Stephen B. Goldberg
In Memoriam
Professor of Law Emeritus
Biography
Stephen B. Goldberg, Professor of Law Emeritus at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law and trailblazer in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), died January 2025.
Goldberg joined the Law School faculty in 1974. He was considered a trailblazer in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as well as a thoughtful mentor to countless colleagues and students who benefited greatly from his leadership, holistic pedagogy, and guidance.
Widely known for his expertise in ADR, Goldberg co-authored several groundbreaking works, including: Dispute Resolution: Negotiation, Mediation, Arbitration, with Frank Sander and Eric Green; Getting Disputes Resolved, with William Ury and Jeanne Brett; and How Mediation Works, with Jeanne Brett, Beatrice Blohorn-Brenneur, and Nancy Rogers.
Through these and other works, Goldberg played an influential role in shaping mediations and conflict disputes to prioritize rights, power, and balancing interests. With a passion for joining theory with practice, he successfully introduced mediation into labor grievance procedures across the country. Steve is renowned for approaching mediation and resolution with fairness, thoughtfulness, and rapport—an approach liberally noted for its effectiveness.
Aligning theory with pedagogy, Goldberg was credited with teaching the first Negotiation Workshop at Northwestern, one of the first at any law school. Northwestern Pritzker Law Negotiations courses have since been in high demand, and similar courses have become a curricular staple in both law and business schools nationwide. In addition to teaching at the Law School, Steve traveled both domestically and internationally to lead training for corporations, government officials, and organization leaders in areas of negotiation and mediation.
Goldberg contributed copious hours of service to the field of ADR. Together with colleague and wife Jeanne Brett, Distinguished Professor Emerita of Dispute Resolution and Organizations at Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, he co-founded Negotiations and Team Resources (NTR), an organization devoted to facilitating research and teaching in the areas of negotiation, conflict, and dispute resolution. Subsequently, he served as an esteemed board member. In 2023 NTR recognized him by establishing the Goldberg Fellowship.
In addition, Goldberg served as president of Mediation Research and Education Project, Inc., member of the National Panel of Distinguished Neutrals of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, and member of the National Academy of Arbitrators. He also was a mediator of the International Court of Arbitration for Sport, a salary arbitrator for Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association, and the jobs monitor for the United Mine Workers for America and the Bituminous Coal Operators Association.
In 2014, he was honored by the International Association for Conflict Management (IACM) with the Rubin Award, which recognizes leaders for their work bridging theory, research, and practice.
Goldberg received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard College in 1954 and his LLB from Harvard Law School in 1959. He worked at the National Labor Relations Board from 1961 until 1965. He was a professor at the University of Illinois College of Law from 1965 until 1973 and at Northwestern University Pritzker Law School from 1974 until 2001. He was also a visiting professor at Harvard Law School from 1979 until 1980.
While an accomplished scholar, Goldberg was known throughout the Law School and among his peers for his kindness, congeniality, humility, and passion. His collaborative and humanistic approach expanded well beyond his research and into classrooms and study spaces, in addition to numerous conference and training sessions worldwide. May his legacy endure through his research and the colleagues, students, and alumni whose lives he impacted.