2023–2024
The top-ranked Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution has been a leader in the ADR field for nearly four decades, having a profound impact on the legal industry and in our broader society. With each new class of students or cohort of professionals who take Straus’ training programs, our world gains peacemakers committed to solving complex, long-standing disputes with civility and respect. In doing so, the Straus Institute proudly carries forward Pepperdine University’s mission of strengthening students for lives of purpose, service, and leadership.
Paul Caron Duane and Kelly Roberts Dean Pepperdine Caruso School of Law
Inside straus 2023–2024 Inside Straus is the annual publication of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. The institute also publishes the blog Inside Straus and an e-newsletter, Common Ground, for its audience of students, alumni, faculty, and friends. This photo was taken on the grounds of Pepperdine University’s newest international campus in Switzerland.
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Dispute Resolution Law Journal Hosts Annual Symposium on Cross-Border Conflicts Adjunct Faculty Highlights
Straus Around the World
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Global Mediating the Litigated Case Training Successfully Lands in Switzerland
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Alumni Making Waves
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Charting New Paths in Dispute Resolution
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Faculty Scholarship and Presentations
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Symposium on Law Enforcement and Conflict Resolution Generates International Dialogue
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Straus Hosts Training for Federal Judicial Center
Students Visit San Francisco for Mini Study Tour in Dispute Resolution
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Charting New Paths in Dispute Resolution When I think about the field of alternative dispute resolution, I am amazed by its longevity and uses in societies across the globe. It has been practiced informally in rural communities for centuries and mediators and neutrals have played a pivotal role in shaping our modern-day world. In this context, ADR’s development and formalization in the United States feels recent.
a dozen countries joined us to enhance their skills in ADR. We also brought together world-class faculty from diverse backgrounds and practice areas. What emerged was truly a global conversation about dispute resolution—on the micro and macro levels. I am confident that this first effort will pave the way for future engagements for Straus in Europe and beyond.
The Straus Institute has led the way around the world to think about ADR education as a vital part of the legal academy, curriculum, and system of practice. At Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, our students think of dispute resolution as part of an array of legal services attorneys can offer their clients. I am often surprised though, that this understanding of ADR is still a novelty in many law schools and legal environments. Students in our Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Dispute Resolution (MDR), and Certificate in Dispute Resolution programs—both in person and online—understand that conflict resolution practices are essential for virtually every industry, and most importantly, at this moment in time.
This November, we also hosted a symposium titled, “The Tactics of Resolution: Exploring Innovations in Law Enforcement and Conflict Resolution,” which broadened our scope in this area. While we have trained more than one thousand police officers, personnel, and community members on conflict resolution, our work has been largely focused domestically. This event enabled us to expand the discussion to include international scholars and thinkers, consider the challenges, and find opportunities for collaboration.
Conflict abounds in workplaces, families, communities, and unfortunately, between neighboring regions and countries. Skilled diplomats, negotiators, mediators, and problem solvers are needed at every level to provide space for dialogue, identify shared goals, and find a way forward, thereby ensuring a better future for all. I am proud that our team at the Straus Institute is committed to doing just that! Together, we are charting new paths in dispute resolution. This year we launched the first-ever Global Mediating the Litigated Case (MLC) program in Pepperdine University’s new campus in Blonay - Saint-Légier, Switzerland. This was the first program to be hosted in the beautiful Château d’Hauteville, where participants from more than
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I hope that by continually exploring new paths in dispute resolution, the Straus Institute—our distinguished faculty, alumni, staff, and students—will continue to advance the field of ADR, contributing to its longevity and utility. We hope to see you at a Straus event soon and wish you a peaceful year ahead.
Sukhsimranjit Singh Assistant Dean, Graduate Law Programs Judge Danny Weinstein Managing Director, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution Professor of Law and Practice, Caruso School of Law
Faculty Scholarship and Presentations TREY CHILDRESS Donald Earl “Trey” Childress was appointed to the Institute of Transnational Arbitration (ITA) Executive Committee at the 35th ITA Annual Workshop and Annual Meeting, held in Austin, Texas, in June. As part of his leadership role with the ITA, Childress is chairing a newly constituted Rule of Law Taskforce, which is composed of leading scholars and practitioners and aims to evaluate how international arbitration can contribute to the development of the rule of law in domestic legal systems and internationally. Earlier in June Childress participated in a meeting of the US State Department’s Advisory Committee on International Law. Among other matters, the committee discussed advisory opinions at the International Court of Justice and international law and the limits of personal jurisdiction over foreign defendants. He also serves on the US State Department’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law.
