News Scrapbook 1981-1982

OCT l 5 l~til

FRIDAY OCTOBER15 1982"

USD LawSchool

'LEGAL SYSTEM IS IN TROUBLE' USD Lav.r School Proiect Seeks More Settlements Out-Of-Court By MICHAEL SCOIT-BLAIR Education V.'rlter,The Son Oiev(I Union tion and in how to bring the contest- ing people into the center for a dis- cussion of their problems.

welfare oft e community" in making the grant. Weingart, a multi-millionaire Los Angeles real estate tycoon. died in 1980 at the age of 92 - leaving the bulk of his fortune to the foundation. Krantz also expressed ap- preciation to Sol Price, founder of the FedMart and Price Club retail discount organizations and a trustee of the foundation, for support which he said has "enabled the immediate implementation of a vital activity which might otherwise have been delayed for a considerable time." Price was a former business associate and one-time ronservator for Wemgart. "The formal legal sy. e,n is in trouble," Krantz said, adding that numerous studies document an "alarming increase" in costs of and delays in use of the courts to resolve disputes. The adversarial process, he added, often "inhibits rather than assists in the finding of truth." The USD law school dean cited vorious plans for establishment of alternatives to litigation - in luding American Bar Assn. tudies, federal legi lation supporting experimental neighborhood justice centers and new state programs such as the "rent a-Judge" system to speed r solution of di putes. He said there is growing pressure both inside and outside the legal profession - to find alternatives to the "heavy reliance on litigation" which he characterized as a peculiarly American phenomenon Many countries, he pointed out, historically and presently resolve disputes through reliance on village eld rs, extended family members and neighbors rather than in - stitulional methods such as the courts for resolution of disputes. In Japan , he said, it is considered demeaning to [i)e or be involved in a lawsuit. Krantz pointed out that while the values of one society cannot be transferred to another, it is im- portant to recognize that other countries do resolve disputes without "undue reliance" on at- torneys and the courts. The United States, Krantz says, is becoming more conservative and restrictive in the manner in which it permits police gencies and the ...o o perat • Desp:tc a growing awfJ'Cness in t he need for changes in the current ·ystem of litigation, however, he says there have been few tangible successes in dealing with the problems. "Tradition dies hard - and it is difficult to get professionals and professional schools to change the way work skills and methods are performed and taught, "'tie said. He hopes the new Center for Dispute Resolution may change some of that. Krantz and two other San D1egans Richard Huffman. assistant d · trict attorney, and Robert Burgreen, assistant chief of pohce - have just returned from a 10-day · fact finding mission" in Scotland that included meetings witl- ranking police and govern- mental officials and a study of that country's criminal justice system and how it handles complaints against its law enforcement officers. The trip was funded by the German Marshall Fund, an organization in the U.S. that en- courages joint American and Eu"Opean efforts to resolve en- vironmental, crime and traffic problems. Krantz aid a report on the group's findings in Scotland may be helpful in some of the future projects to be undertaken by the new Center for Dispute Resolution.

(Continued from PQe JAi

UPD Law School Center Promote Litigation Options

related

and

center-spon ored

proj

-Providing educational ex uti VI' and the public on benefits of non• litigation forms of dispute resolution. - Creating new courses and material to acquaint law and bllllin students with advantages of avoiding costly and delay-ridden litigation. -A , isling other groups that may be interested in initiating imilar programs. Serving on an advisory board for th new center are Dr. William McGill, retired president of Columbia University and form r UCSD chancellor; the Rev. Msgr. I. Brent Eagen, a :JSD trustee and chancellor of the Roman Catholic Dioc of San Di go; Judge Leland C. Nielsen of U.S. D1stnct Court; Wilham Yale. a retired nn Diego uperior Court judge and Krantz. The board h n m r g informally for v•ral montli , id ntilying and udying probl ms in th litigation pr and alternative lutions. Although the center's first formal project hos not been established, it is expected to relate to the Southeast San Diego ~a and to involve a joint effort of com munity r id nts and organizations with the center staff in attempt ng to mediate disput that nught includ delinquency problems m volving petty th ft, vandalism, as.'laultive behavior and family or neighborhood disputes. Another area is the low-in me residents most affected by th decline in federal upport for le Ill rvices and "often with nowhere to turn with consumer and I ndlord• tenant problems or disput with public agencies." Krantz said a second plann d project will involve me<3iation of business disputes. ' "Even busine s executives are beginning to learn of the value of u ing less contentiollll and expensive forms of conflict resolution," Krantz 'laid. '"Thi second demonstration proj t would creat an ex perimental program to test alter- native forms of resolution in busine disputes." It would operate under the guidance of a business executives advisory committee. Krantz lauded the Weingart Foundation for its "gener05ity and forward -looking concern with the programs for busrne

