Students from Ireland learn about the art of mediation

Seven high school students from Ireland got a lesson from a pair of former Lake County judges the week before last that they can apply in areas other than legal disputes.

The kids were at the courthouse as part of a tour of the area that they are taking through an exchange program sponsored by the Highland Park Rotary Club.

They are members of a group known as TABU, which stands for Toward A Better Understanding, that seeks to resolve disputes peacefully.

In keeping with that theme, the students were given a mini-seminar in the process of mediation by former judges Stephen Walter and Terrance Brady.

Mediation, Walter explained, is finding out what is important to each side of a dispute then working toward a resolution that satisfies those needs.

And while mediation is a way to solve legal disputes, it is also a way to work through the smaller irritations of life, Walter said.

"It is just not a courtroom setting that this understanding is important, it is in everyday life," he said. "If you can sit down with the other party and understand what he or she needs, you can move forward."

The students also saw actual cases being handled in court, got a tour of the Lake County Jail and were taken for lunch and shopping at Gurnee Mills.

Lawday: Entries are being sought for various contests for Lake County students as part of the Law Day activities at the county courthouse.

Law Day will be observed on May 2 and students wishing to enter the contests must submit their entries by April 11.

All entries must be related to the Law Day theme, "The Rule of Law and What it Means to Me."

There is a photo contest for college and high school students, and entries can be in color or black-and-white and no larger than 8-inches-by-10-inches in size.

Seventh- and eighth-grade students can enter an essay contest with a 500-word entry based on the theme.

A poster contest is being held for students in grades four through six, and each poster must be done freehand.

Students in grades kindergarten through three can enter a coloring contest.

For more information, call Diane Flory at (847) 377-3818

Heard in the hallway: Former assistant public defenders Kevin Malia and Eric Rinehart have gone into private practice and formed the firm Malia and Rinehart, P.C. at 33 N. County St. in Waukegan.