JACK J. COE, JR. Jack Coe served as an associate reporter on the Restatement of the Law, The U.S. Law of International Commercial and Investor-State Arbitration, which was recently published as a two-volume text by the American Law Institute. The restatement was approved in 2019 at the 96th Annual Meeting of the American Law Institute in Washington, DC. The vote marked the completion of the project that began in 2007 under the leadership of reporter George A. Bermann of Columbia Law School and associate reporters Jack Coe, Jr., Christopher R. Drahozal of the University of Kansas School of Law, and Catherine A. Rogers of Bocconi University. In April 2023 Coe and Childress spoke at a conference in honor of Linda Silberman, the first female law professor awarded tenure at the New York University School of Law. Coe spoke on the international arbitration panel and Childress spoke on the panel on jurisdiction at the conference. The event also included a keynote address by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
COLLEEN GRAFFY In March Colleen P. Graffy was honored at a reception hosted by the British ambassador to the United States, Dame Karen Pierce, in recognition of the authors of The Presidents: 250 Years of American Political Leadership. The reception celebrated the launch of the US edition of the book, which was published last year in the United Kingdom by Hodder & Stoughton. Graffy authored the chapter on president George H. W. Bush, and she also presented remarks on president Bush at events for the Santa Barbara Club and the National Churchill Leadership Center. Graffy has been extensively interviewed on various topics related to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine by the BBC World Service Weekend, the BBC Global News Podcast, and Times Radio UK. She also shared her insights on the maritime dispute between Turkey and Greece for the Finnish Broadcasting Company, as well as speaking about the Turkey and Syria earthquakes for NPR and the BBC World Service Radio.
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STEPHANIE BLONDELL Stephanie Blondell presented “Beyond the Pandemic: A Community Conversation on Improving ADR Teaching in Traditional, Online, and Distance Education,” at the American Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution Spring Conference in May. Blondell discussed how the ADR field can use a variety of modalities to equip students with the knowledge of dispute resolution. Also in May, Blondell served as the trainer and workshop facilitator for the Maryland Public Policy Conflict Resolution Fellows Program, an initiative that convenes a diverse group of influential state leaders to expand their negotiation, conflict resolution, and consensus-building skills. In June Blondell joined judge Alex Williams (Ret.) to present “New Mediator Mistakes: Learning from the World of Clinical Education,” at the United States District Court for the Central District of California 2023 Advanced Mediation Training. She also presented “Mediation Advocacy: Best Practices for Working with a Mediator in High-Conflict Cases,” with JAMS neutral Tamara Lopez, for the San Fernando Valley Bar Association Probate Section.
PETER ROBINSON Peter Robinson was honored by the International Academy of Mediators with its Lifetime Achievement Award at its 2023 Spring Conference, titled “Resolving Conflicts with Hearts and Minds: The Value of Shared Experience,” and held in Zurich, Switzerland. The event was hosted in collaboration with the Swiss Chamber of Commercial Mediation and brought together leading scholars and practitioners from around the world.
SUKHSIMRANJIT SINGH Sukhsimranjit Singh served as a featured speaker on the American Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution Section’s podcast, Resolutions. In June he presented a virtual Advanced Mediation Workshop to more than 90 panel mediators for the United States District Court for the Central District of California, and his remarks examined how obvious and not-so-obvious cultural differences impact the resolution of disputes. Also in June, Singh published an article in the Los Angeles Daily Journal on “Cross-Border Conflicts: Mediating Across Cultures.” The article addresses the ways in which mediation may be used to help solve seemingly intractable crosscultural disputes. Singh also presented “Meeting Across Cultures: Mediating and Building Bridges,” at the Weinstein JAMS International Fellow Meeting, which took place in San Francisco in September. He discussed the role of culture in decision-making with a diverse group of mediators and fellows from fifteen countries, as well as Caruso Law students who were part of a mini study tour. Singh serves on the panel at JAMS, and his practice involves mediating, arbitrating, and evaluating complex public policy conflicts, as well as disputes in a variety of settings, from commercial law, employment and higher education, real estate, and family law.
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TOM STIPANOWICH In March Thomas J. Stipanowich, along with his coauthor, Amy Schmitz, won the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution’s Outstanding Book Award for Arbitration: Practice, Policy, and Law. The casebook provides students with a practice-based approach to applying legal concepts under the Federal Arbitration Act and other laws. At the Pepperdine University Faculty Conference in September, Stipanowich was honored with the Pepperdine Howard A. White Award for Teaching Excellence. Stipanowich spoke at a conference hosted by the Singapore International Commercial Court in January, which included more than 50 supreme court justices from around the world. In June Stipanowich and Stephanie Blondell presented “What Would Lincoln Do?: Lessons from the Life and Career of Abraham Lincoln for Today’s Problem Solvers and Resolvers of Conflict,” at the Arizona State Bar 2023 Convention. In August he gave the keynote address at the Florida Dispute Resolution Center’s 31st Annual Conference, where his remarks centered on the differing perspectives and practices on the use of joint sessions and caucuses in mediation.
