Showing posts with label Alternative Dispute Resolution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alternative Dispute Resolution. Show all posts

Monday, March 9, 2026

AAA Announces Resolution Simulator At Legal Week

Dubbed a "Dispute Revolution," the American Arbitration Association is launching its Resolution Simulator. Expanding the utility of the previously launched construction AI Arbitrator, the Resolution Simulator uses the same reasoning and analysis as the AI Arbitrator to provide simulated decisions based on the user submissions and feedback. Designed for single party use in documents-only AAA commercial and construction disputes, it promises explainable, informational insights grounded in structured legal reasoning, analysis, and decision logic. Parties may use it to understand how an arbitrator may resolve a dispute, develop their legal or negotiation strategy, or level-set internally with clients or counsel. It may also inform alternative paths to resolution, such as settlement or mediation. Ultimately, AAA hopes the product brings legal teams insight before escalation, empowering strategic decision-making and informing a path to resolution. The latest product launch underscores the AAA's commitment to responsible AI adoption, with governance, transparency, and auditability guiding the design and deployment of all AI-enabled tools. According to the AAA, this effort builds upon their 100-year history of helping parties navigate conflict through fair, transparent, and trusted processes. AI Arbitrator's Resolution Simulator responds to user demand for practical evaluative and decisioning tools, particularly in the early stages of a dispute, by illustrating how an arbitrator might analyze the dispute. See more here-- https://tinyurl.com/4azzjb57 and https://feature.adr.org/LegalWeek2026

Thursday, January 22, 2026

Orlando Mediator Blog Now Top 3!

Since 2010, the aim of this blog is simply to bring awareness to the profession of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) through assorted entries about mediation, arbitration and other forms of acting as a neutral online. Once again, Orlando Mediator blog received the honor of being named top among dispute resolution blogs out of the 80 best ranked on the web by traffic, social media followers, domain authority and freshness. I'm still maintaining some good company on this list with established dispute resolution blogs around the world that actually have paid professional writers and journalists. Orlando Mediator is recognized by Feedspot along with such distinguished blogs published by big names like Kluwer and Thomson Reuters and even above those by prominent ADR organizations like the American Arbitration Association (AAA), The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (Ciarb), ODR.com, Miles, NAM, ADR times and International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR). Feedspot's experts chose Orlando Mediator for what their founder calls the most comprehensive list of Dispute Resolution Blogs on the planet! Feedspot says it is the internet’s largest human curated database of bloggers and podcasts. Their list combines RSS feeds allowing users to keep track of many different websites in a single news aggregator. I am humbled again to know this labor of love for my chosen field of peacemaking is appreciated. I do enjoy keeping everyone informed on the latest trends and happenings in mediation and related fields through this outlet. Thanks again for your readership and support in 2026! https://rss.feedspot.com/dispute_resolution_rss_feeds/

Thursday, October 16, 2025

Future of AI in ADR

For Mediation Week 2025, I will recount my observations from attending the American Arbitration Association's (AAA) Future of Dispute Resolution Conference in New York, dealing with the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Taking place at Cardozo Law School in conjunction with the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR) and sponsored by the Practising Law Institute (PLI), this dynamic conference with Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) professionals, lawyer advocates, in-house counsel, programmers and developers explored how AI is transforming arbitration, mediation, and online dispute resolution (ODR). Legaltech innovators, institutional leaders and practitioners had quite interactive debates, a live demonstration of AAA's upcoming AI-trained construction arbitration product being launched next month (still requiring human oversight), and some real-world case studies. Humans are not being replaced, rather augmented in their skills and time management. Experience in the field cannot be simply replaced by machine, though AI's influence on dispute prevention cannot be understated. It will impact process, integrity, ethics and certainly case resolution outcomes. At the conclusion of the program, online dispute resolution pioneer, Colin Rule, opined that AI was really better suited as a tool to help both parties and neutrals in mediation, moreso than arbitration. The Future Dispute Resolution New York Hackathon the following day was hosted at AAA in Manhattan and included the Wolters Kluwer Arbitration digital experience team. This collaborative workshop paired neutrals with staff technologists and coders. Guided by product designers, engineers, and user experience (UX) experts, we collaborated forming interdisciplinary teams to identify practical pain points in the dispute resolution lifecycle and to rapidly prototype technology solutions from dispute prevention alerting tools to court service portals for self-represented entrepreneurs. Building on the success of the Future Dispute Resolution Hague Hackathon, our teams brainstormed in the morning and developed next-gen ADR demos in the afternoon, aiming to make dispute resolution processes faster, more equitable, and less expensive. The presentations from nine teams at the end of the day were quite impressive, given the compressed time to develop apps. Our team created "NeutralLens" an AI product for more efficiently distilling document submissions. For accuracy, our team utilized a Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) an AI framework that enhances a large language model (LLM) by allowing it to retrieve relevant information from an external knowledge base to produce more up-to-date and trustworthy responses. It was all very inspiring and we hope will lead to a better experience for those utilizing ADR to get better access to justice outside the court system. See more here-- https://go.adr.org/2025-future-of-dispute-resolution-hackathon and https://www.adr.org/news-and-insights/ai-in-construction-disputes/

