City Planner, Mediator, and MIT Professor

Business and Commercial Dispute Negotiation Role-Play: Harborco

Title:

Business and Commercial Dispute Negotiation Role-Play: Harborco
Publication Type
:
Miscellaneous
Year of Publication
:
1984

Authors:

Lawrence Susskind
Thomas Weeks
Denise Madigan
Publication Language
:
eng
Abstract
:
Six-party, multi-issue, scoreable negotiation among representatives of a port developer, labor union, environmental coalition, other regional ports, governor's office, and department of coastal resources over a proposal to build a new deep-water port
Citation Key
:
100

Harborco is a consortium of development, industrial, and shipping concerns interested in building and operating a deepdraft port. It has already selected a site for the port, but cannot proceed without a license from the Federal Licensing Agency (FLA). The FLA is willing to grant Harborco a license, but only if it secures the support of at least 4 of 5 other parties: the environmental coalition, the federation of labor unions, a consortium of other ports in the region, the Federal Department of Coastal Resources (DCR), and the Governor of the host state. The parties have several issues to negotiate before deciding whether or not to approve the port, including the types of industries that will be be permitted to locate near the port, the extent to which environmental damage be mitigated, the extent to which organized labor will be given preference in hiring during construction and operation of the port, the amount of any federal financial assistance to Harborco, and the amount of any compensation to other ports in the region for potential economic losses?