Business Negotiation Theory and Practice

3 units

Enrollment limit: 24. Prerequisite: Introduction to Negotiation & Dispute Resolution. Drop deadline: 5:00 p.m. Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. Students are not eligible to take both this course and any section of Comparative Business Negotiation. The difference between a good attorney and a great one is often a matter of negotiation skills. Whether working in a law office practice, a public institution, or a business enterprise, an attorney's job inevitably involves negotiation. Many of the negotiation skills learned in this class are also applicable to individuals working in non-traditional legal positions (for example, business executives, leaders of non-profit organizations or politicians), as these and other careers frequently require reaching agreements with other parties. Negotiation skills are needed in any situation where the terms of an agreement or contract must be determined (mergers, joint ventures, litigation settlements, partnership agreements, and so forth), and also in the day-to-day work of dealing with clients, partners, employees, judges, legislators, and colleagues. Because negotiation is so integral to what lawyers do, negotiation skills play critical role in determining how successful lawyers are in their work. The premise of this course is that, while attorneys need analytical skills to discover solutions to negotiation problems, bargaining skills are needed for solutions to be accepted by others and implemented. The purpose of this course is to help you become a more skillful negotiator. The course is relevant to a broad range of business and negotiation problems faced by lawyers. A solid grounding in negotiation theory is necessary for the development of negotiation skills. Toward this end, students will study a variety of situations where negotiating skills are important and will develop a set of bargaining tools that will enable them to convert conceptual knowledge into effective action. These tools consist of preparation and at-the-table guidelines that, when practiced regularly, develop into fluid negotiation skills. Because practice is essential for negotiation skills to develop, practice opportunities are offered continually throughout the course. Indeed, at least one practice opportunity will be provided in almost every class, in the form of a negotiation or dispute resolution case that simulates a real-world situation. There are no exams in this course. Rather, you will be graded on the basis of written assignments, a final paper, engagement and participation in class, and a group project (if assigned). [BCCCR Requirement: this course contains 4 hours of BCCCR instruction.]