Monday, December 16, 2024

Fla Bar ADR Section 2025

Whether you are a veteran neutral, new to dispute resolution practice, or an attorney representing clients in mediation or arbitration, involvement in the ADR Section can help you enhance your negotiating skills. This coming year, please engage with us at The ADR Section Executive Council meeting which will meet on Friday, January 24, 2025 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. during The Florida Bar Winter Meeting at Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando. Note that it will be an in-person meeting only with no remote attendance option available. The ADR Section offers many opportunities to deepen your expertise in dispute resolution and further contribute to our chosen field. Our 1,000+ members include lawyers from all over Florida experienced in multiple areas of law. Join us at the next meeting with your thoughts and current issues so that together we can make dispute resolution in Florida even better. Also, be sure to put on your calendar our upcoming Advanced Mediation Techniques Mentoring Academy now in Tampa on May 2-3, 2025. Sign up now as this great interactive program featuring some of the best mediators in Florida is limited in size of participants and is only offered by us every other year. Hope everyone enjoys the holiday season and wishing you much success in settling cases in the coming year! See more here-- https://member.floridabar.org/s/lt-event?id=a1RWQ000004oK4T2AU and https://flabaradr.com/mentoring-academy/

Tuesday, October 15, 2024

It's Mediation er, um rather ADR Week!

Each October, we celebrate Mediation Week which has officially changed to Alternative Dispute Resolution or "ADR Week" in recognition of the importance of all forms of dispute resolution utilized in Florida. Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court, Carlos G. Muñiz, recognized October 13-19th as ADR Week in Florida’s courts, and the members of Florida’s Dispute Resolution Center and The Florida Bar ADR Section are excited to take this time to celebrate Florida’s leadership over the past 35 years in successfully utilizing ADR practices. Of course, these practices include mediation, arbitration, parenting coordination, eldercaring coordination, and other restorative and evaluative processes that encourage joint problem solving and effective resolution of disputes outside of the courtroom. All forms of ADR strive to assist parties to resolve their own disputes through self-determination, without the need for a trial. ADR is quite effective and efficient for the attorneys and litigants involved, and it also conserves resources in Florida’s trial and appellate courts. Florida’s skilled ADR practitioners empower individuals, families, schools, and businesses to foster communication, create solutions, and develop lasting solutions to difficult issues. Locally, the ADR Section is celebrating by having a mixer on 10/22 from 5:30-7:30 PM at Eola Wine Company, 430 E. Central Blvd., Orlando. Please RSVP to alicia@rtmediation.com See more here-- https://tinyurl.com/28pmjrpu and here-- https://tinyurl.com/yxv72eky