MAUREEN WESTON Maureen A. Weston presented her scholarship on “New NIL and Influencer Opportunities and New Demands on Athlete Mental Health,” as part of the Faculty Speaker Series at the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law in April. In the same visit, Weston spoke on “Dispute System Design and Safesport” to students in the Moritz College of Law Mediation Clinic, led by Pepperdine Caruso Law alumnus Ben Wilson (JD ’17, MDR ’17). In June Weston coauthored Sports Law for Sport Management, a new casebook focused on teaching sports law to undergraduate sport management students. Weston is also a long-time coauthor on the leading sports law casebook, soon to be in its 10th edition, with Carolina Academic Press. In October she presented “Arbitrating Sports (Washing), Politics, and Human Rights: Who Decides?” at the 2023 AALS Alternative Dispute Resolution Works-in-Progress Conference hosted by Yale Law School and Quinnipiac University School of Law.
HELEN WINTER In May Helen Winter (LLM ’17) joined Pepperdine Caruso School of Law and the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution as an assistant professor of law and practice. Winter’s work, through her nonprofit, R3SOLUTE, has been recognized for empowering refugee and local communities to manage and prevent conflicts through education and peer mediation. In June Winter presented on this topic at the Association for Conflict Resolution, Greater New York’s annual conference. Her article with David Hoffman, “Follow the Science: Proven Strategies for Reducing Unconscious Bias,” was recently published in the Harvard Negotiation Law Review, and she spoke about reducing bias at Harvard Law School’s LLM Orientation in August.
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Straus Around the World Dammam, Saudi Arabia Shaphan Roberts presented a three-day professional training in May as part of the Straus Institute’s academic collaboration with Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University (PMU) in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Roberts, pictured at the bottom of page 7, shared remarks on the mediation process and spoke about the current state of ADR worldwide. Sukhsimranjit Singh spoke about the future of mediation at PMU’s International Symposium on Global Perspectives on Dispute Resolution in September.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates Sukhsimranjit Singh attended and presented at the International Roundtable Discussion: Advancing a Culture of Mediation in Dubai, hosted by the Weinstein International Foundation (WIF). His remarks centered on how different cultures and communities may work together through modern-day conflicts. Several Weinstein International Foundation board members and notable ADR practitioners from Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, UAE, and the United States joined him.
Kigali, Rwanda In October Sukhsimranjit Singh, in collaboration with former chief justice of Rwanda, Sam Rugege, and Pepperdine University’s Sudreau Global Justice Program, launched the Alternative Dispute Resolution Symposium
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in Kigali, bringing together lawyers and advocates from around the country to advance their ADR skills and knowledge. Pepperdine University vice president Danny DeWalt also attended this first-of-its-kind event, as did adjunct professor and JAMS neutral Cassandra Franklin.
Malibu, United States In October the Straus Institute hosted Abhishek Manu Singhvi, a senior advocate for the Supreme Court of India as well as a member of Parliament. Singhvi, pictured below, spoke alongside Raj Kumar, vice chancellor for O.P. Jindal Global University, and Sukhsimranjit Singh. Singhvi’s remarks centered on emerging mediation markets on a global scale, with a particular focus on India. He discussed issues of access to ADR, addressing backlog, and costs.
Toronto, Canada Sukhsimranjit Singh spoke at a conference organized by York University - Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, Canada, held in collaboration with the International Academy of Mediators and the Winkler Institute for Dispute Resolution. He spoke on a virtual panel titled, “Preparing Parties for the Highly Sensitive Case,” with prominent mediator Marie Henein and moderated by J. Jay Rudolph.
Vienna, Austria
Munich, Germany In June Sukhsimranjit Singh and Helen Winter hosted an alumni event, pictured above, in Munich, Germany, to bring together alumni in Europe. The event was a meaningful opportunity for attendees—hailing from the Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany, and Greece—to reconnect with Straus, network with one another, and reflect on their journeys since graduation. Judge Danny Weinstein (Ret.), who serves as Distinguished Mediator in Residence, joined the event virtually to provide insights and encouragement to the alumni. Alumnae Anke Meier (LLM ’08) and Dana Potockova (MDR ’00) were honored with the Straus International Alumni Appreciation Certificate in recognition of their remarkable achievements in the ADR field.
São Paulo, Brazil Student Marcel Woitalla represented the Straus Institute at the 2023 International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Reconciliation (CPR) International Mediation Competition held in São Paulo, Brazil, on March 30–April 1. Woitalla, pictured below, served as a judge for the first three rounds and semifinals of the competition alongside several Straus alumni and adjunct professor Diego Faleck. He stated, “I am thankful for the cross-cultural exchange with dispute resolution professionals from all over the world.”
Jack Coe and Sukhsimranjit Singh served as judges for the 30th annual Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot competition in Vienna, Austria, held in April. This event is the most prominent competition of its sort in the fields of international private law and international arbitration, and it is designed to help students develop skills for careers in ADR. More than 4,500 students comprising 350 teams from 90 nations competed in this momentous event.
