Mediate.com Announces Task Force Executive Committee and Advisory Board to Support Online Mediation

November 2, 2020

Mediate.com Announces Task Force to Support Online Mediation

Jim Melamed, Board Chair of Mediate.com, has announced the establishment of a blue-ribbon Online Mediation Task Force, to be headed by Forrest R. (Woody) Mosten, to make recommendations on best practices and possibilities for both generally training mediators online and training to perform online mediation. This Online Mediation Task Force will work with leading mediation organizations, professional mediators, academics and researchers in formulating findings and recommendations. Mediate.com is convening the Online Mediation Task Force and is providing technical support, information distribution and publicity.

Forrest (Woody) Mosten (MostenMediation.com) has agreed to serve as Task Force Chair. In addition to his own long-standing mediation practice and trainings, Woody has previously served as Chair of the Academy of Family Mediators (AFM) Consultation Institute and as Convener for the 1999 Symposium on Training Mediators for the 21st Century (as well as as Editor of the related Family Court Review Special Issue – January 2000). The International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP) has also recently embarked on a joint venture with Woody to provide ongoing training to Collaborative Professional trainers in 2021. We are thrilled that Woody is taking on a leadership role with the Task Force!

In order to formulate the Task Force’s Agenda, the following online mediation experts have agreed to serve on the Task Force Executive Committee:

Clare Fowler, Task Force Reporter
Susan Guthrie
Marvin Johnson
Melissa Kucinski
Michael Lang
Tara Ollapally
Colin Rule
Donna Silverberg
Angelia Tolbert

In consultation with the Task Force Executive Committee, an Online Mediation Training Advisory Board has been formed. Confirmed Advisory Board Members include:

Michael Aurit
Ken Cloke
Bruce Edwards
Alberto Elisavetsky
Sherrill Ellsworth
Douglas Frenkel
Brian Galbraith
D.A. Graham
Tim Hedeen
Sam Imperati
Chris LaHatte
D.G. Mawn
Ken Neumann
Cinnie Noble
Morenike Obi-Farinde
Kendra Ogunshina
DeAnn Pladson
Julian Portilla
Pattie Porter
Angela Reddock-Wright
Jonathan Rodrigues
Elizabeth Potter Scully
Peter Salem
Manon Schoenewille
Linda Seely
Sukhsimran Singh
Amy Skogerson
Sharon Sturgess
John Sturrock
Lara Traum
Winter Wheeler
Leah Wing

Among the issues that the Task Force may consider are:

Training new online technical capacities
New facilitative issues of the online environment
Assuring diversity and inclusion in our online future
Online role play exercises
Sufficiency of recorded trainings
Synergy between online and in-person trainings
Use of recorded trainee video for feedback
Online mediation ethics
Online co-mediation
Use of interdisciplinary consultants and evaluators
Online case consultation
Online practice building and career mentoring
Online innovation and staying current
Online mediation research
Training for online trainers
Other issues as determined by the Task Force

Mediate.com will post regular updates on Task Force events and progress.

Forrest (Woody) Mosten

Forrest (Woody) Mosten Forrest (Woody) Mosten has been in private practice as a mediator since 1979 and currently is practicing mediation and collaborative law 100% online serving clients throughout the world. Woody is a founding partner of the Mosten-Guthrie Online Training Academy for Mediators and Collaborative Professionals. He is Adjunct Professor… MORE >

James Melamed, J.D.

Jim Melamed co-founded Mediate.com in 1996 along with John Helie and served as CEO of Mediate.com through June 2020 (25 years). Jim is currently Board Chair and General Counsel for Resourceful Internet Solutions, Inc. (RIS), home to Mediate.com, Arbitrate.com, ODR.com and other leading dispute resolution sites. During Jim's 25-year tenure,… MORE >