advisory board made up of Krantz; Dr Wilham McGill, former UCSD chancellor and recently reti•ed pres- ident of Columbia University; Mon- signor I. Brent Eagen, USD trustee and chancellor of the Roman Catho- lic Diocese of San Diego; U.S. District Judge Leland Neilsen, anJ retired Judge William Yale of the San Diego County Supenor Court. When the neighborhood program is completed, the law chool's new cen- ter will develop a program for the resolution of bu iness con{licts, with opening tentatively scheduled for the fall. Each of the two centers will op- erate for 18 months on an experi- mental basis and then be reviewed, he said "Even bu mess e:iwcutives are be- gmning to learn of the value of using less contentious and expensive forms of conflict-resolution," Krantz said.

An effort to take minor legal con- flicts out of the courtrooms and let people try to resolve them in their own neighborhoods has begun at the University of San Diego School of Law, financed by a $125,000 grant from the Weingart Founadation. "The formal legal system," said Sheldon Krantz, dean of the law school, "is in trouble." Court calendars are clogged, there has been an alarming increase m the cost of going to court, and the court- room adversanal process often "in- hibits rather than assists in finding the truth." he said. The law school's new center for al- ternatives to litigation hopes to open its first operation, probably in South- east San Diego, in the spring. offering a chance for small neighborhood disputes to be settled without going to court. "The goal is to reach out-of-court agreements on problems involving minor vandalism, petty thefts, graffi- ti, excessively barking dogs and other problems that cause neighbor- hood disputes," Krantz said. Similar demonstration projects in other parts of the nation have led to a greater neighborhood spirit. with people regaining the feeling that they can exercise local control over the solution of their neighborhood problems, he said. The center would seek volunteers m the area being served, and would train them in elementary investiga-

The goal would be for them to agree on a solution, including the payment for any damages involved, without having to involve lawyers and the court. · ''Of course," Krantz said, 'the court option would still be open. Our effort i to offer something in addi- tion to the court alternative, not to supplant it." There would be no charge for the service, and the center hopes to find someone willing to donate offiC'e space in the area for the center, "Most other countries historically and currently resolve disputes through reliance on village Ider , extended family members and neigh- bors. rather than on such institution- al methods as courts," Krantz said. "For example, in many countries, such as Japan, 1t 1s considered demeaning to file or to be involved in lawsuits. While the values of one so- ciety cannot be transferred to anoth- er, it is important to recognize that other countries do manage to resolve disputes without undue reliance on lawyers and courts." Southeast San Diego 1s seen as a probable site for the first center be- cause many lo\\-income families are suffering from cuts m federal legal aid and have nowhere to turn with their consumer and landlord-tenant problems or disputes with public agencies. The center is being guided by an

LOS ANGELES TllvlES

EVENING TRIBUNE

'OCT 1 5 1982

D plan te t · court litigat · n

"EDWARDS. CURTIS: THE I DIAN\ NUSfl (Founders Gal- l ry. Founders Hall. Un1vers1ty or San Di~go) Exhibit or 50 gold- 10~ photographs by westrrn photographer F.clward s. Curtis :i! · 1962). Hours ar~ noon 10 5 p.m Monday1, Tuesdays, Thurs- Th Y• and Friday,. noon lo 9 p.m. Wedr days. Exh1b1t runs through ursday.

SAN DI EGO UNION OCT 1 ., 2 Mila U.S. Debut.Impressive

hkes of Debussy, Bartok and of cour Turina. A rr.ore uccessful com- po~1tton, her Nocturne, Opus 23. combined a mildly ato. al harmonic text ure with the typical structure and mood associated with the Nocturne Two other composJtions, both enl1tled "Rondo Brilli- ante,' were clearly cut from the same bolt of C'loth. Each piece was so disjoint ed, that the fragments could have been rearranged m any order a 1d would have made as much musical nse M,la was o ponsored by tl'e Spanish Emba~sy m Washington and the Joint C .S.-Spa1r Committee of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Htcr North Ameri- can tour, inaugurated by this San Diego perform- ance will no doubt be a worthy <'Ult -ral exchange although one might have hoped for a wider sampling of current Spanish compos- ers a nd repertory Herman is a free lance writer on classical music.