Zürich, Switzerland In June Sukhsimranjit Singh and Peter Robinson attended the spring conference for the International Academy of Mediators (IAM). IAM president and adjunct professor Steve Paul also attended and led the event. Singh opened the event with an address titled, “Resolving Conflicts with Hearts and Minds,” in which he discussed building bridges across cultures in an increasingly divided world through storytelling, communication, and questioning. Robinson was awarded the IAM’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The ceremony honoring him at the conference was attended by several Straus adjunct faculty and alumni. “Peter has masterfully trained and mentored thousands of mediators worldwide. He also previously served as the managing director of the Straus Institute and authored a wonderful book on apology. To me, he exemplifies the true values of the Christian faith,” said Singh about his dear faculty colleague.
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Global Mediating the Litigated Case Training Successfully Lands in Switzerland From September 18 to 23, the Straus Institute's inaugural Mediating the Litigated Case (MLC) global training program brought together 30 participants from 13 different countries to learn timely negotiation and dispute resolution skills. Spanning five days and held at Pepperdine’s historic Château d’Hauteville campus in Blonay - Saint-Légier, Switzerland, the popular training program featured distinguished international faculty from around the world, including the United States, Germany, Israel, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The professional skills program was structured into two comprehensive modules, each delving into the intricacies of advanced mediation. Throughout the training, participants were treated to cutting-edge discussions on mediation, including the intersection of neuroscience and mediation, investor-state mediation, and biasreduction strategies. Additionally, the program offered a unique opportunity for participants to learn about the mediation process in a format geared specifically toward civil litigators, in-house counsel, and dispute resolution professionals.
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The program provided a forum for direct, informal contact with the entire Straus faculty as well as world-renowned negotiation and mediation practitioners, allowing for personalized instruction to ensure a close, dynamic relationship between faculty and participants. “Our MLC global launched successfully and brought together leading scholars and thinkers from diverse backgrounds and practice areas. It was a delight to discuss complex ADR topics and strategies with our cohort of brilliant students in the most beautiful of settings,” said Professor Sukhsimrajit Singh, who led the program design and training team for the event. With its picturesque and peaceful environment, the Château d’Hauteville enabled attendees to engage in thoughtful and potentially world-changing conversations, helping to refine their negotiation and dispute-resolution skills while advancing their professional development. “This new location provides the Straus Institute the opportunity to broaden its global footprint, enabling mediators from around the world to connect with its fantastic curriculum,” said Judge Danny Weinstein (Ret.), founder of the Weinstein International Foundation and Distinguished Mediator in Residence at the Straus Institute.
“One of the highlights was a trip to the United Nations headquarters in Geneva, providing participants with a firsthand glimpse into the world of global conflict resolution,” shared Helen Winter (LLM ’17), assistant professor of law and practice at Caruso Law. “Attendees raved about both the enriching content and the convivial atmosphere, making the first MLC global training at Chateau d’Hauteville an unforgettable experience that fostered crosscultural connections and advanced the field of dispute resolution on an international scale.” For more than 35 years, the Straus Institute has been at the forefront of teaching dispute resolution, and Winter is confident the MLC global training program will continue to make an impact for legal professionals around the world. “Overall the MLC global training in Switzerland was a huge success and we are looking forward to future programs,” she said. Danny Weinstein and Sukhsimranjit Singh lead discussions on global issues in mediation.
The château featured beautiful artwork and grounds for participants and faculty to enjoy together.
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Symposium on Law Enforcement and Conflict Resolution Generates International Dialogue On Saturday, November 4, the Pepperdine Caruso Law Dispute Resolution Law Journal hosted its annual symposium in collaboration with the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution and the Weinstein International Foundation. The symposium, “The Tactics of Resolution: Exploring International Innovation in Law Enforcement and Conflict Resolution,” brought students, law enforcement officials, academics, and policy makers together to engage in enriching conversations on how to establish safer and more harmonious global communities. Professor Sukhsimranjit Singh opened the event by highlighting the importance of building relationships based on trust between law enforcement entities and the communities they serve. Judge Danny Weinstein (Ret.) who serves as the founder of the Weinstein International Foundation and Distinguished Mediator in Residence at the Straus Institute then shared remarks on the the utility of alternative dispute resolution practices in community policing. Weinstein spoke about his tenure working in community relations, and how over time he started “holding [his] pistol in one holster, and [his] mediation skills in the other hostler.” For Weinstein, the biggest cultural shift occurred when he started using his mediation hand more than his pistol hand when responding to disputes. He concluded by encouraging the audience to “get to work” by thinking critically about what each of us individually can do to improve community-police relationships.
