I have a tidbit of insight for those who are lucky enough to have never faced the firestorm of a public crisis: the court of public opinion (the campus communications team) and the court of law (legal counsel) more often than not are in agreement when dealing with campus crises. Sometimes we have differences with the details, but generally we are on the same page.
For this reason, I am looking forward to reading the new book written by Amy Gajda, The Trials of Academe: The New Era of Campus Litigation. Assistant Professor Gajda participated in an email interview with The Chronicle of Higher Education and her responses elicited many head nods from this side of the computer screen.
Specifically, she said: “Offering alternatives through campus mediation, ombudspersons, and the like can help to defuse conflicts and keep them out of court. And I suggest building community also as a former corporate defense litigator who often heard in depositions that a simple ‘I’m sorry’ could have avoided the underlying lawsuit.”
I’ve found yet another kindred spirit.
