Disputes Are Not a Legal Problem First
One of the great misconceptions in our industry is that disputes are, at their core, legal matters. They are not. They are governance failures before they are legal ones.
Long before lawyers become involved, something else has usually broken down: clarity of authority, alignment of intent, or confidence in decision-making. When those foundations weaken, behaviour changes. Positions replace dialogue. Pressure replaces judgement.
By the time disputes are formalised, the damage is often already well advanced, not just financially, but culturally and reputationally.
Professionalism Under Pressure
True professionalism is not demonstrated when things are going well. It shows itself when outcomes are contested and emotions are involved.
In high-consequence environments, professionalism means resisting the instinct to “win” before understanding what must be protected. It means slowing decisions down just enough to ensure they are deliberate, defensible and aligned with long-term value.
Ethical leadership, in this context, is not about being soft. It is about being responsible, to shareholders, communities, employees and future operators who inherit today’s decisions.
Peace, professionally understood, is not the absence of conflict. It is the presence of control.
Governance as an Ethical Act
Good governance is often described as a system, a framework or a set of controls. In practice, it is something simpler, and more demanding.
Governance is the act of stepping in when alignment fails, and taking responsibility for restoring clarity before damage becomes irreversible.
When disputes are governed early, when facts are separated from positions, exposure is understood, and authority is re-established, something important happens. Behaviour stabilises. Language changes. Options reappear.
Even when disputes ultimately proceed to formal resolution, they do so within a structure that protects value and dignity, rather than destroying both.
That, in my view, is ethical leadership in action.
Why This Matters for 2026
Across the industry, I see capable organisations entering the New Year carrying disputes that have already consumed far more energy than they should have. Not because the issues are unsolvable, but because no one paused long enough to govern the breakdown itself.
The cost is not just measured in money. It shows up in exhausted teams, distracted leadership and relationships that may never fully recover.
As we move into 2026, there is an opportunity to approach disputes differently, not as battles to be fought, but as moments requiring calm authority and disciplined judgement.
Commercial resolution, when approached as governance rather than confrontation, allows leaders to protect value without sacrificing professionalism or integrity.
A Quiet Invitation to Leaders
If you are ending this year with a dispute unresolved, whether active, imminent or quietly festering, my encouragement is simple.
Before escalating further, ask whether control has truly been restored. Ask whether decisions are being made deliberately, or under pressure. Ask whether governance has been applied to the breakdown itself, not just the contract.
Peace in business does not come from avoiding hard decisions. It comes from making them with clarity, restraint and responsibility.
That approach has guided my work across decades of complex assets and difficult moments, and it is the approach I believe our industry needs more of as we step into the year ahead.
May 2026 be defined not by louder arguments, but by steadier leadership and better-governed outcomes.