Sunday, July 7, 2024

FL Case Management Comments due 8/6

The Supreme Court of Florida recently put forth new Case Management procedures under Rules 1.200 and 1.201 Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, but because they did so without a formal comment period beforehand, members of the bar may weigh in by August 6, 2024. These rule changes would otherwise take effect on January 1, 2025. I have been working with the ADR Section of The Florida Bar on a comment regarding the lack of a clear definition for exactly what alternative dispute resolution processes are contemplated by the rule. We are seeking to add the following italicized language into the revised Rule 1.200(d)(2)(H) entitled Case Management Order for completion of alternative dispute resolution including mediation, arbitration and other processes available under Florida Statutes and Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. Defining what “alternative dispute resolution” includes or means (as it is not clearly defined in the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure) will reduce confusion by specifically mentioning the most commonly utilized methods and alluding to additional methods available under Florida Statutes and Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, thereby supporting the Supreme Court's purpose to promote fair and timely resolution of cases. This also allows for future methods of dispute resolution to be incorporated without the need for rule amendments, such as perhaps Early Neutral Evaluation. In their commentary to the rules, the court notes Rule 1.200 as amended is intended to supersede any case management rules issued by circuit courts and administrative orders on case management to the extent of contradiction. The rule is not intended to preclude the possibility of administrative orders issued by circuit chief judges and local rules under Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.215 that refine and supplement the procedures delineated in the rule, including rollover practices for situations where a trial is not reached during the scheduled trial period. See more here at case number SC2023-0962 here-- https://tinyurl.com/yujktxpf

Sunday, February 11, 2024

FL Mediator Rule Comments Due 3/4

The ADR Rules and Policy Committee of The Supreme Court of Florida has proposed revisions to the rules governing certified and court-appointed mediators. While the changes are outlined in the links below and mostly consist of revisions to form such as "shall" being replaced with "must," they do have some substantive changes as requirements in becoming a certified mediator and in the conflict rules, so please consider weighing in on these amendments by March 4th. You may comment by sending your correspondence to the ADR Committee Chair, Honorable Michael S. Orfinger, Seventh Judicial Circuit, Volusia County Courthouse, 101 N. Alabama Avenue, Ste. C-443, DeLand, FL 32724, morfinger@circuit7.org, and the OSCA Staff Liaison to the Committee, Thomas A. David, 500 South Duval Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1927, davidt@flcourts.org, as well as a separate request for oral argument if the person filing the comment wishes to participate in oral argument, which may be scheduled in this case. The ADR Committee then has until March 25th to respond to commments. It is always important to participate in rulemaking as a member of the bar and the ADR profession so that the Committee can get proper feedback for what is actutally going on in the trenches. See more here-- http://tinyurl.com/395rat8k and http://tinyurl.com/eedckhhj

Friday, January 12, 2024

Orlando Mediator Top 5

Since 2010, upon my becoming a full-time neutral, I have tried to bring awareness to our little corner of the world in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) through blogging about mediation and arbitration online. Once again, the Orlando Mediator blog received the honor of being named in the top five and moved up to fourth among Alternative Dispute Resolution blogs out of sixty ranked on the web by traffic, social media followers, domain authority and freshness. I'm certainly in some good company on this list with established dispute resolution blogs around the world that actually have professional writers. Orlando Mediator is recognized by Feedspot among the best, including such distinguished blogs published by big names like Kluwer and even above those by prominent ADR organizations like the American Arbitration Association (AAA), The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (Ciarb) and International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR). Feedspot's experts chose Orlando Mediator as number four in the world for what their founder calls the most comprehensive list of Dispute Resolution Blogs on the planet! Feedspot says it is the internet’s largest human curated database of bloggers and podcasts. Their list combines RSS feeds allowing users to keep track of many different websites in a single news aggregator. I am humbled to know this labor of love for my chosen field is appreciated. I do enjoy keeping everyone informed on the latest trends and happenings in mediation and related fields through this outlet. Thanks again for your readership and support over the years! The full list is available here-- https://legal.feedspot.com/dispute_resolution_blogs/ and https://rss.feedspot.com/dispute_resolution_rss_feeds/

Saturday, December 2, 2023

Common Ground - Commercial Mediation

This month, I'm pleased to be featured in The Common Ground publication by the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of the Florida Bar fall/winter issue. I have written about the the dynamics of mediating commercial litigation cases and the unique and different challenges of this type of mediation. Getting the proper parties to the table and adequate preparation of counsel and client are keys to success. I also explain the nuances of commercial mediation by discussing relationships, strategy, multi-party cases, impasse, mediated settlement agreements, and more. Most disputes result from the breakdown of a relationship. Commercial mediators are often able to ascertain the root of that breakdown. Just as in other types of cases, there are underlying relationship issues and while it is conventional wisdom to try and separate the personal from the business issues, it is often the interpersonal that needs to be overcome to get to a satisfactory resolution. For commercial litigation, the atmosphere at mediation should be more like negotiating a complex business deal than making closing arguments. Competitors may even end up becoming partners at the end. See the article along with the entire issue here-- bit.ly/ADR_FW23_CG

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Non-binding Arb Rule Comments due 5/2!

