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September 3, 2026

Hands-on AI Training for Arbitration, Sept. 15

Join us on Tuesday, September 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET at White & Case's New York office (including a networking lunch), or online, for a hands-on program designed for advocates and neutrals seeking practical, responsible ways to understand and use AI tools.

The program will present four separate segments: 1) an overview of the evolving AI landscape with Sven Volkmer from White & Case and Myrna Barakat Friedman from BarakatADR and a CPR Neutral; 2) a hands-on Microsoft Copilot training session led by Nathan Haley and Jake Thornburgh from Microsoft; 3) an ethics component providing practical guidance on governance and ethics issues with Cynthia Cwik from JAMS and Thomas White from Sullivan & Cromwell; and 4) a forward-looking keynote on the future of AI in dispute resolution featuring Megan Ma, head of Stanford Legal Innovation through Frontier Technology Lab (liftlab).

Sponsored by CPR Institute's Arbitration Committee, Viva Dadwal will lead a one-hour virtual program on Thursday, Sept. 24, featuring a discussion about the arbitration cases that the U.S. Supreme Court decided and those that it did not take up during its 2025-26 term, and what it means for arbitration practitioners.

Moderator:

Viva Dadwal, King & Spalding

Speakers:

Prof. Angela Downes, Mediator and Arbitrator, JAMS, CPR Distinguished Neutral

Viren Mascarenhas, Founding Partner, Mascarenhas ADR, CPR Distinguished Neutral

Corporate Counsel Connection - the popular forum for in-house counsel to exchange ideas - will resume on Thursday, September 10 at 11 a.m. ET. We are thrilled to welcome two new Co-Facilitators for the series, Kate Gonzalez and Daniel Ehrlich of Airbus!

The September call will feature a special presentation from the leadership of CPR Institute’s Dispute Prevention Committee, Rafael Alves of Souto Correa Advogados, Kate Gonzalez of Airbus, and Duncan MacKay of Eversource Energy, who will lead the group in a discussion of limitation of liability clauses and indemnity provisions, and where they can go wrong.

Subsequent calls will take place on the first Thursday of the month. Please join us!

Open to in-house counsel members only. All registrations are subject to CPR Institute's approval.

Y-ADR Steering Committee meeting to kick off the new term year on Thursday, Sept. 17.

CPR's European Advisory Board meeting, led by Co-Chairs Vanessa Alarcon Duvanel

and Torsten Bartsch, will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 22.

CPR's Brazilian Advisory Board meeting, led by Co-Chairs André Cavalcanti, Michelle Grando, and Diego Faleck, will be held on Monday, Sept. 28

The Healthcare and Life Sciences Alliance meetings will be held at 12 p.m. ET

on the following Wednesdays: Sept. 23 and Dec. 9.

CPR Institute’s Seattle Advisory Board is pleased to announce that the next

Seattle Regional Chapter event will take place on Thursday, Oct. 1 at DLA Piper.

Presented by the Brazilian Advisory Board, the program Transformation in the Public and Private Sectors for the Prevention and Resolution of Disputes in Brazil will be held on Monday, October 19.

CPR Institute Members may join a Committee, Industry Alliance, or Task Force and apply for a leadership position using the form below.

Committee & Leadership Form

This in-person program will be held at Norton Rose Fulbright's Houston office. Designed for legal and business professionals across the energy industry, this unique experience will provide a macro view of the broader energy value chain, connecting the technical, commercial, and legal aspects of the industry, including the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors.

Luis Rey of Baker & O’Brien will provide an overview of the technical and operational aspects of the oil and gas industry, while Lindsey Raspino of ConocoPhillips, Will Russell of Reed Smith and Denton Nichols of Norton Rose Fulbright will provide commentary on the legal and commercial considerations that arise across the value chain. Drawing on their experience, they will discuss how legal issues intersect with technical operations and explore the opportunities, risks, and evolving business challenges companies face at each stage.

This program has been approved for 1.0 General CLE credit in Texas and 1.0 Professional Practice credit in New York.

This program is free for CPR Institute members and CPR neutrals. All others $75. Please make sure to register in advance for the appropriate ticket if you wish to attend.

Join CPR Dispute Resolution Services for the Business Law Fall Meeting in Chicago, September 2-4. The Business Law Fall Meeting is the ultimate gathering of business law professionals from around the world. Featuring over 50 CLE programs and hundreds of substantive discussions, it covers the latest business law trends and developments.

