Yada, Yada, Yada: Seinfeld, the Law and Mediation

Authors

Paul Devendorf, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Abstract

This Note will first explore the popularity of Seinfeld and discuss the influence of Seinfeld on legal culture. Part III details cultivation theory and explores the possible influences Seinfeld may have in shaping its viewers' impressions of formal law. Specific instances in-which Seinfeld has ridiculed formal legal practices and offered social criticisms of the legal profession are analyzed in Part IV. Part V describes a specific episode of Seinfeld and illustrates the consequences of parties' refusal to reach mutually satisfactory resolutions, the need for mediation to resolve highly contentious disputes, and the inadequacy of the legal system to provide an adequate resolution to the parties' conflict. Basic mediation principles are introduced in Part VI. Finally, Part VII provides detailed accounts of evaluative, facilitative, and transformative approaches to mediation as well as examples of Seinfeld disputes resolved through the strategies of these mediation models.

Disciplines

Dispute Resolution and Arbitration | Intellectual Property Law | Law | Law and Society | Torts

Recommended Citation

Paul Devendorf, Yada, Yada, Yada: Seinfeld, the Law and Mediation, 11 Cardozo J. Conflict Resol. 197 (2009).
Available at: https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/cjcr/vol11/iss1/10