The Civil Rules Standing Committee of The Florida Bar is proposing changes to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.820 regarding hearing procedures for Non-Binding Arbitration. This informal and expeditious Alternative Dispute Resolution process is being utilized more and more to clear dockets backlogged from Covid, Hurricanes and general lack of trial dates. Judges in many Florida Circuit Courts are referring cases to this process and so some changes are being put out for comment. Among the changes are serving the award on the parties rather than filing with the court under seal. This is likely because many of our 67 counties have no pull down menu for filing under seal and can lead to awards being seen inadvertently by the judicial officer presiding over the case. Another change contemplates maintaining the original exhibits through the end of the case. I'm not sure arbitrators want to become deputy court clerks warehousing records, but parties can agree to do it themselves. Interested persons should send comments to: midavis@floridabar.org before May 2, 2023. See more here-- https://tinyurl.com/58j7xa4t

Wednesday, January 4, 2023

Orlando Mediator Top 5 Dispute Resolution Blog

Happy New Year! My little old legal blog, now a dozen years online, again received the honor of being named among the top five Alternative Dispute Resolution blogs out of thousands of blogs on the web ranked by traffic, social media followers, domain authority and freshness. I'm certainly in some good company with top dispute resolution blogs around the world that actually have staff. Orlando Mediator is recognized by Feedspot among the best, including such distinguished blogs published by big names like Thompson Reuters, Harvard Program on Negotiation and Kluwer. Feedspot's experts chose Orlando Mediator as number five in the world for what their founder calls the most comprehensive list of Top 20 Dispute Resolution Blogs on the planet! Feedspot says it is the internet’s largest human curated database of bloggers and podcasts. Their list combines RSS feeds allowing users to keep track of many different websites in a single news aggregator. I am humbled to know this labor of love for my chosen field is appreciated. I do enjoy keeping everyone informed on the latest trends and happenings in mediation and related fields through this outlet. Thanks for your readership and support over the years! The full list is available here-- https://blog.feedspot.com/dispute_resolution_blogs/

Tuesday, January 5, 2021

Happy Zoom Year! Join Us 1/22/21!

Please join us later this month for the first program of our webinar series this year in conjunction with the University of Florida Institute for Dispute Resolution. Along with my longtime colleague and fellow mediator and arbitrator at our mediation firm, Michelle Jernigan, I'll go through current dispute resolution options in Florida as reopening of the courts remains uncertain until Covid-19 no longer presents a significant risk to public health and safety. Meanwhile, mediation, arbitration, nonbinding arbitration and early neutral evaluation are proving to be as effective online as they were in person. Which means of resolution fits the particular fuss? We'll discuss the features of each form of ADR. Join us for this free Webinar, scheduled for Noon on Friday, January 22, 2021, and you'll be eligible for one general CLE credit from The Florida Bar and self-reported CME to the Dispute Resolution Center. Please register here today-- https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4952883580082820875



Wednesday, April 22, 2020

COVID-19 Court Continuity

The Supreme Court of Florida just released an Administrative Order creating a Florida Court Continuity Workgroup, consisting of a seventeen member task force meant to find ways for the courts to operate as fully as possible during each stage of the Coronavirus pandemic. Chief Justice Charles Canady selected our very own Ninth Circuit Judge Lisa Munyon to chair this workgroup. I worked alongside her as a General Civil Magistrate, hearing matters in Orange County's Circuit-Civil Division Business Court cases. She is a very effective judge and also leads the statewide Florida Courts Technology Commission that explores traditional and innovative methods of utilizing compatible technology infrastructures to improve case management and efficiencies in the judicial branch. As chair of the new workgroup, she will guide esteemed law professionals from across the state in their mission to examine the current status of court proceedings, propose methods and rule changes, find solutions for legal issues, and in recommending the priority of proceedings to resume. Specific to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), the members will identify and propose solutions for implementation challenges and cost issues associated with the use of remote technology. The workgroup will also consult with other stakeholders and public health experts to determine the best way to implement a plan for a staged return to full court operations. See full order AOSC20-208 here-- https://bit.ly/2Vs0jaM