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Adjunct professor Shaphan Roberts, who previously served as the director for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Dispute Resolution Program, then introduced Matthew Hennessee, pastor of St. Paul Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon, who gave the keynote address. In his remarks, Hennessee shared his transformative life story, explaining how his first steps were a miracle after enduring tremendous hardships due to physical defects. Having a unique lens as a father, grandfather, pastor, and community builder, Hennessee’s optimism echoed throughout the auditorium as he explained how being “proximate to the issue” and getting “close to the problem” are the only ways we can come together to make a difference in reducing violence in our communities. Sharing his work in creating peace councils, Hennessee illustrated the ability to bring community stakeholders together to find common ground, reminding the audience that “[for] anything that needs to be solved, we’ve got the heart, the head, and the skills to get it done.” Hennessee’s ability to reduce homicides and gun violence in his community provided hope to the event’s attendees at the outset of the day. The first panel of the day, titled “Police Leaders Perspective: Leading from the Front,” brought together chiefs of police and law enforcement specialists from across the country including Deanna Cantrell, a retired chief of police in Mesa, Arizona, as well as San Luis Obispo and Fairfield, California; Jerald Monahan, a retired chief of police for both Prescott Police Department and Yavapai College in Arizona; and
Sandy Jo MacArthur, an adjunct professor at Pepperdine Caruso Law and retired assistant chief for the Los Angeles Police Department in California. Professor Roberts moderated this panel as each speaker discussed using dispute resolution techniques. They explained how culture has shifted over time by engaging with interventionists and specialists when responding to disputes and ways we can bridge the gap between police and community members within a polarized climate. Themes of empathy, transparency, and accountability were discussed as the audience asked questions and conversed with the panelists on how peacemaking practices can be improved on both a local and national level. After lunch, the second panel of the day, titled “International Perspectives on Policing and Conflict Resolution: A Conversation with Weinstein International Foundation Senior Fellows,” was moderated by Judge Weinstein and Ellen Bass, executive director of the Weinstein International Foundation. The discussion featured several distinguished academics and practitioners in the field of law enforcement from around the world, including Ehsan Sadiq, director general of the National Police Bureau in Pakistan; Etiene Martins, a federal judge for the District of Sao Paulo in Brazil and PhD candidate in criminology at the University of Oxford; Wendell Wallace, a criminologist, barrister, and certified meditator in Trinidad and Tobago; and Kyonghan Kang, senior superintendent and consulate general of the Republic of Korea. The panelists shared how policing is viewed in their respective international communities; the various social, political, and economic factors that impact perceptions of law enforcement in their countries; and what dispute resolution tactics have been instrumental in reducing crime and redressing injustices for their localities. The final panel, titled, “Emerging Ourselves in Community Perspectives,” was moderated by adjunct professor MacArthur and featured law enforcement officials, grassroots organizers, policy makers, and academics working to improve relationships between police and community members, including Lisa Broderick, executive director of Police2Peace; Matt Hennessee; Perry Bradley, assistant director of Public Safety at Lenoir Rhyne University in Columbia, South Carolina; Jody Armour, Roy P. Crocker Professor of Law at the University of Southern California; and Dale Bonner of the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners. Panelists engaged in critical conversations on the effectiveness of policy initiatives in reducing crime and violence, whether the allocation of resources and funding has been effective in addressing the intersectional needs of communities, and as Armour stated, “[How in order] to build trust, police
departments . . . must be rooted in science, facts, and evidence,” where professionals are trained to be dataliterate in making policing decisions. Before closing the session, audience members were asked a series of questions via polling software to share their view on community policing; what they learned throughout the day; and how, if at all, perceptions were changed due to the dialogue. Words like empathy, safety, and optimism were common in the discussion and the audience positively rated the effectiveness of having such conversations in changing perceptions. Pepperdine University president and CEO Jim Gash led the closing plenary for the day by highlighting how our shared understanding and appreciation for using alternative methods of dispute resolution equips us to “facilitate peace in our community and beyond.” President Gash added that the solution to almost all our global conflicts requires us to have conversations that treat each other with respect and dignity. Singh and Weinstein also shared their vision for the future, emphasizing the need to continue to have such dialogue—highlighting how the day’s event was only the beginning of the work to be done to build trust in relationships between law enforcement and communities. Finally, the Straus Institute concluded by honoring Luann Pannell, a director of police training and education as well as a police psychologist at the Los Angeles Police Department, for her tremendous influence in infusing community perspectives into policing for more than a decade. Pannell, pictured below, shared her thanks, describing her work as “solving differences through communication.” She ended by providing the words of Maya Angelou, reminding us that “We are more alike, my friends, than we are unlike.” The symposium was led by professors Singh and Roberts from the Straus Institute, as well as Reeve Lanigan, who serves as editor in chief of the journal, and Doyeon Kim, the journal’s symposium editor.
