Draft Schedule at a Glance*

All times below listed in Eastern time. Presentation topics and speakers subject to change.

Wednesday, March 12 (Day 1 – Pre-Conference and Conference)

Pre-conference (10AM-1PM Eastern)

The Things We Carry: An informational and experiential workshop on learning to identify how we bring our WHOLE self to mediating by Justin Kelsey and Betsy Ross
The Balint Method, panel moderated by Teanini Roth
Complex Family Mediations by Jay Rothman

Conference

1:30-2:00 PM: Opening Plenary, hosted by Alice Shikina
2PM-3PM: Keynote: 50 Years of Mediation: Past, Present, Future, panel by Jim Melamed, Susan Guthrie, and Colin Rule (invited)
3:30PM-5PM: Pre-Nups and Post-Nups, with Laurie Israel, Shawn Weber, Jacinta Gallant, and Moderator TBD
5PM-5:15PM: Day 1 Closing/Housekeeping

Thursday, March 13 (Day 2 – Conference)

10:45AM-11:30AM: Sponsor presentation
11:45AM-12 noon: Welcome
12 Noon-1:30PM
- C1: Mediator Lounge Open for Networking
- C2: Giving TIME: A Trauma-Informed Mediation Experience. This will look at how clients with trauma present at the mediation table – what behaviors do we see? how do we support them? how do we take care of ourselves? with Clare Fowler, Dan Berstein, Jim Melamed, Susan Guthrie)
1:30PM-3PM: D: 10 Hottest Issues Around Finances During a Divorce with Tanya Aure, Kristyn Carmichael, Thao Truong, and Moderator Amanda Singer
3PM-3:30PM: Break
3:30PM-5PM
- E1: Elder Mediation with Paula Gibson, Marcie Einhorn, Christine Whalen, and Crystal Thorpe (invited)
- E2: DV in Child Custody Cases with Veronica York

Friday, March 14 (Day 3 – Conference)

10:45AM-11:30AM: Sponsor presentation
11:45AM-12 noon: Welcome/housekeeping
12 noon-1:30 PM: F: Cross-Cultural Considerations in the Field of Mediation with Dawn Lee
1:30PM-3:00PM
- G1: Mediator Lounge Open for Networking
- G2: Insurance Essentials for Mediators: Navigating Life, Cash Value, and Long-Term Care Policies with Jenny Yu
3:30PM-5:00PM
- H1: Parenting with Kimberly Cook
- H2: Real Estate Considerations in Mediation with Bridgett Potterton, Jody Burns (invited), Appraiser (TBD), and Moderator Rosemarie Ferrante
5:00PM-5:15PM: Conference Closing

*Schedule subject to change

PreConference

Wednesday, March 12, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm Eastern (7 am – 10 am Pacific)

The Things We Carry: An informational and experiential workshop on learning to identify how we bring our WHOLE self to mediating presented by Justin Kelsey and Betsy Ross

Life happens…even to mediators! This workshop will explore how we can be more effective by acknowledging/exploring the impacts of our own experiences of trauma, loss, and grief, and we will teach how to use these in our work, in order to go deeper into our understanding of our clients and work more skillfully with them. Through didactic presentation, experiential exercises, and small group discussions, this workshop will help participants explore and connect the dots between our personal experiences (both early and current, i.e., living through our parents’ or our own divorce, loss of a loved one(s), child drama/trauma, etc.) and how these experiences affect us as mediators. Whether in the immediacy (capacity/bias, neutrality, etc.) and/or in the long term (relating to clients, empathizing, bias, etc.), what we have lived through can be harnessed to positively shape how we work. We will focus on how each of us “uses” ourselves and our experiences to do this work, as we identify our strengths, and examine the aspects of ourselves we believe we have to hold in reserve, and explore our blind spots of which we are and are not aware.

Justin L. Kelsey is a mediator and collaborative divorce attorney and the owner of Skylark Law & Mediation, PC, in Southborough. He focuses on the peaceful resolution of family disputes. He is past president of the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council, a vice president of the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation, Inc., and a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association Dispute Resolution Section council. Justin also prepares QDROs and sells family law templates through Gray Jay Endeavors, LLC. Justin trains other mediators and collaborative law practitioners through MCLE, MBA, BBA, and Divorce Mediation Training Associates. You can learn more about Justin’s businesses at skylarklaw.com, grayjayforms.com, and dmtatraining.com.

Mediating Complexity—Creatively Engaging Identity-Based Family Conflicts presented by Jay Rothman

Family conflicts often run deep; they are mini-worlds. They often revolve around core identities, values, and needs that can seem irreconcilable. In this interactive workshop, international mediator Dr. Jay Rothman will introduce participants to his ARIA framework (Antagonism, Resonance, Invention, Action)— a proven approach for transforming entrenched identity-based conflicts, including those in families, into opportunities for understanding and collaboration.

Through hands-on exercises and case studies, participants will learn practical techniques for:

Moving beyond expressed antagonism to uncover underlying needs and values.
Building resonance between conflicting parties while maintaining multi-partiality, through “disciplined bias.”
Facilitating creative solution-finding through reflexive dialogue.
Converting insights into integrative (“third way”) agreements.

This workshop is ideal for family mediators seeking to expand their toolkit for handling complex, identity-based disputes. Participants will leave with concrete strategies and a few tools they can immediately apply to their practice.

Conference

Thursday, March 13, 3:30 – 5:00 pm Eastern (12:30 – 2:00 pm Pacific)

Domestic Violence (DV) in Child Custody Cases presented by Veronica York

Most custody cases are resolved amicably. However, about 3.8% require a trial and often much more. These cases are often labeled “high conflict,” but 75-90% of these cases involve domestic violence (DV) by abusers who aim to control their ex-partners and punish them for leaving, rather than acting out of love for their children. Courts often overlook the abuser’s motives and focus on physical harm rather than on the long-term consequences caused by the stress and fear of exposure to abuse, as highlighted by the ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) study.

The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges advocates for training on ACE and the Saunders Study. ACE reveals that children exposed to DV face shorter lifespans and significant health issues. Saunders shows that court professionals often lack the knowledge and expertise in DV and are therefore making decisions and recommendations that are harming children. Veronica will talk about the current scientific research that can and should be used by courts considering contested custody cases. She will discuss how this research goes directly to the well-being of children and how these cases are often the last chance to save them from the harmful consequences of ACEs.

Friday, March 14, 1:30 – 3:00pm Eastern (10:30 am – 12:00 noon Pacific )

Protection for the Unexpected presented by Jenny Yu

Join us to learn why it is important now to explore your insurance needs and assess protection options that are available.

We will discuss:

Common questions about life insurance and long-term care insurance.
Different types of insurance and how they work.
How to calculate the amount of insurance needed.
Uses of insurance- different types, different strategies.
Exposing a retirement blind spot, which is long-term care strategies and the benefits of thinking ahead.
Long Term Insurance and potential tax benefits.