Participants who complete the program will have fulfilled the requirements to lead mediations throughout California
The Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA), one of the largest voluntary metropolitan bar associations in the country, late last year introduced a new 40-Hour Mediation Training program with a curriculum designed to fulfill the training requirements of the California Dispute Resolution Programs Act. Upon completion of the program, attendees will have met the mediator training and educational requirements to serve as panelists throughout California.
The first installment of the 40-Hour Mediator Training program occurred in January. Registration for the training program is now open. Those interested in registering for the program can visit www.lacba.org/40-hour for more information.
“LACBA’s 40-Hour Training program is important because it helps attorneys interested in incorporating mediations into their practice obtain the necessary credentials to serve as effective mediators,” said Seth Chavez, director of LACBA’s Attorney-Client Mediation and Arbitration Service, which will oversee the program. “The program has been designed to be inclusive and would be particularly relevant for business leaders and others in the community without law degrees who would like to acquire the skills and fundamentals of mediation so they can put them to practice in their businesses or communities.”
“The Los Angeles County Bar Association has been at the forefront of providing the preeminent mediation training programs for years,” said Jack Goetz, a lecturer in law at USC Gould School of Law specializing in mediation and academic director of LACBA’s 40-Hour Mediator Training program. “LACBA’s 40-Hour Training program is impactful and practical for today’s evolving field of mediation because it was developed to meet the California Dispute Resolution Programs Act requirements while incorporating real-world experience of mediation experts.”
The training program introduces those who are interested in mediation to the core principles and methods of alternative dispute resolution and provide a strong foundation in mediation skills through lecture, small group exercises, and role-playing.
Each attendee who successfully completes the training program will receive a certification reflecting this education and training. Lawyers attending the training program will receive 40 hours of Continuing Legal Education credit, including four hours of Ethics credit.
Rich in both theory and practice, the training will cover the nature of conflict, history of mediation, structure and management of the mediation process, intake and convening, mediation models, cultural awareness and diversity, legal requirements and ethics, maintaining neutrality, communication skills, negotiation, breaking impasse, closure and drafting agreements.
LACBA, under its then existing Dispute Resolution Services and Center for Civic Mediation, had previously operated the region’s popular 30-Hour Mediator Training Program from the 1990’s through 2016.
The Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) is one of the largest voluntary metropolitan bar associations in the nation and has nearly 20,000 members. LACBA is engaged in advancing the administration of justice and meeting the professional needs of lawyers. For more information on LACBA, visit lacba.org.