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Straus Hosts Training for Federal Judicial Center The Straus Institute hosted a training for 62 federal judges from the Federal Judicial Center in August. The group included federal district and bankruptcy court judges, and the three-day program focused on enhancing mediation skills, honing strategies to break impasse, and considering ADR processes in complex cases.
Williams (Ret.), Los Angeles Superior Court and neutral for ADR Services, Inc.; Hon. Danny Weinstein (Ret.) Superior Court of San Francisco and JAMS neutral; Hon. Gail Andler (Ret.) Orange County Superior Court and JAMS neutral; and Hon. Jay Gandhi (Ret.), Central District of California and JAMS neutral.
Faculty for the event included Sukhsimranjit Singh, Stephanie Blondell, and Shaphan Roberts from the Straus Institute; Hamid Khan and Jim Chance, who serve as attorneys for the Federal Judicial Center; as well as the Hon. Jill Morris, US magistrate judge for the Western District of Missouri; Hon. Karen Klein (Ret.), US magistrate judge for the District of North Dakota; Hon. Alexander
“It was an honor to welcome these distinguished guests at Pepperdine Caruso Law and provide them with the opportunity to enhance their mediation skills. Many thanks to my fellow teachers and to dean Paul Caron for facilitating their on-campus visit,” said Singh about the training.
Dispute Resolution Law Journal Hosts Annual Symposium on Cross-Border Conflicts In March the Pepperdine Caruso Law Dispute Resolution Law Journal hosted its annual symposium, a student-led event held in collaboration with the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. The symposium, titled “Cross-Border Conflicts: Identifying Parameters, Transforming Perceptions and Methodologies,” brought together leaders from diverse disciplines, including foreign affairs, international
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arbitration, psychology, medicine, negotiation, and human rights to address intractable cross-border conflicts. The two-day event was attended by students, practitioners, and academics and led by Blake D. Morant, former dean and current Robert Kramer Research Professor of Law at the George Washington School of Law. The event launched with a panel of ADR experts, titled, “Setting the
Stage and Illuminating the Path,” which featured Colleen Graffy, adjunct professors David Dowling and Marco Turk, and Sean Roberts of George Washington University. The panel was moderated by Sukhsimranjit Singh. The morning session also featured former US ambassadorat-large for global criminal justice and current dean of Liberty University School of Law, Morse Tan, who spoke with Sebastian Winter, head of policy and research for the International Bureau for Epilepsy. Notable ADR expert Cedric Chao also provided insight from his decades of courtroom advocacy work regarding the many ways to achieve a client victory. The afternoon was lively with multiple panels addressing topics like “Exploring Conflict: Does One Truly Need to Wait Until the Conflict Is Ripe to Act?,” featuring adjunct professors Jair Gevaerd and Steve Paul, along with JAMS mediator and arbitrator Barbara Reeves; “There Is Always More Than One Way to Fight,” which featured a dynamic conversation between keynote speaker John Beaucage, from the Counsel of Public Affairs and adjunct professor Marco Turk; and “Getting to the Root of Xinjiang” with Sean Roberts and Eric Schlussel of George Washington University, who addressed the emotionally charged topic of the ethnic conflict occurring in western China. The day’s final panel addressed “Special Perspectives Around Commercial vs. Ethnic Conflicts.” The discussion was moderated by Trey Childress and Caruso School of Law dean of students, belonging, and career development Chalak Richards, and included commentary from Pepperdine School of Public Policy professor Robert Kaufman, Neil Popovic of Sheppard Mullin, and Helen Winter. The first day of the event concluded with the keynote address by John Beaucage.
and “Medically Informed Policies in Promoting the Rule of Democracy,” addressed by Helen Winter and Sebastian Winter; “The Intersection of Human Rights and CrossBorder Disputes,” by Morse Tan; and a unique debate regarding “Human Rights Perspectives and Practices in Cross-Border Conflicts,” between Kaufman and Tan; moderated by Christine Goodman and 2022–2023 Dispute Resolution Law Journal editor in chief Patrick Babajanian. The final afternoon’s events included an address by attorney Olga Zalomiy, titled, “AAA ICDR Perspectives on Arbitration,” as a unique frame of reference within international conflicts, and an address by Dowling, who made a call to action around “Human Interests, Systemic Bias, and the Future of the Law,” in cross-border conflicts. The final breakout sessions of the event included conversations about comparative history with Sean Roberts and Morse Tan, a fireside chat with John Beaucage and adjunct professor Steve Paul, and the issue of “The Intersection Between Party Autonomy and Enforcement of Arbitral Awards,” addressed by Jeffrey Dasteel of Dasteel Mediation-Arbitration. Additionally, an alternative path to ADR was discussed by Jair Gevaerd, Cedric Chao, and Eric Schlussel, who discussed historical and commercial perspectives on China, and Neil Popovic shared his views on the potential “Drawbacks of a Strictly Rules-Based Approach,” to cross-border conflicts. The symposium was led by Bazil Cunningham, the symposium editor for the journal, along with Patrick Babajanian and journal faculty advisor Sukhsimranjit Singh.
