New Journal Addresses Law and Negotiation

A group of 31 students and five faculty at Harvard Law School joined together early last month to create the Harvard Negotiation Law Review (HNLR), the first journal of its kind to feature an editorial board consisting of both students and teachers.

"This journal brings faculty and students together to write and edit, and that's what makes it special," said third-year law student and Editor-in-Chief Christopher M. Thorne '90.

The publication is dubbed a "peer review journal," Thorne added, because the articles will be written and edited by both groups. Generally, law reviews have students edit, but not write.

Published essays will take an interdisciplinary approach to understanding how law and negotiation intersect, said Marjorie Corman Aaron, the executive director of the Law School's program on negotiation and a member of the peer review board. Future issues may address the economy, litigation settlement, mediation, cross cultural cases and legislation.

"What I'm most excited about this journal is the opportunity students have to make intellectual contributions to the field," said Robert H. Mnookin, Williston professor of law and chair of the Program on Negotiation Steering Committee.

The Program on Negotiation currently publishes Negotiation Journal, but it targets much broader issues than those the new HNLR intends to pursue.

"We tend to learn about the law, but not about how laws are made. The HNLR is looking to fill a niche for scholarly articles on how law relates to negotiation and how issues of negotiation relate to law," Thorne said.

The journal's administrative structure will also fill a niche, advisors said, by providing students a chance to write on issues of negotiation themselves.

"For many years, many students have been exposed to classes on nego- tiation and dispute resolution, but there hasnever been an intellectual outlet in an accessibleway for students to pursue their interests innegotiation and dispute resolution," Mnookin said.

Prerequisites for joining the journal simplyinclude course work or experience in negotiation.

"We negotiate every day from the day we'reborn, with our parents, brothers and sisters, androommates," Thorne said. "Unfortunately, however,we don't always improve our skills much from thetime we're in kindergarten."

The journal plans to publish its first issue inthe fall of 1995. Editors hope to attract articlesfrom leaders in the field of negotiation, such asformer President Jimmy Carter and diplomat HenryKissinger.

Thorne said the journal will allow students andfaculty to "learn from each other's experiencesand research."

"The journal couldn't have come about withoutthe support of the faculty," he added. "Thechemistry of having the right faculty and studentscreated the journal.

Prerequisites for joining the journal simplyinclude course work or experience in negotiation.

"We negotiate every day from the day we'reborn, with our parents, brothers and sisters, androommates," Thorne said. "Unfortunately, however,we don't always improve our skills much from thetime we're in kindergarten."

The journal plans to publish its first issue inthe fall of 1995. Editors hope to attract articlesfrom leaders in the field of negotiation, such asformer President Jimmy Carter and diplomat HenryKissinger.

Thorne said the journal will allow students andfaculty to "learn from each other's experiencesand research."

"The journal couldn't have come about withoutthe support of the faculty," he added. "Thechemistry of having the right faculty and studentscreated the journal.