By KE. 'NETHHERMAJ\ Spanish pianist Leonora Mila made her Amencan debut las! night in reC'ital at USD's Camino Theater. While the sc-ope of the reper tory she chose was too na rrow to permit a thor- ough evaluation of her ar- tistry. It can be safelv stated that she possesses a fluent, confident technique and a considerable inter- pretive sensitivity. Milas opening selection was her most persuasive performance. To Robert Schumann 's familiar ·scenes from Childhood" she brought a refined re- flective and clearly etched performance. Her firm touch sculpted transparent textures <1nd well-defined melodic !deas Even the hackneyed 'Traeumerei" exhibited a deft, almost touching quality. She pa1red the "Scenes fr om Chi ldhood" with Schumann's G Minor Sona- ta, Opus 22. a rather formal exercise that seldom probes lieneath surface meaning. ro the opening allegro

Mila brought an mtens1ty that was some 1me.s tou clo. e to the fre ehc Cou- pled with her monocl-tro- matiC' touch, the e!fPCt was mildly enervat.ng. A. deltcate second move- me nt provided the sole respite for the cherto and finale l:.ld a II the energy and failings of the first movEment The second half of the program was CJevoted to Mila's OW"l compositions, es: cnt1ally Romantic forms cast 1r • n ecleC't i<' modern idiom Her "lmagr of the Court of Count Berenger IV of Catalona," a part1ta of 13 short ~m,"ll5 w~s neither as programmatic nor as prosaic as the subtitles. e g. "Lamentation l"lf a Sarac en · and "Children Play and Fall Asleep Like her interpretatwn of the Schumann )ionata, ttis mood of ·Im iges of the Court" was ag tated. its d1- rect10n ra ndorr. The ab- stract prelud to the set might have led into a pris- tine, neo-classical suite, but Mila's 1d10m skirted the

• EVENING TRIBUNE OCT 1 5 1982 Seminar set for women

"Woman Wit: Strategies and Sexism" is the topic of a seminar to be held from 7:30 to 9 a.m. Thursday in the DeSales Hall Board Room at the University of San Diego. The Rev. Carole G. Keim will discuss how the sym- bols and stories that "are enhancing to women con- flict with the reality of con- temporary religious institu- tions." Cost is $10, including a continental breakfast.

LOS ANGELES TIMES

SAN DIEGO UNION

CCT 1 6 198Z

OCT 1 6 1982.

J Saturd U D Is G·venGrant to Set Up Court Substitutes By PAULA PARKER, Times Staff Writer J

f /'Woma n Wit: Strategies and Sexism" will be the topic o the Woman and Issues Seminar to be held at 730 a.m Tbohursday m the University of San Diego s De Sales H~Ii ard room. ' The Rev. Carole Keim will_ d_iscuss how symbolic lan- f:af~ a nd structures of rehg10us organizations effect in mg a~d fcehng. A continental breakfast, seminar and matenals are included in the $10 registration fee Informat10n may be obtained by calling 293-4585. .

In a move educators say reflects a growing public concern over court costs, the University of San Diego has been given a $125,000 grant to develop an experimental program on alternatives to litigation. In his announcement, Sheldon Krantz, dean of USD's School or Law, said mediation, not hti!fat1on, is the main idea behind two demon- stration projects the law sc1'o61 will develop and run under its newly established center for dispute reso- lution The grant will be used to estab- hsh a neighborhood Justice center here similar to ones already operat- ing in other cities across the nation, in which residents trained m media- tion can them elves resolve out-of. court disputes that normally might result in lawsuits. It will also f ind a second project to help businesses avoid ht1gat1on by developing substitutes like mediation, as well as provide train- ing to laymen who might negotiate such settlements. Although no final decision has yet been made, the ne1ghboth~ justice center Mil probably be m Southeast San Diego, Krantz said, use Its low income residents are hardest hit by recent cuts In legal aid

months. and probably require the hiring of four new staff members. If they prove successful, the univer- sity would seek private or govern- ment contributions to continue them, Krantz said. Their progr s would be observed by a rive-mem- ber advisory board made up of local Judges, educators and cemmumty leaders. The Jaw school received the grant from the Weingart Founda- tion with the help of San Diego businessman Sol Price, a foundation trustee and board cha:irman of the Price Co. Figures released recently by admm1strators m the San Diego County Superior Court indicate that a civil case filed here faces a 17. month wait for a courtroom. '

Saturday, October 16, 1982

THE SAN DIEGO UNION

D4

USD T'ries To Stop Skid Against 4-0 La \(erne Thomas gained 106 yards 10 21 carries.

"I don't honestly think we've lost to any oppo- nent all year," USD coach Bill Williams said. "We've simply beaten ourselves with penalties and turnovers."

In addition, La Verne's defense has allowed 187 yards a game. The Leopards have held the opposition to I 9 yards per rush. USO began the season with three one-sided v1ctones, then lost to Occidental, in a regionally televised road game, and to Whittier, at home last week. The Torer<)S outgamed Whittier 364 yards to 198 but turned the ball over six time and were penalized nme times for 126 yards