Friday’s program began with a conversation on exploring and applying high-conflict personality theory in the space of intractable conflicts, featuring adjunct professor and founder of the High Conflict Institute Billy Eddy along with Rehana Jamal (LLM ’22). The morning’s conversations included topics around “Cross-Border Conflicts: the Emerging Role of Brain Health-Directed Policy Making,”
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Adjunct Faculty Highlights Adjunct Professor William Nix Speaks on “Storytelling and the Social Impact for the Sustainable Development Goals” to the UN General Assembly Adjunct professor William Nix presented “Storytelling and the Social Impact for the SDGs” at the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Media Zone Summit held at the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly in mid-September. The SDG Summit aimed to raise ambition, accelerate progress, and renew commitments to sustainable development goals. The outcome of the summit will be a negotiated political declaration. Nix is the founding member and co-executive director of the Social Impact Entertainment Society.
Mosbacher Director of the Center for Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law at Stanford. The panel conversation centered on the challenges of balancing national interests with world affairs. Roberts, who serves as senior director and adjunct professor for the Straus Institute, also spoke at the conference on a panel titled, “How to Help Mend the US Social Fabric in Times of Great Distrust.” Roberts spoke alongside Lisa Broderick, executive director of Police2Peace and Liz Hume, who serves as executive director of the Alliance for Peacebuilding. The panelists discussed how local solutions can help to bridge polarization on a global scale and effectively address political, social, cultural, and socioeconomic divisions.
Pepperdine Libraries Hosts Event on Professor Adjunct Professor Shaphan Roberts and John Barton’s New Book, Better Religion Professor Sukhsimranjit Singh Speak at the Positive Peace Conference at Stanford University The Pepperdine Center for Faith and Learning, in In May Sukhsimranjit Singh and Shaphan Roberts spoke at the Positive Peace Conference hosted by the Institute of Economics and Peace and held in partnership with Stanford University’s Freeman Spogli Institute and its Center for Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. Singh spoke on a panel titled, “How to Contribute to Stabilization and Development in a Way That Meets Everyone’s Needs,” along with Don Chisolm, who serves as director of USAID’s Center for Conflict and Violence Prevention, and Kathryn Stoner, who serves as the
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partnership with Pepperdine Libraries, hosted a panel discussion in February to celebrate the publication of the new book, Better Religion: A Primer for Interreligious Peacebuilding, by John D. Barton, professor of teaching of religion at Seaver College, adjunct professor at the Straus Institute, and director of the University’s Center for Faith and Learning. In his new book, Barton argues that for better or worse, religion will play a major role in shaping the course of humanity throughout the 21st century, and that for religion’s “better” to be realized, interreligious peacebuilding must honor and directly engage religious
differences while allowing each person to remain true to their own deepest convictions. The panel discussion was moderated by Jennifer A. Smith, associate director of the Center for Faith and Learning and associate professor of English at Seaver College and included Rachel Gould, assistant professor of English at Seaver College, Sukhsimranjit Singh, and Michal Meulenberg, adjunct professor of religion at Seaver College.
Straus Faculty Members Speak at Statewide ADR Conference for Special Education Stephanie Blondell and Sukhsimranjit Singh, along with adjunct professors David Dowling and Aparna Gupta, presented to more than 800 special education professionals and parents on conflict resolution skills in March. The annual conference, held at the Riverside Convention Center, was hosted by the Special Education Local Plan Area, or SELPA, Administrators of California. This year’s theme was, “Release the Past and Embrace the Future through ADR.”
close opportunities for collaboration and conversation, whereas others can open the door to trust and connection. Their second keynote was aimed at giving the audience the opportunity to practice asking nonjudgmental, inquirybased questions through skills-building exercises. Following their presentations, the faculty led a variety of workshops at the two-day event. The Straus Institute continues to train SELPA professionals through its partnership with the statewide organization.
Adjunct Faculty Members Convened on Campus and Online for Spring Meeting The Straus Institute and Caruso School Graduate Law Programs were delighted to host adjunct faculty members for an on-campus and online meeting and lunch in January. The talented group, pictured below, connected across diverse practice areas and shared teaching resources and modalities.
Singh opened the event with a plenary session. His remarks, titled “Redefining Relationships in Special Education: An Opportunity to Uplift and Succeed as Leaders,” centered on the hallmarks of leadership at every level within a large organization. Blondell, Dowling, and Gupta presented two keynotes as a group, centering on the power of questions in conflict resolution. In the first, they introduced the audience to different types of questions, and demonstrated how certain questions can
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Students Visit San Francisco for Mini Study Tour in Dispute Resolution The Straus Institute hosted a mini study tour for its students for the second year in a row in September in San Francisco, in coordination with JAMS and the Weinstein International Foundation. A select group of LLM students joined the tour, along with Shaphan Roberts, Helen Winter, and Sukhsimranjit Singh. This trip enabled students to explore alternative dispute resolution mechanisms and hone unique skills by learning from the work of fellows visiting from around the world. Student Saltanat Imanova shared, “It was a great pleasure to connect to so many ADR professionals from all over the world, have an amazing time, and see how the Weinstein Foundation has supported efforts to make this world better and more peaceful!”