CPR Dispute Resolution Services Vice President and Corporate Secretary, Mia Levi, is the program chair and one of the speakers for “ADR in Aviation: How It Works, How Its Utilized In-House, and Perspectives from Private Practice and In-House Counsel” which features CPR Institute members Kyle Olson from Boeing and Kate Gonzalez from Airbus. Additional speakers are Jeff Zaino of Veritext and Matthew Conger of AAA.

CPR Dispute Resolution Services is proud to support the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) 2026 Fall Conference, “Rising Up to Meet the Future: Cultivating Tomorrow’s Leaders Today” taking place on Saturday, September 26, at Fordham Law School. This full-day event offers multi-track sessions in the morning and afternoon, and a plenary lunch session, with many CLE credits available.

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Transitioning from a law firm to an in-house role demands a fundamental shift in mindset—from legal analyst to executive business partner. To succeed, corporate counsel must master business-first communication, drive efficient cross-functional alignment, and cultivate a pragmatic approach to risk.

This panel brings together a dynamic combination of law firm attorneys turned in-house counsel, and in-house counsel turned neutral, to share insights on the modern in-house environment. Panelists will share concrete approaches for shifting from risk avoidance to risk tolerance, leading concise, agenda-driven executive meetings, and leveraging early dispute resolution mechanisms to safeguard enterprise value.

The CPR Institute is thrilled to welcome Mayer Brown as our newest law firm member!

Mayer Brown is a leading global law firm founded in Chicago in 1881. It has more than 1,800 lawyers working across the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The firm advises major corporations, financial institutions, and funds on complex cross-border transactions, litigation, and regulatory matters.

Welcome to the CPR Institute community, Mayer Brown!

Explore the advantages of membership at the CPR Institute, click below.

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Sponsored by CPR Institute's Dispute Prevention Committee, speakers will present on the use of CPR's Dispute Management Board Rules and how they may be used to manage conflict during the life of a project, whether it be the construction of a facility, a long-term contract, or any commercial relationship that could benefit from a standing board empowered to make interim decisions to move the relationship to the next step.

Join us at David Polk's NYC office at 1 p.m. on Thursday, November 12, for this program ahead of NY Arbitration Week. This program is open to the public and free to CPR Institute members and CPR Neutrals.

Students are encouraged to apply for the Africa Arbitration Day-New York Moot Competition to be held in NYC on November 19. Review the application instructions and apply today.

The application is due by September 18!

Registration for the conference is now open. It will be held from 1:15 to 6 p.m. at Debevoise & Plimpton's New York office. The conference will include two substantive panels (CLE pending) and a cocktail reception with hors d'oeuvres.

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Don't miss out on being part of the CPR Institute's yearlong 50^thAnniversary Celebration at our 2027 Annual Meeting - Vision to Vanguard: Innovating the Next Era of Conflict Management!

There's still time to join the AM27 Steering Committee, led by Co-Chairs Alberto Ravell of ConocoPhillips and Linda Klein of Baker Donelson, to help review proposals and vote on panel selections. Email CPR’s Event Coordinator, Molly Brennan, at mbrennan@cpradr.org for more information. Sponsorship opportunities still available! View the brochure HERE.

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Serve as a Mediation Judge at the IMC!

The 10th Anniversary of CPR's International Mediation Competition (IMC) will be hosted once again by Insper at its state-of-the-art campus in beautiful São Paulo (Brazil). A leading international mediation competition held in Latin America, this annual event demonstrates CPR’s commitment to promoting mediation across the globe while also showcasing the leadership of the Brazilian community in hosting this marquee program.

Experienced mediators are invited to serve as judges for the IMC to judge the written statements (no travel required) and the live mediation sessions (attend in-person in São Paulo).

To indicate your interest and availability, please complete the form.

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This September special double issue features national and international conflict resolution leaders on hot topics, including a cover story on developing dispute prevention and ADR systems in the face of hybrid warfare, our continuing “Special Series, AI in Arbitration and Litigation—The Jagged Frontier,” additional analysis of the aftermath of recent U.S. Supreme Court arbitration decisions, two regular columnists, and much more.

Alternatives is accessible to CPR Institute members directly through the website at cpradr.org/alternatives-newsletter. Members must be logged in to their CPR Institute user account to access each issue.

Read Alternatives

The CPR Institute’s Awards Program honors outstanding scholarship and practical achievement in the field of alternative dispute resolution. Award criteria focus on processes, techniques, systems, commitment, and scholarship that address the resolution, prevention, or creative management of major disputes involving public or business institutions, including between corporations, between government and corporations, or among multiple parties.

Send electronic file nominations (in PDF or Word format), via email to Helena Tavares Erickson, SVP, CPR Institute & Corporate Secretary at herickson@cpradr.org.

Awards Submission