Table of Contents: Structured Negotiation, A Winning Alternative to Lawsuits, 2d Edition

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This post contains the table of contents for Lainey Feingold’s book.  The book is about Structured Negotiation – a way to solve legal problems without filing lawsuits.  The book is a roadmap through the process.  Readers will learn how to write a letter, how to use positive language, and how to write a legal agreement. Once the agreement is negotiated, the book talks about media strategies and how to make sure the agreement works.  The book is for lawyers and non-lawyers looking for a different way to resolve legal problems.

Structured Negotiation cover on an ipad with a cup of coffee

Wondering what Structured Negotiation, a Winning Alternative to Lawsuits is all about? The table of contents for the book’s second edition is posted here. My book is written for lawyers, law students, advocates, mediators, and anyone looking for a cost-effective, relationship-building, and win-win way to resolve legal claims. It is also written for non-lawyers, digital accessibility champions, and anyone looking for a collaborative approach to problem solving and communication.

The book is full of Structured Negotiation success stories about digital accessibility, disability rights and accessible technology issues. For 25 years Structured Negotiation has helped resolve complex cases withOUT lawsuits.  The second edition shares how lawyers can also use the process after a case has been filed to dial back conflict and expense, and how the strategies help people communicate more effectively unrelated to legal claims. Want to know more? Visit the main book page on this website and read what people say about Structured Negotiation.

Praise for Structured Negotiation

Foreword to the English Second Edition by Haben Girma

Foreword to the Spanish Edition by Susana Sucunza

Preface to the Second Edition

  • Structured Negotiation Celebrates 26 Years
  • What’s New in the Second Edition
  • Be a Dolphin
  • Broader Ways to Think about Structured Negotiation
  • Ethics and Structured Negotiation
  • Digital Accessibility Ethics and Structured Negotiation
  • Elections, Black Lives Matter, and a Global Pandemic
  • The Value of Flexible Problem Solving During a Global Pandemic
  • Remembering . . .

Introduction: What Is Structured Negotiation?

  • Overview of this Book
  • An Opportunity to Do the Right Thing

Chapter 1: The Structured Negotiation Roadmap

  • The First Structured Negotiations
  • Choosing the Name “Structured Negotiation”
  • Elements and Stages of Structured Negotiation

Chapter 2: The Language of Structured Negotiation

  • Who Needs a Plaintiff?
  • Avoid Defensiveness and Opposition
  • Does “Demanding” Engender Cooperation?
  • Does the Word “Discrimination” Encourage People to Do the Right Thing?
  • Feedback Versus Testing
  • Mastering the Language of Persistence

Stage One: Preparing a Structured Negotiation Case

Chapter 3: Is Structured Negotiation the Right Strategy?

  • Civil Claims in the Private Sector
  • Technology Claims
  • Claims Against Public Entities
  • Claims Against Nonprofit Organizations
  • Unsuitable Claims

Chapter 4: Are Claimants Ready for an Alternative Process?

  • Fostering Collaboration Begins with Claimants
  • Naturally Cooperative Claimants
  • Unlikely Claimants
  • Checklist for Educating Clients About Structured Negotiation
  • How Many Claimants?
  • Representing Organizations
  • Engagement Letters
  • Co-Counsel

Chapter 5: Write an Invitation to Negotiate

  • An Opening Letter Is Not a Complaint
  • Building Blocks of the Opening Letter

Stage Two: Establishing Ground Rules

Chapter 6: Initial Response and Structured ­
Negotiation Ground Rules 109

  • Response to the Opening Letter
  • Evaluating the Initial Response
  • When to Introduce Ground Rules
  • Elements of the Structured Negotiation Agreement
  • Checklist for Convincing Would-be Defendants to Sign the Document

Stage Three: Sharing Information and Expertise

Chapter 7: Discovery Alternatives in 
Structured Negotiation

  • Exchanging Written Information
  • Structured Negotiation Meetings
  • Skip the Deposition: A Round Table Built of Telephone Wires
  • “Defanging the Process”
  • Site Visits without Motions to Compel
  • Meeting in a Movie Theater
  • Rocky Starts
  • Checklist for a Successful Structured Negotiation Meeting

Chapter 8: Experts in Structured Negotiation

  • Traditional Experts
  • Web Accessibility Benefits from Shared Expertise
  • Joint Experts in Public Sector Cases
  • Collaborative Use of Consultants and Vendors
  • Clients as Experts
  • What If a Negotiation Falls Apart?

Stage Four: Moving Negotiations Forward

Chapter 9: Overcoming Obstacles during a Negotiation

  • Dismantle Assumptions That Impede Progress
  • Incremental Steps Lead to Big Results

Chapter 10: Protecting the Negotiation Landscape

  • Pay Attention to Other People’s Cases
  • Objections Protect Negotiation Turf
  • An Amicus Brief Protects Negotiating Turf
  • Government Regulations Impact Negotiations
  • Welcome Other Advocates

Stage Five: Handling the Unexpected

Chapter 11: Adding Claims, Claimants, and New Relief

  • New Claims during a Negotiation
  • New Claimants
  • Requesting Additional Relief After a Negotiation Begins

Stage Six: Drafting the Agreement

Chapter 12: Drafting Strategies

  • Scope and Elements of a Settlement Agreement
  • Getting Started: Term Sheet or Draft Agreement?
  • Language Conquers Fear
  • Small Steps Help Climb a Mountain

Chapter 13: Negotiating about Money

  • Strategies to Reach Agreement on Damages and Attorneys’ Fees
  • Using a Mediator

Stage Seven: Post-settlement Strategies

Chapter 14 Media Strategies

  • Honor Negotiating Partners
  • Keep Lawyers in the Background
  • Publicity (Not Coverage) Matters

Chapter 15: Monitoring and Enforcing Settlements

  • Settlement Language to Support Monitoring
  • Empowering Clients after Settlement in the Public Sector
  • Staying Cooperative While Resolving Breaches
  • Follow-up Negotiations and Other Enforcement Options
  • Unfinished Business? Extend the Settlement Agreement

An Attitude of Collaboration

Chapter 16: Cultivate the Structured Negotiation Mindset

  • Practice Active Patience
  • Avoid Negative Assumptions
  • Be Trustworthy and Trust Others
  • Practice Grounded Optimism
  • Appreciate and Recognize
  • Equanimity Is a Negotiating Tool
  • Friendliness and Kindness Advance a Negotiation
  • Increasing Empathy Reduces Stress
  • Develop Collaborative Muscle

New Structured Negotiation Cases for the Second Edition

Chapter 17: Structured Negotiation Continues to Thrive

  • New Relationships and New Issues
  • Stories From the Field: Other Lawyers and Clients Make Structured Negotiation Their Own
  • What’s Next for Structured Negotiation?

Conclusion: Widening the Tent

Appendix 1 Template for a Structured Negotiation Opening Letter

Appendix 2: Sample Ground Rules Document

Appendix 3: The Elements Come Together: Structured Negotiation with Major League Baseball

Endnotes

Second Edition Acknowledgments

Index