Students also had a chance to interact with distinguished mediators and judges at this event. Student Lindsey Kirchhoff shared, Hearing remarks from justice Sam Rugege and judge Ann Claire Williams filled me with gratitude for their commitment to service and advancing the common good. Meeting the Weinstein JAMS international fellows inspired me because they are trailblazers for peace and justice in their communities around the world. During our trip, we had the opportunity to discuss contemporary disputes with the fellows. Oftentimes members of our profession are stereotyped as untrustworthy, arrogant, and callous, but through this experience, I met lawyers and mediators who exude integrity, humility, and compassion in their work. Our conversations demonstrated how a diverse group of individuals can generate profoundly creative solutions and have motivated me to further develop the art of listening well. Another student, Valentina Racanati stated, The San Francisco study tour at JAMS headquarters in collaboration with the Weinstein International Foundation was a transformative journey that opened new doors of knowledge and opportunities. I am immensely grateful to the Straus Institute for this invaluable experience. Thank you again for this amazing opportunity! Students were excited to gain insights for their future careers. “I was able to discuss and connect with some of the best ADR professionals worldwide, providing me with great knowledge,” Izabela Moriggi Costa stated. “I absolutely loved it and am excited to apply what I’ve learned in my future pursuits!”
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Alumni Making Waves Straus Alumnus Mohamed Sweify (LLM ’15) Selected as 2022 Top 30 Most Promising Arbitrators in Africa Mohamed Sweify was selected as one of Africa’s Top 30 Most Promising Arbitration Practitioners in 2022. Sweify serves as an associate attorney at the New York-based law firm Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, as well as an adjunct professor at Fordham Law School. As an LLM student at Straus, Sweify took several courses with Jack Coe and produced a thesis under the supervision of Thomas Stipanowich, titled “InvestmentEnvironment Disputes—Challenges and Proposals.” The essay was later published in the DePaul Business and Commerce Law Journal. Since graduating from Straus, he has published several other articles on international arbitration and related dispute resolution topics. Stipanowich noted, “I am thrilled but not surprised by this honor accorded one of our outstanding graduates, Mohamed Sweify. He reflects all the qualities that make great lawyers and problem solvers. We are all the beneficiaries of his success.”
following graduation. John and Corrie Napier also serve as Straus Institute adjunct professors, teaching Cross-Cultural Conflict and Dispute Resolution over the summer. Helen Winter hosted and facilitated the presentation, which took place in June. Corrie Napier is a conflict consultant, trainer, mediator, and international education professional who speaks Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, and English. She draws daily on her decade of experience living and working internationally, including in Argentina, China, and Israel. John Napier is an experienced attorney and legal practice partner who works in the law, entrepreneurship, and alternative dispute resolution industries. He specializes in international mediation and arbitration, negotiation, business and NGO development, international law, and governmental entitlements and appeals. The couple are the founders of Pax Napier, an international consultancy and mediation organization, serving organizations of all sizes as well as individuals, helping to find creative paths toward lasting unity and resolution of conflicts.
Ekaterina Ricci (MDR ’23) and Adjunct Professor Bill Eddy Publish “Autism Spectrum Disorder and High-Conflict Personalities”
John Napier (JD ’09, MDR ’09) and Corrie Napier (’04, MDR ’20) Give Special Presentation on Conflict Resolution Ekaterina Ricci and Bill Eddy have published “Autism Spectrum Disorder and High-Conflict Personalities: Working With Cultural Differences,” for the High Conflict Institute. The article may be found on the High Conflict Institute website and describes essential skills for legal professionals when working with highconflict personalities and people who have autism. Alumni John Napier and Corrie Napier returned to Caruso Law to give a special presentation on conflict resolution, inspiring students by sharing their journeys
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PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY Caruso School of Law Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution 24255 Pacific Coast Highway Malibu, CA 90263-4655
Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution straus.pepperdine.edu | dracademics@pepperdine.edu | 310.506.4655
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Mediating the Litigated Case
LLM in Entertainment, Media, and Sports Law
November 27–December 1, 2023 | In Person, Malibu January 4–5 and 10–12, 2024 | In Person, Malibu February 5–9, 2024 | In Person, SELPA Edition March 4–8, 2024 | In Person, Malibu April 15–16 and 22–24, 2024 | Hybrid Format
LLM in International Commercial Arbitration
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