December, 2003

Dear AALS ADR Section Member:

Why do we like this Section so much? We are faculty members who are really glad to see each other at conferences, who are developing the ADR canon, and who are creative in presenting this material to our students. What a group! Our section offers a number of resources you can learn about for yourself and your students. The attachment announces many of them. John Lande is developing a web site for the section which will include many such materials. We will send an e-mail to the listserv when this feature is operational.

Here’s a reminder that the ADR Section is co-sponsoring a session with the Civil Procedure Section on Saturday, January 3, 2-5 pm: “Competing or Complementary Rule Systems? Adjudication, Arbitration and the Procedural World of the Future.”

There will be an outstanding panel:

Moderators:

Panelists:

This joint session will consider the reconfiguration of procedural processes to include more “alternative dispute resolution.” While focusing particularly on court-connected processes, the session will also examine free-standing arbitration and mediation. Speakers from a range of perspectives, including judges and academics, will focus on both domestic and transnational processes and on doctrine, practice, empiricism, theory, public policy, and the future. The initial presentations will be followed by smaller group discussions. We hope to provide, through the internet, an opportunity for attendees to read papers (of speakers and participants) in advance of the session.

So please come with your civ pro colleagues.

Note that opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of the Section and do not necessarily represent the position of the Association of American Law Schools.

We hope that you will attend the AALS and ABA DR conferences in the coming months, described below. If you have suggestions for either the AALS annual conference in January 2005 or the AALS-ABA sponsored Legal Educator’s Colloquium in spring 2005, please let us know. You can reach Suzanne at sschmitz@siu.edu or reach John at landej@missouri.edu. Best wishes to all for a productive rest of the academic year.

Sincerely,

Suzanne Schmitz
Chair

John Lande
Chair-Elect

SECTION ANNOUNCEMENTS

AALS Annual Meeting and ADR workshop
At the January 2-6, 2004 AALS annual meeting, the ADR Section will co-sponsor a session with the Civil Procedure Section. On Jan. 3, from 2-5 pm, we will present a joint program on “Competing or Complementary Rule Systems? Adjudication, Arbitration and the Procedural World of the Future.” The speakers will challenge our thinking and we will have breakout sessions for further discussion. Invite colleagues who teach Civil Procedure, Lawyering Processes, and the like. For detailed information and registration forms, see http://aalsweb.aals.org/am2004/programs/details/4210.html.

AALS - ABA ADR Section Legal Educator’s Colloquium
Plan to attend the ABA ADR Section meeting in New York, April 15-17, 2004, which includes the annual Legal Educator’s Colloquium on April 17 (9 am-2 pm), jointly sponsored by the ABA ADR section and AALS. One of the topics will build on last year’s AALS session on the contributions of other disciplines to negotiation theory. Other sessions will deal with grading a negotiation class, use negotiation theory in mediation, other types of ADR clinics, a program for adjuncts and the latest from the Lawyer as Problem Solver. For detailed information, see http://www.abanet.org/dispute/conference/6th/conference_brochure.pdf#page=15.

Lawyer as Problem Solver Initiatives
The Lawyer as Problem Solver Committee of the ABA has called for submissions of exercises, role plays, and simulations that can be used to most effectively develop the perspective of the lawyer as problem solver. The deadline for submissions is February 1, 2004. The submissions selected will be published for distribution at the Legal Educator’s Colloquium that is held as part of the ABA Dispute Resolution Section program described above. The submissions are also posted on the ABA website. Visit the web site for simulations that have been selected previously or to review this year’s call.

Writing Contests for Faculty and Students
CPR sponsors writing contests for faculty and students, with various categories and cash prizes. For more information, go to http://www.cpradr.org/awards99.htm. The deadline for this year has passed -- it was in November -- but plan ahead for next year.

The ABA Dispute Resolution Section sponsors the James B. Boskey Dispute Resolution Essay Contest for law students, with cash prizes and a deadline of June 1, 2004. It also sponsors a Law Student Representation in Mediation Competition in the spring semester and encourages the creation of Law School Chapter of the Section on Dispute Resolution. The ABA Law Student Division sponsors a competition in negotiation in the fall and in interviewing and counseling in the spring. Consult the ABA Law Student Division officers in your school or go to the ABA web site.

Adjuncts
Adjuncts frequently work with full-time faculty in teaching ADR courses. Please reach out to them and invite them to the various conferences. We will have a special program for adjuncts as part of the ABA-AALS Legal Educators Colloquium in April, in New York. So please help your adjuncts know about these resources by copying this newsletter to them.