Mr. and Mrs. Buyer bought a three-acre lot and a trailer in Hawthorne, FL for $100,000. The Seller disclosed that the septic tank did not work properly, and they negotiated to ensure a working septic tank.
Mr. and Mrs. Buyer were living in the trailer for two months when they noticed a soft spot in the kitchen wall, under the wallpaper. When the paper was removed it was discovered that mold was growing as a result of a leak in the outer wall. According to the inspector, there was evidence that this leak was present for many years as the mold was in an advanced stage. In order to repair the situation Mr. and Mrs. Buyer had to move out. Currently, the Buyers are awaiting an OK from the EPA to move back in.
The Buyers have filed a lawsuit against the Seller and their Realtor to recover $6,000 for their temporary alternative housing, $4,000 to repair the structural damage in all of the rooms affected by the mold, $800 to re-wallpaper the kitchen, $3,000 in attorney’s fees and costs, and
$1,200 for medical tests and treatment necessary as a result of their exposure to the mold.
1. Using your selected case, identify the substantive, procedural, and psychological issues that may need to be addressed? Which of these would your address first? Explain
2. Using your selected case study, identify how each party sees the other as the “problem.” (1) What would be each party’s solution? (2) How would you move the problem to the other side of the table? (3) How would you frame the problem to include both parties. (address all three sub-questions)
3. Discuss at least five of the techniques in Chapter 7 that could be applied to your case?
4. Using the notetaking form below, identify the parties’ possible interests, rights, power, and commonalities. (Before completing the notetaking form, please revisit Notetaking for Mediators – chapter 6, p.106 and review Figure 6.2 Sample Notetaking Form).
