Dispute resolution scholars to examine role of courts on Feb. 22

What is the role judicial review when a party to arbitration seeks to vacate the arbitrator’s award? What is the role of the courts when an unhappy party seeks to set aside a mediated agreement? Top scholars of dispute resolution will examine these questions and more on Feb. 22 at Penn State Law. “The Role of the Courts: Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards and Mediated Settlement Agreements” has been approved for 4 CLE credits and will be live in Carlisle, Pa., and University Park, Pa.

“More and more parties and lawyers are using mediation and arbitration to resolve disputes. Not surprisingly, an increasing percentage of parties are trying to “undo” arbitral awards and mediated settlement agreements. As a result, it is more important than ever for lawyers to understand the grounds and standards of review used by courts in deciding whether to enforce mediated and arbitral outcomes,” said Professor Nancy Welsh, a scholar of dispute resolution and procedural law and the William Trickett Faculty Scholar at Penn State Law. Her most recent scholarship has examined the potential integration of mediation into investment treaty arbitration. 

Agenda highlights:

-- “Is Less Really More? The Supreme Court’s Recent Stance on Limited Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards,” by Professor Allen Blair, Hamline University School of Law

-- “Creating a 21st Century Oligarchy: Judicial Abdication to Class Action Mediators” with Professor Jim Coben, Hamline University School of Law

-- “Med-Arb and the Challenge of Judicial Review,” by Professor Ellen Deason, The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law

-- “You Mean I’m Stuck With This? Courts and the Enforcement of Mediation Agreements," by Professor Jacqueline Nolan-Haley, Fordham University School of Law

-- “Pre-Judicial Review of Mediated Settlement Agreements: The Oregon Experience,” by Professor Jennifer Reynolds, University of Oregon School of Law

-- “Asymetric Dynamism and Acceptable Judicial Review of Arbitration Awards," with Professor Jeff Stempel, University of Nevada Las Vegas School of Law

-- “Using Dispute System Design for Error Correction: How Award Review Could Occur in Investment Arbitration,” by Professor Andrea Schneider, Marquette Law School

-- “Sonic Calabasas v. Moreno and the Issue of FAA Preemption and State Administrative Law Regulatory Scheme,” with Professor Maureen Arellano Weston, Pepperdine University School of Law

“We are pleased to present some of the leading thinkers in the ADR field,” said Zach Morahan, senior at Penn State Law and editor in chief of the Yearbook on Arbitration and Mediation and organizer of the event.

The symposium is sponsored by the Yearbook on Arbitration and Mediation, a student-edited publication covering primarily U.S. developments in arbitration and mediation.

Sign-in and a welcome breakfast will begin at 8:15 a.m. in both locations. The first panel starts at 9 a.m., and a luncheon will be provided. The cost to attend is $99 (reduced to $49 for Penn State Law alumni) for those seeking CLE credit. Students, faculty, and nonlawyers may attend at no cost but are asked to register.

Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

Last Updated January 22, 2013

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