GUIDE: Why Negotiate?

Jake and Brighid had never been what most folks would call good neighbors. Jake grew up on his place, inheriting it when his parents passed nearly 20 years ago. His ranch is home to close to 7,500 mother cows and his roots in the area run deep. Brighid bought the place next to Jake’s after retiring from her career as a Navy officer around 15 years ago. She and one of her sons run 1,500 head of yearlings through the summer, but spend their winters enjoying the sun, somewhere in the Southwest.
   It’s been said that “Strong fences make good neighbors.” Jake and Brighid did not share much of a fence between their places; fencing had become an ongoing and escalating bone of contention between them for years. Jake argued his cows never had a problem with the fence before Brighid came on the scene, and since his ranch had been around the longest, it should be the responsibility of Brighid and her family to make it right. Brighid, on the other hand, contended that Jake’s bulls were the main problem, crossing the fence and knocking it down to get at some of her yearling heifers. As a result, she maintained that Jake not only needed to stand the fence up but, because he owned one of the oldest ranches in the county, he should replace the fence. Brighid’s lawyer had a similar opinion.
   Everyone up and down the valley had already heard each of them carry-on about the other on multiple occasions, sometimes they even made a scene at community events. No one had yet pulled a gun, but there was a fist fight that had erupted after the dance at the county fair last year. It seemed that a court somewhere would be needed to resolve the conflict. Do Jake and Brighid have other alternatives?

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