Der Fall Collini (The Collini Case, 2019): Based on a novel by Ferdinand von Schirach, this legal drama features courtroom scenes but places greater weight on private investigation, legal argumentation, and reserved procedural exchanges, rather than direct, heated confrontation between parties.
hearing
Hearing
German Approach
Germans avoid hearings. Allowing the conflict parties to go head-to-head increases tension, making it more difficult to resolve the conflict. In Germany the conflicting parties are interviewed separately. Examples
American Approach
Americans expect a hearing. The conflict parties, in the presence of each other, make their case. Self-defense is only possible when one knows what the other side is accusing them of. Examples
American View
The absence of a hearing is viewed by Americans as a loss of the fundamental right to self-defense. The German approach of separate hearings is considered ineffective, secretive, fundamentally unjust.
German View
An American hearing is seen as unprofessional, antagonistic and counterproductive. It pits colleague against colleague, in competition with each other, in an open forum. It adds „oil to the fire.“
Advice to Germans
If you have an American boss and are in conflict with an American colleague be prepared for your hearing. It will come sooner than you think. If you lead Americans, and a conflict has been escalated to you, they‘ll expect you to hold some kind of a hearing. Do it quickly.
Advice to Americans
If you lead Germans, and a conflict is finally brought to your level, do not hold a hearing. Talk to the conflict parties separately. Prevent any kind of direct dueling among the conflict parties in your presence.
If you have a German manager, you will most likely not get an American-style „day in court“. The „judge“ will speak with you individually. You won‘t know the case made by your colleague, with whom you are in conflict.
Willing to argue
The dictionary defines streitbar as follows: [constantly] prepared, having the will to, argue, with someone over something, to critically and activelydispute something; to fight for or about something, to take a stand for something or someone, a fighter; [older] prepared for battle; warrior-like, brave.
The adjective streitbar has a very positive connotation in the German language. In recalling famous persons one often reads the sentence Er war streitbar – he was streitbar.
Politicians are ever more frequently characterized as being streitbar. Streitbar does not mean that one seeks out conflicts in a negative sense. Rather, it means to stand up for ones beliefs, and not avoid serious confrontations.
Fritz Bauer
The People vs. Fritz Bauer (Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer, 2015): The story of prosecutor Fritz Bauer’s pursuit of Nazi war criminals is told through behind-the-scenes investigation and confidential meetings. The film avoids sensational public hearings, instead focusing on indirect channels and private discussions to resolve conflict and build cases, mirroring the German preference for reducing tension through separation and structure.
Chicago Seven
The Trial of the Chicago Seven (1969–1970): This trial of anti-Vietnam War protesters was notable for its highly public, contentious hearings, with defendants, prosecutors, and witnesses confronting each other in court. The proceedings were widely covered and became a symbol of open, adversarial justice in the U.S..
Separate Hearings
German managers are trained to hold separate hearings with the conflict parties. The initial goal is to establish the root cause of the problem and to guage the intensity of the conflict. The German approach avoids a hearing involving both parties. Student mediators in German schools are taught the same method.
A hearing with both conflict parties present almost always leads to an escalation of tension. Emotions run high. Accusations and counter-accusations are made, often without any basis in fact. The mediator can quickly lose control of the situation.
That kind of a hearing only giesst Öl ins Feuer, literally pours oil into the fire; provoke another person; to push a difference of opinions into an open conflict.
The German term Herrschaftswissen, roughly translated as domination or control via better information, in the sense of knowledge is power, has a negative connotation. It signifies power of one over another based on the former‘s access to critical information.
German mediators strive to be better informed of all the details concerning a conflict than the conflict parties themselves. This not only prevents manipulation, it is the basis for resolving the problem.
Due Process
In the U.S. Constitution only one command is stated twice: in the 5th and 14th Amendments: „… or be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law ….“
This is known as the Due Process Clause, which guarantees that all levels of government in the U.S. must operate within the law and provide fair procedures.
The right of due process is deeply embedded in American thinking, and therefore in the thinking of Americans at the workplace. It is the promise, the guaranty, that a conflict will not be resolved without a process which is fair, transparent, and protects the rights of those involved in the conflict.
It is a question of fairness, of how Americans define what is just. Due Process. It’s what an American employee expects from their next-level management when that manager aims to resolve a conflict within the team.
Land of Lawyers
According to a recent survey, approximately 64% of American parents want their children to grow up to be lawyers. As a result, from a young age American children are taught to admire people who are skilled at presenting cases and winning arguments.
So much so that lawyer is the 14th most common answer that American children give to the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Lawyers defend their clients, especially in hearings