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Ian Marsh

familydr

Ian Marsh specialises in family dynamics and communication. Drawing on 40 years' experience of working with families as adviser, litigator and trustee, on his craft as a mediator, and on the principles of interpersonal neurobiology, Ian now works as teacher, coach, facilitator and mediator to families around the world, helping them to have the conversations they need to have but have never quite got around to (too difficult!), or have tried their best to have but without success (nobody listened!). Those conversations are often (but by no means always) about succession and governance.

Ian is accredited as a mediator by both the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre. He is a member of the International Steering Committee of the STEP Business Families Special Interest Group, and is the author of the Conflict Management and Dispute Resolution chapter in Business Families and Family Businesses: The STEP Handbook for Advisers published by Globe Business Publishing Limited.

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  • Contributing Author

2 Contributions by Ian Marsh

Lawyers' guide to resolving family business disputes: early containment, facilitative mediation, stakeholder diagnosis, collaboration and Plan B/BATNA preparation
PRACTICE NOTES
Lawyers' guide to resolving family business disputes: early containment, facilitative mediation, stakeholder diagnosis, collaboration and Plan B/BATNA preparation
Conflict is inevitable…war is not Conflict is part and parcel of being human. In and of itself it is neither good nor bad; what counts is how we respond. Managed well, it can spark creativity and progress, acting as a catalyst for innovation and invention. Managed badly, it destroys health, erodes wealth and damages relationships. Where conflict management protocols are already in place, and dynamic stress within the family/business system hardens into patent conflict (see Practice Note: Guarding against family business disputes), they should be implemented at the earliest possible opportunity. If no such measures exist, or they fail for any reason, the following should be considered. Containment Conflict becomes far more difficult to manage once it spreads beyond the principals: others will predictably take sides, publicise the dispute, and circulate commentary shaded by their own world view and personality traits rather than those of the people actually in conflict; it is more difficult still if the matter enters the public domain. If at all possible, ask the parties to agree to a moratorium on: discussing the issue while a process is put in place and given a fair chance to work (which requires that this be undertaken with the minimum of delay)...
Corporate
Preventing and Resolving Family Business Disputes: Governance, Fair Process and Dispute Resolution Protocols
PRACTICE NOTES
Preventing and Resolving Family Business Disputes: Governance, Fair Process and Dispute Resolution Protocols
Conflict is inevitable…war is not We are innately geared to persist, to reproduce, and to position our children to do the same. In contemporary settings this manifests as rivalry for: scarce resources—here, ownership or control of the business authority and sway within our ‘in‑group’—here, the family and/or the business our own values to be adopted as the group’s/family’s standards Conflict itself is neutral; our response determines its impact. Handled well, it fuels creativity and breakthrough. Mishandled, it damages health, wealth, and relationships. Conflict is not something to be (re)solved once and for all, but a persistent element of family dynamics to be stewarded day by day. Emerging conflict Interpersonal strain becomes overt conflict when one person believes—or fears—another stands in the way of their aims. In particular: perception is paramount; whether the belief is objectively warranted does not matter the brain region driving fear cannot conceptualise, so rumour—well founded or not—is received as fact similarly, we may react,...
Corporate
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