Lipscomb first university in Middle Tennessee to provide Rule 31 mediation training
Janel Shoun |
In 1997, the Tennessee Supreme Court established Rule 31, requiring individuals conducting general civil mediation at the behest of the courts to have 40 hours of training in a curriculum approved by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC).
According to the AOC, there are only six other agencies – and only one other university – currently approved to offer general civil mediation training for Tennessee Rule 31 mediators. In 2006, 189 people applied to become Rule 31 general civil or family mediators in Tennessee.
Lipscomb will hold the first round of its 48-hour training (eight hours more than required by the state) in June and July over the course of three weekends. Cost of the training is $1,195. To register or obtain more information, go on-line at http://icm.lipscomb.edu/ or call 966-6608.
“One of the core goals of the ICM is to be a leading resource to professional mediators," said Larry Bridgesmith, executive director of the ICM. "More litigants and businesspeople are learning about mediation each year and its reputation as a money- and time-saver is growing. At the ICM we want to continue that positive trend and bring those positive benefits to areas not now adequately served by mediators."
In a 2005 evaluation of the effectiveness of Rule 31, the Alternative Dispute Resolution Commission found that the impact of Rule 31 had been overwhelmingly positive, accelerating the use of mediation, reducing case loads and reducing the overall costs to litigants.
The report also found, however, that smaller, rural counties were underserved by mediators and there was a strong desire for advanced mediation training.
Lipscomb ICM is working to meet those needs, with both the general civil mediation training in June and an Advanced Mediator’s Summit held April 19, 20 and 21. The summit will be a unique professional dialogue originally created for the nation's largest private mediation organization, JAMS.
Lipscomb’s Rule 31 general civil curriculum will be provided by nationally-known mediators and world class trainers:
Tracy Allen, of Sommers & Schwartz, PC, in Southfield, Mich.
Teresa Wakeen, of Wakeen and Associates, in Baltimore, Md.;
Lee Jay Berman, of MediationTools in Los Angeles, California;
Larry Bridgesmith, former partner and presently of counsel to Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLC, Nashville’s largest and oldest law firm;
Peter Robinson, director of the nationally-known Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution in Malibu, Calif.; and
Dr. Lowry explained the value of this training, “The dynamics of mediation continue to play out across the nation. What has revolutionized the litigation process in California is becoming increasingly demanded in Tennessee. Lipscomb’s Institute for Conflict Management is becoming for the Mid-South what Straus has been for the West Coast: a world class provider of resources and training for professional problem solvers.”