Every year I submit a program to the ABA Dispute Resolution Section, and every year when I get there I am flabbergasted by the breadth, depth, focus, energy and sheer numbers at the Annual Conference. My first was 1998, in Boston, and by now the thing has plumb gone wild. Under the inspirational leadership of Section Chair Homer La Rue, this year features some real dillies.
I’m a 60-year old white guy, two years into the terrifying challenge of building a solo practice as a mediator/arbitrator. And the gist of this post is that more women and people of color need to be hired as neutrals.
I worked hard for this goal when I was Senior Vice President of CPR Institute, and served as Staff Liaison to the CPR Task Force on Diversity in ADR. And now, that prima blogger assoluto al mondo, Victoria Pynchon, has started a series of posts with her characteristic flair and logical power, pressing the issue. You Go, Girl! Read more »
From the invaluable BASESwiki comes news of just the development I and others have pounded the table about: A long-term project that features a formal and permanent ”canary-in-the-mine” that identifies and addresses problems early on, and successfully prevents conflicts. Read more »
Two interesting conferences will take place in Virginia during the month of March — one focusing on investor-state dispute prevention and the other on a variety of challenges and opportunities faced by Virginia mediators. Read more »
