ROUNDTABLE BREAKFAST: Optimizing Online Mediation: Balancing Automation, AI and the Human Touch

ACR-GNY & CUNY Dispute Resolution Center at John Jay College present

Optimizing Online Mediation:
Balancing Automation, AI and the Human Touch

This workshop will review how modern mediation, which started out in the 1980's as a "fully physical process," has now become fully digitized. Dramatic changes in online mediation began with the dedicated word processor and PC, then continued with the development of the world wide web, the personalization of mobile communications, and "the cloud." Covid proved that both practitioners and courts could, at least under duress, in fact move their mediation work fully online and, in fact, 70-80% of all mediation cases are now continuing "fully online." The biggest change of all, however, will surely be the integration of AI into the mediation process. All previous technical developments were essentially about "digital plumbing," making our communications easier and faster, but not really impacting the content of those communications. AI is different. AI is able to directly speak to the content of the communications that work their way through our now established digital plumbing. How can this ability of AI to speak to any and all substantive issues in a mediation be best utilized?

JIM MELAMED

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 tenure, Mediate.com received the American Bar Association’s 2010 Institutional Problem Solver Award.

Before Mediate.com, Jim founded The Mediation Center in Eugene, Oregon in 1983 and served as Executive Director of the Academy of Family Mediators (AFM) from 1987 to 1993. Jim was also the first President and Executive Director of the Oregon Mediation Association (1985-86).

Jim’s undergraduate degree is in psychology from Stanford University and his law degree is from the University of Oregon.

Jim has received the following awards: The Oregon Mediation Association’s 2003 Award for Excellence and 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award; The Oregon State Bar’s 2006 Sidney Lezak Award of Excellence; The Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) 2007 John Haynes Distinguished Mediator Award; and The 2012 Academy of Professional Family Mediators (APFM) “Getting To Yes” Award and 2018 APFM first Outstanding Mediator Award.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Roundtable Breakfasts are online meetings via Zoom. The link will change each month and will be distributed to all registrants the day before and the morning of the event. All listed times for ACR-GNY events are for Eastern Time. 8:00 am – 8:30 am | Join call to network with attendees 8:30 am – 10:00 am | Presentation and Discussion About the Roundtable Breakfasts The Roundtable Breakfasts are organized by ACR-GNY and the CUNY Dispute Resolution Center at John Jay College. They take place the first Thursday of the month and are ongoing since 2001. Views expressed in connection with any Roundtable event publicity or at sessions are those of the speakers and participants and not of the CUNY DRC or ACR-GNY. This program is supported by ACR-GNY's 365 Sponsor: