Center for Negotiation & Dispute Resolution

UC Hastings College of the Law

Program Details

This program will prepare participants to design and implement court ADR programs in their respective countries.  Participants will be selected from a pool of international applicants and will receive a certificate of completion at the end of the week-long program. Instruction will involve a mixture of theoretical and practical classroom presentations and simulation exercises, as well as opportunities to observe selected court ADR programs in the immediate vicinity of the law school and to meet with ADR judges, practitioners, and scholars from the community. Participants will learn how to lay the groundwork for a successful court-based ADR program by working with local stakeholders; how to assess community needs, choose ADR processes suited to those needs and develop the chosen program design; how to screen and select cases appropriate for ADR; and how to implement, evaluate and modify a program once it is underway. 

Participants will also learn how to select and train neutrals to work in their programs, including the personal qualities and skill sets required for the various processes, and how to deal with ethical problems and confidentiality issues. In addition to group sessions, one-on-one consultation with the lead trainers will allow each participant to explore issues specific to his or her own country's legal system and needs; and a 3- to 6-month follow-up by email will allow the providers both to measure the effectiveness of the training and to offer additional assistance after the participants return to their home countries.

The program will be designed and taught primarily by Claudia Bernard, Chief Circuit Mediator for the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit; Howard Herman, Director of ADR Programs for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California; and Sheila Purcell, ADR Director for the Superior Court for the County of San Mateo, California. The three instructors are among the most experienced court ADR program administrators in the United States, as well as being gifted and experienced teachers in the ADR field, both in the United States and around the world.  

We encourage applications from individuals and from same-country teams (for example, a judge, a court administrator and a lawyer interested in developing court ADR).  To ensure the diversity of this international program, no more than three (3) applicants will be accepted from each country.

For application & more information, visit Court ADR