The importance of understanding different generations of ADR practice for legal education

The teaching of alternative/appropriate dispute resolution (ADR) in legal education can contribute to law students' development of professional identity. However, it is important to consider the content of present ADR courses in Australian law schools. ADR teachers should consider including in their curriculum a range of material that challenges law students and addresses the 'cutting edge' of the field. Evolving theory in ADR, sometimes known as 'second generation practice', argues that negotiation and mediation can lead to conflict transformation between parties, where there is fundamental change in the ways that parties perceive each other, the conflict and the larger societal issues that pertain to the dispute. Second generation practice differs from first generation paradigms in negotiation and mediation because the focus is largely on relational concerns, although solutions to conflict are often found. Arguably, including both first and second generation practice in ADR courses gives law students the opportunity to engage with differing approaches to conflict engagement which will help them in their roles as lawyers.