Introduction

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Barney Jordaan is a highly accomplished legal professional, academic, and expert in negotiation and dispute resolution, with a distinguished career spanning several decades across South Africa and Europe.

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Academic Qualifications

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Barney holds a solid academic foundation with a BA (Law), LLB, and a Doctor of Laws (LLD) from Stellenbosch University, South Africa. He is also a highly certified mediator, recognized by prestigious international bodies such as ADR Group (UK), International Mediation Institute (IMI, The Hague), Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR, UK), and Conflict Dynamics (South Africa).

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​Early Career & Academia

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His extensive employment history began with practical legal training and admission as an attorney in the Supreme Court of South Africa in the early 1980s. He then transitioned into academia, serving as a Senior Lecturer (1983-1990) and later a Full Professor of Law (1990-1997) at Stellenbosch University, concurrently engaging in human rights legal practice.

Consulting & Mediation Practice

 

In 1997, Barney co-founded and became a director of a prominent consulting firm and mediation practice, a role he held until 2014. During this period, he became a Professor Extraordinaire at the Graduate School of Business of Stellenbosch University (USB) and a Teaching Fellow at the Graduate School of Business of the University of Cape Town, positions he continues to hold. Since 2014, he has been a Professor of Negotiation and Partner at Vlerick Business School in Belgium, demonstrating his international reach and expertise.

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​Key Appointments & Leadership Roles

 

Barney's influence extends to numerous other significant appointments. He was a faculty member, trainer, and mediator with Independent Mediation Services of South Africa (1998-2008), and has been with the University of Stellenbosch Business School Executive Education Ltd since 1998. He also joined Conflict Dynamics South Africa as a faculty member and mediator in 2008.

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A key achievement was founding and heading the USB Africa Centre for Dispute Settlement at Stellenbosch University Business School from 2008 to 2014. He served as the Regional Representative of the International Bar Association’s Mediation Committee (2010-2014) and as an external consultant to the World Bank Group’s Office of Mediation Services (2011-2014), handling mediations within their subsidiaries in Southern Africa. From 2012 to 2014, he was the Sub-Saharan representative of the International Association for Conflict Management (IACM).

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European Engagements​

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His European engagements include visiting professorships at Nova Gorica University, Slovenia (2014-2021), and serving as a Council Member for the European School of Law, Slovenia (2015-2022). He chaired the Academic Committee of the Global Pound Mediation Conference Series on Access to Justice (2016-2019) and led the Area People & Organisation at Vlerick Business School (2019-2022), where he is currently the Programme Director for the Masters in General Management (2022-present). In 2020, he co-founded and became Vice Chair of the Institute for Negotiation Innovation, a joint initiative with Sherbrooke University, Montreal, Canada. Since 2023, he has been a member of Mundi Mediatores, Netherlands.

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​Memberships & Associations

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Barney is a member of the International Association for Conflict Management and PIN (Processes of International Negotiation) based at the Geneva Centre for Security Studies. He is also a mentor for Black Umbrellas South Africa.

Teaching Experience

 

His academic experience is vast, having taught full-time at Stellenbosch University's faculties of law and commerce from 1983 to 1997, and part-time since 1997 at top business schools in Africa (USB and GSB) and Europe (Vlerick Business School and European Faculty of Law, Slovenia). He has held adjunct teaching appointments at IESEG, Paris; Maastricht School of Management; HEC Liege Management School, Belgium; and the Diplomatic Academy at the University of Public Service, Budapest.

Publications

 

Barney has authored and co-authored numerous publications, including books, book chapters, and articles, focusing on workplace relations, employment law, negotiation, and mediation.

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​Practice & Consulting Experience

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His practice experience is equally impressive. As a director and co-founder of a leading consulting firm, he advised clients on negotiation strategy, business restructuring, workplace relations, and conflict resolution. He has also conducted extensive training and facilitation in these areas for diverse clients across various sectors.

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Mediation & Arbitration

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​As an arbitrator and mediator since 1987, Barney initially specialised in workplace relations and employment disputes. Since 2008, he has actively engaged in civil and commercial mediation, earning inclusion in LexisNexis' "Who's Who of Commercial Mediation" since 2011. He is also a certified trainer, coach, and assessor for a CEDR-accredited mediation course in South Africa offered by Conflict Dynamics, SA.

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Current Focus: 

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Since 2025, Barney is scaling down academic teaching to concentrate on negotiation and conflict advice and training, coaching, mediation, facilitation, and wilderness leadership expeditions linking nature, leadership and personal development.

 

Barney Jordaan's career demonstrates a profound commitment to legal education, dispute resolution, and fostering effective negotiation across both academic and practical spheres, with a significant impact on both the African and European continents.

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