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

New Florida Supreme Court ADR Order

The Supreme Court of Florida in monitoring and taking measures to address the effects on court operations of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has issued a new order affecting mediators and arbitrators. As the Supreme Court of Florida is the authority to establish standards and procedures for qualifications, certification, conduct, and training for mediators and arbitrators who are appointed pursuant to Florida Statutes, the court has issued an order during this crisis including: -Granting deadline extensions and abating late fee assessments for mediator certification and mediator renewal. -Allowing certified mediation training programs, approved arbitration and approved parenting coordination training programs to be conducted online. -Allowing certified mediators to complete all of their CME requirements in any format including non-live programs. -Granting deadline extensions for approved mediation trainers and certified mediation training program provider renewal applications. -Providing for remote training means instead of physical attendance through the end of the year for mediators and arbitrators. In addition, the Dispute Resolution Center will accept mediator certification applications and mediator renewal materials electronically. Instructions for electronic submission will be sent to individual mediators at the time of renewal notification. Materials can be faxed to 850-922-9290 or emailed to DRCmail@flcourts.org. See full order here-- https://bit.ly/2Xzi09Z

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

ADR Section Member Survey Due 1/23

The Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Section of The Florida Bar wants to maximize its services and resources for members. As such, I was tasked along with our Executive Council to create a survey in order to take the pulse of our almost one thousand member section a decade into its existence. For those who already belong to the section, you should have received an email from our chair containing the individualized invitation link to take the survey. Please complete this information by January 23, 2020. If you are not a member of the ADR Section, but belong to the Florida Bar, please consider joining now or upon your bar dues renewal this summer. The ADR Section provides a forum for lawyers interested in alternative dispute resolution and for discussion and exchange of ideas leading to an improvement of individual ADR skills and abilities. The ADR Section keeps its Florida Bar membership informed and updated regarding legislation, rules and policies in connection with mediation, arbitration and other ADR processes. We also provide quality continuing legal education programs (CLE/CME). The ADR Section also acts as an advocate for attorney mediators in dealing with the Dispute Resolution Center (DRC) and Florida Supreme Court rule changes proposed by the ADR Rules & Policy committee of the court. See more here-- https://bit.ly/36SNAkK and https://bit.ly/2tkQ1Ow

Wednesday, April 10, 2019

Fla Bar ADR Section Launches New Website

This month, the Florida Bar Alternative Dispute Resolution Section updated the website which I created at its inception. Our new platform will be able to provide more features to members of the section. The ADR Section was founded nearly a decade ago and provides a forum for lawyers interested in alternative dispute resolution and for discussion and exchange of ideas leading to an improvement of individual ADR skills and abilities. Any member in good standing of The Florida Bar interested in the purpose of the section is eligible for membership upon application and payment of its annual dues and can add this at the time of general bar dues renewal in the summer. The ADR Section keeps its membership informed and updated regarding legislation, rules and policies in connection with mediation, arbitration and other ADR processes. We also produce quality continuing legal education programs in the field. Next month, I will moderate a webinar focused on new developments in Online Dispute Resolution or ODR. The presentation will examine the different online dispute resolution processes that are available, the benefits of such processes, the technology used to implement those processes. The See more at https://flabaradr.com/

Thursday, March 7, 2019

Condo ADR Bill in FL Legislature

The Florida Legislature began its session this week and there is already a bill out of drafting relating to alternative dispute resolution (ADR). The act would amend Section 34.01, Florida Statutes, expanding the jurisdiction of county courts to include certain disputes occurring in condominium and cooperative associations. It would also amend Section 718.103, Florida Statutes, defining the term “condominium documents” and Section 718.112 conforming provisions to changes made by the act, requiring that a provision for mandatory mediation, rather than nonbinding arbitration, be included in association bylaws. The language also amends Section 718.117, revising how a unit owner or lienor may contest a plan of termination and amending Section 718.1255, revising the requirements for ADR in condominium associations and providing a form for the written demand an aggrieved party is required to serve on a responding party, as well as providing requirements for the service of a statutory demand to participate in presuit mediation and the response to such service. The legislation would provide requirements for mediators selected by the parties and that parties to equally share the costs of presuit mediation, while authorizing a mediator to require advance payment of fees and costs. Under the law, presuit mediation proceedings would be conducted in accordance with Chapter 44, Florida Statutes, in addition to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and authorize a representative from an association’s insurance carrier to attend presuit mediation conferences. The likely effective date would be July 1, 2019. Search for more here-- https://bit.ly/2VKtnHI

