From October 16-20, the Massachusetts Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution (DR) Section presented a series of events around the state in honor of Conflict Resolution Week. More than 400 people attended Conflict Resolution Week programs, including judges, lawyers, DR professionals, students, parents, teachers and other members of the public.
Governor Charlie Baker issued a proclamation recognizing October 19 as Dispute Resolution Day in Massachusetts. The day was celebrated with a reception at the Adams Courthouse, which featured a keynote address by Kenneth Feinberg (One Fund Boston, September 11 Victim Compensation Fund), and remarks from Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants and Trial Court Chief Justice Paula M. Carey. Other highlights included the Oct. 20 screening of The Peacemaker, a documentary film about international Irish peacemaker Padraig O’Malley.
The full list of Conflict Resolution Week events included:
- Oct 16: Western Mass. Court Connected Dispute Resolution Programs, Hampden County Hall of Justice, Springfield
- Oct 17: Youth Mediation and Juvenile Justice Panel, Massachusetts School of Law, Andover
- Oct 18: Beyond the Courthouse, Dispute Resolution Options for Families in Transition, Ventress Memorial Library, Marshfield
- Oct 19: Conflict Resolution Day Reception, Adams Courthouse, Second Floor, Boston
- Oct 20: Documentary Film Screening: The Peacemaker, Harvard Law School, Cambridge
The MBA thanks our Conflict Resolution Week co-sponsors: Berkshire County Bar Association, Commonwealth Mediation, Franklin County Bar Association, Hampden County Bar Association, Hampshire County Bar Association, Harvard Program on Negotiation, JAMS, Juvenile Court Department, Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council, Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation, Massachusetts Dispute Resolution Services, Northeast Mediation and Arbitration, Sarah E. Worley Conflict Resolution PC, The Mediation Group, and the Trial Court Standing Committee on Dispute Resolution.