachusetts
and this case came to small claims court. In small claims, the dollar limit for
recovery is $7,000. The plaintiff sued for $6,000 which included medical bills
and pain and suffering. She explained the story, told the defendants that she
wanted this resolved so that “she could put it to rest.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now it was the defendant’s turn. She began her story and
immediately broke down in tears. She too had been carrying this for two years
and was so upset that her dogs had injured a child. She was pregnant when this
happened and just the thought that this could happen to her baby was very real
to her. She had wanted to make amends from the very beginning. In fact, she had
gone to the hospital to see if the child was OK. After all this was her
neighbor. She apologized for not having a better fence which she had put in the
next week after the incident. This turned out to be the only incident that ever
occurred with her dogs either before or after.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The plaintiff was deeply touched and also began crying. Both
plaintiff and defendant met on common and deeply shared grounds of motherhood
and protection and care for children. This case, like many others that come to
court, are not “exclusively” about the money as much as the hurt. I have seen
that when the emotional issue gets addressed, the money resolution naturally
follows.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In this case, the defendants did not have a lot of money and
the plaintiff could understand that. The actual out of pocket cost to the
plaintiff was $250 and the defendant offered $600. “Will that be enough”, the
defendant asked. “That will do” said the plaintiff. And so the case was
resolved.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A few comments: Mediation sometimes has an almost magical
ability to help parties resolve issues that could not be resolved through
litigation. Even if through litigation the defendant was ordered to pay $600,
it would not have been the same emotional resolution as offered in this case. The
typical pit bull issue was raised in the conversation, mostly by the husbands.
One said that pit bulls were bad and dangerous and the other that they were
fine if socialized properly. Fortunately, the men were mostly in the background
and the powerful emotions of motherhood won the day for both parties.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
ForeverCareMediationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09006497813361150725noreply@blogger.com1