Corporate Group Mediation For Restaurant Plaza Owners

Applicant: Plaza Restaurant Owners
Service: Mediation and Negotiation
Challenges:

• Solution needed to be found quickly to keep restaurants from paying fine and from closing down
• Getting all the business owners to agree on one course of action was going to be difficult
• Constant dispute between the Plaza owners

BACKGROUND

On a hot weekday morning in Southern California, business owners arriving to open their shops found their plaza blanketed with trash. Dozens of garbage bags full of old, rotting food were strewn haphazardly around the shopping center.

Naturally, the business owners were furious. They could not tell if the vandalism was intentional, but they needed a solution right away. The city inspector and environmental services determined that the trash – so overwhelming that garbage collectors could not even pick it up – posed a serious health risk. If the owners did not eliminate the waste quickly, they would be fined and forced to close their shops. The fate of every business in the plaza was at stake, and they needed lawyers who could offer them practical solutions.

KEYS TO SUCCESS

Since Tsang & Associates had provided legal aid to the businesses in the plaza before, they promptly turned to us for help, trusting us to find a practical solution to the issue. Not only did the plaza business owners need a cost-effective way to clean up the trash, but they also had to ensure this would never happen again. Unfortunately, none of the owners would agree on the right course of action. There was a constant issue of money and time that they needed to find a solution to.

One by one, they arrived at the office of Tsang & Associates for the meeting. Sleep-deprived, stressed, and infuriated, the men and women who ran the local business were in no state to negotiate calmly. Accusations flew back and forth across the room. Everyone blamed their neighbors for dumping the trash and deliberately sabotaging their competitors. It was difficult for these individuals to talk in a calm manner which turned the meeting into a war zone. Not only did these individuals continue to fight with one another, trying to get everyone to agree with one solution was proving to be a more difficult task. Everyone believed in their solutions and ideas and would not compromise, which had caused even more fighting. Things were getting out of hand. Fast.

Tsang swiftly stepped in and reassured the owners that everyone at the table shared the same goals. He reminded them that the point of the meeting was not to lay blame but to find a productive solution. He told everyone that they needed to take responsibility for this situation, as this event affected everyone similarly. He then had each person say what they believed needed to happen to make sure nothing like this occurred ever again.

After listening to the suggestions, Tsang created a plan that satisfied everyone and made the plaza a safe and clean place to shop again. With the funds the owners had put together, he ordered new, state-of-the-art security cameras for every shop. He had signs placed to discourage garbage dumping, and installed a more secure lock on the gate at the entrance of the plaza to prevent anyone from driving in late at night. Finally, Tsang enlisted the help of three environmental cleaning services to come and clear out waste from the plaza.

OUTCOME

Within one week, Tsang & Associates eliminated the trash, installed new cameras, and placed a new lock on the gate. The business plaza owners were extremely grateful to work with a law firm that had exceptional knowledge in negotiations. Now, because of the exceptional negotiation and planning demonstrated by our team, the plaza owners could rest easy, knowing the fate of their shops was in safe hands.