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

New WIPO ADR Guide for IP Cases

The Arbitration and Mediation Center (AMC) of WIPO, the World Intellectual Property Organization, just released an updated guide providing an overview of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes for intellectual property disputes. Since intellectual property portfolios became an essential part of business value, businesses started looking at more efficient methods to settle disputes than litigation. WIPO's AMC was created almost 25 years ago, recognizing a growing ADR trend where international parties informally gathered to settle disputes without litigation. The new WIPO guide is designed to provide an overview of ADR processes without purporting in any way to be authoritative or prescriptive. Chapter One of the guide offers background information concerning the early use and rise of ADR around the world, followed in Chapter Two by a description of potential advantages of ADR for intellectual property disputes. Chapter Three explains in more detail the different ADR procedures that may be used in intellectual property disputes, while Chapter Four outlines some practical considerations that may be relevant for IPOs and courts that wish to institutionalize such ADR procedures. For the substantive and procedural implementation of such procedures, the guide identifies as a core element the interface with existing regulations. The guide reminds litigants that ADR processes can deliver outcomes that provide a certain and conclusive resolution to disputes. This finality is a clear advantage for ADR, as the complexities of intellectual property litigation can make outcomes uncertain. Legal judgments can be overturned on appeal and jurors that often lack technical expertise may make incorrect decisions. See more here-- https://bit.ly/2vpuocT

Saturday, January 6, 2018

FLABAR ADR Section Meeting 1/17/18 in Orlando!

Happy New Year from Orlando Mediator! Please join us as our Executive Council of The Florida Bar Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Section convenes in Orlando during the bar's mid-year winter meeting. Founded some eight years ago, around the time I started this blog, the ADR Section was designed to provide a forum for lawyers and attorney-mediators interested in alternative dispute resolution and a place to share common interests, ideas and concepts. It is not for non-lawyer mediators. The ADR Section regularly puts on continuing legal education (CLE) programs, as well as provides advocacy in rule changes, legislation and commentary to the Supreme Court of Florida when dealing with proposed amendments in all forms of alternative dispute resolution. Any member in good standing of The Florida Bar interested in the purpose of our section is eligible for membership upon application and payment of the ADR Section’s annual dues (which are just $35) and can be added to your regular bar dues at the time of renewal. Any member who ceases to be a member of The Florida Bar in good standing shall no longer be a member of the ADR Section under its by-laws. Hope to see you at the Hilton Double Tree Orlando this month as we debate our position regarding important legislation that has been introduced for the next session which I discussed on this blog last month! More information on our meeting and the section can be found here-- http://fladr.org/events/the-florida-bar-winter-meeting-and-adr-executive-council-meeting/

Sunday, August 20, 2017

ABA Announces Theme For Mediation Week

The theme for this year’s American Bar Association (ABA) Mediation Week is "Mediation, Civility and the Power of Understanding." As lawyers and mediators, we understand both the challenges and rewards of helping parties in conflict reach an agreement by getting past differences in positions, by understanding each other’s perspectives better, and by finding ways to get their important interests met while staying true to their values and belief systems. Programs held during ABA Mediation Week will provide neutrals, advocates and policy makers with inspiration and tools necessary to bridge the gap that often prevents amicable resolution of disputes. Over the last few decades the field of alternative dispute resolution has grown tremendously, helping to clear dockets in the courts. The recognition that not all cases are well suited for the adversarial process and that there are multiple paths to justice is increasingly shared by attorneys, judges, and the public. Since 2011, the ABA declared Mediation Week as the third week of October, building on the prior efforts of many other national, state, and local organizations, including the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) which have traditionally celebrated conflict resolution during the month of October. ABA Mediation Week celebrates of the strides in institutionalizing mediation as one of several appropriate dispute resolution processes. Since this is an officially listed ABA Journal "Blawg," you will see more about ABA Mediation Week which will be held during October 15-21 this year. See more here-- http://bit.ly/2wuJ9Nx and http://bit.ly/2wmsqgg