Category Archives: ADR Training

40-Hour Mediation Training in Barbados

On July 15th, the Riverdale Impact Justice Barbados team touched down in beautiful Bridgetown to commence a full week of training for faculty and staff of the University of the West Indies (UWI), and its numerous Open Campuses across the Caribbean.  Despite an initial set-back involving one of our teaching team’s inbound flight to Bridgetown, our team consisting of Daniella …
MORE

Family Law Course Goes High-Tech/Low Cost!

In January we offered four interactive days of instruction to students across Ontario using live webcast technology. Students avoided the time and expense of travel to Toronto, accommodations and eating out for four days. They loved that they could take the course from their homes or offices. One of our students had a child at home who fell ill, and …
MORE

Training Parenting Coordinators and Dispute Resolution Professionals in PEI

Over the past year we have had the privilege of working with a group of family dispute resolution professionals in PEI who are pioneering parenting coordination there. Parenting coordination (PC) is an innovative mediation, coaching, educative and decision-making process that offers high-conflict parents a way to resolve disagreements about their children without going before a judge. It is usually a …
MORE

Voice of the Child in Mobility Cases: an Important decision

In one of the most compelling decisions I have read in a long time, a British judge decided to disallow a 14-year-old’s proposal to move to another country with his father, even though the son gave evidence that he very much wanted to move. It is a touching decision that almost made me cry, mostly because of the profoundly beautiful …
MORE

Excerpts from Family Arbitration: Perspectives of a Practitioner and Trainer – Part 3 of 3

These excerpts are taken from Family Arbitration: Perspectives of a Practitioner and Trainer, written by Richard W. Shields. This content will be part of the upcoming 40-Hour Family Arbitration Law & Skills training. Learn more here.   Before the Hearing – Appointing the Arbitrator Under section 58(d) of the Arbitration Act, any arbitrator who conducts a family arbitration must have received training, approved by the Attorney General. …
MORE

Can a Judge Order Parties to Go to Family Mediation?

This week we are teaching family law to a class of mediation students. It is only 30 hours, not nearly enough, but we try to use those hours to teach mediators the things they really need to know. One topic we touch on: Can people in family court be ordered to mediate? In Ontario, there is no such thing as …
MORE

Legal Duties of Family Mediators – With a Stiff Penalty for Non-Compliance

This week we are teaching a 30-hour course in family law for Ontario mediators. Although one only scratches the surface of family law in such a short time, we manage to cover a lot of ground. Mediation in Ontario is an unregulated field. Although there are outstanding professional organizations for mediators to join—four in Ontario alone—membership in such an organization …
MORE

Naming, Blaming & Claiming: Conflict is Universal

This week I am teaching community, civil and family mediation theory and skills to a group of police officers in St. Lucia. My colleagues Heather Swartz of Agree Inc., and fellow mediate393 mediators Akbar Ibrahim and Caroline Felstiner, are also on the teaching team. The training is a part of an ambitious five-year access to justice project called IMPACT Justice …
MORE