On June 27, 2023 , CPR Dispute Resolution will offer a training program, “Tech and ADR: New Ethical Concerns and ODR Standards” presented by Leah Wing of the National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution at UMass-Amherst and Janet Martinez of Stanford Law School.

“The application of technology to dispute resolution has seen exponential growth in the shadow of the pandemic, particularly in the use of remote video conferencing. The disruptive nature of technology provides new opportunities for access to justice as well as new ethical issues for practitioners and processes. This workshop will explore case examples in light of legal obligations and professional ethical requirements for the use of technology in dispute resolution.The workshop will also examine ways to operationalize new ethical standards for the application of technology to dispute resolution.”

1.5 hours of non-transitional NY CLE in Ethics will be provided. For more information, visit https://www.cpradr.org/events/2023-ethics-training

We are happy to announce the dates for the next two ODR Forums: October 11-12, 2023 in Montreal and June 5-6, 2024 in Prague. Mark your calendars and watch this space for details.

I want to make sure everyone is aware of our online conference on Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Mediation, happening next week. Tools like ChatGPT4 and Google Bard are poised to make huge changes in our society, and the field of mediation is no exception.

All of us in the ODR field need to quickly get smarter about what AI can and cannot do, and what ethical issues it raises for mediation and mediators. As AI becomes more common across society, our parties will expect to be able to leverage these tools in finding resolution to their problems.

Many ICODR friends will be presenting at this conference (e.g. Ethan Katsh, Leah Wing, Dan Rainey, Andy Lee, Zbynek Loebl, Bob Bergman, etc.) but also many people from the AI field who are working with these tools up close.  

Here are the details:

April 18-19, 2023 8:45am-5pm PST (11:45am-8pm EST)

Conference details are at https://mediate.com/ai

Full agenda online at https://mediate.com/ai-agenda

The sessions will be recorded and made available shortly following the conference. All registrants will be given 6 months access to view the conference recordings at mediateuniversity.com.

I really hope you can join us!

Join us for NCTDR’s 22nd annual international ODR Forum to be held in the “Silicon Valley of India” at the Bangalore International Centre. Local hosts, Agami, are partnering to create an innovative and exciting program! Registration information can be found here.

APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) has just released a new paper on ODR best practices.

From the description:

“Online Dispute Resolution, or ODR, has the potential to align the justice system with our digital society through use of advanced technologies. As more APEC providers and economies roll out ODR, concrete recommendations to guide existing players and new market entrants are crucial so that all get ODR right. This study details best practices in designing ODR platforms using a user-centric approach, basic principles relating to ODR providers and neutrals, special considerations regarding the use of ODR in courts, and extending the use of ODR in consumer cases.”

Download the paper here:

https://www.apec.org/publications/2023/01/study-on-best-practices-in-using-odr

It includes a bibliographic repository in Spanish and ODR embassies for each country. Check out this wonderful resource and network!

Register to join:

The National Center for Technology and Dispute Resolution is pleased to present Star Wars and Conflict Resolution, a new book from DRI Press. In this webinar, co-editors Jennifer Reynolds and Noam Ebner, together with DRI director Sharon Press, join us to talk about the genesis of this project and the benefits of thinking about conflict and Star Wars together, highlighting some Star Wars moments specifically merging technology, conflict, and resolution. Finally, they’ll discuss the future of the project and answer questions of all types: academic, professional, and/or nerdy.  (Recording will be archived @ https://odr.info/video-archive/)

Join us for the NCTDR’s 22nd annual international ODR Forum next month to be held in the “Silicon Valley of India” at the Bangalore International Centre. Local hosts, Agami, are partnering to create an innovative and exciting program! Registration information can be found here.

Excited about this upcoming Legal Tech and ODR conference hosted in early March by our good friend of NCTDR Nancy Welsh — online participation options are available. Get all the details here:

http://law.tamu.edu/prospective/academics/centers-clinics-programs/aggie-dispute-resolution-program/spring-2023-symposium

From the conference website:

“Explore the intersection between legal tech and online dispute resolution (ODR), these tools’ different uses in the public and private sectors, and what that should mean for legal education.

Both legal tech and ODR involve the use of technology to assist legal practice and the accomplishment of legally-cognizable outcomes. So why do these two fields seem to exist in separate worlds?

• Where do legal tech and ODR intersect in the public sector – e.g., in the courts, governmental practice, administrative adjudication, the provision of legal services and A2J?
• Where do legal tech and ODR intersect in the private sector – e.g., in private legal practice, in-house corporate legal practice and customer relations, and private arbitration and mediation?
• And perhaps most important, what aspects of legal tech and ODR should law schools make part of our curriculum, in order to prepare our students to use these tools responsibly and well – and even to prepare them to create the next generation of legal tech and ODR?

Confirmed presenters include:

• Ann Baddour, Director, Fair Financial Services Project, Texas Appleseed
• Alyson Carrel, Co-Director, Center on Negotiation, Mediation, and Restorative Justice, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law
• Margaret Hagan, Executive Director, Legal Design Lab, Stanford Law School
• William Henderson, Stephen F. Burns Professor of Law, Indiana University Maurer School of Law
• Dwayne Hermes, Co-Founder, ClaimDeck
• Jonathan Pyle, Contract Performance Officer, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
• Colin Rule, Practitioner-in-Residence, Texas A&M University School of Law, & CEO, Mediate.com and Arbitrate.com
• Amy Schmitz, Professor & John Deaver Drinko-Baker & Hostetler Chair in Law, Moritz College of Law, The Ohio State University​”

Kudos to Bob Bergman of NextLevelMediation.com on completing the first integration of ChatGPT into an ODR platform! (as far as I know)

Check out the video below showing off the functionality. It really is impressive, and it opens a whole new world of possibilities for ODR.

Well done, Bob, and the whole NextLevelMediation team. I feel like I felt the first time I saw an LCD projector or wireless internet: this is going to change everything.