Mediated Settlement Conference (MSC) N.C. Superior Court Training, 40 hours

This fall, The Mediation Center will offer a 40-hour, in-person Mediated Settlement Conference (MSC) Superior Court Mediator training. The training will fulfill the 40-hour training requirement for the NC Dispute Resolution Commission's Superior Court mediator certification process. The training will take place from Monday, October 20, through Friday, October 24, from 8:00 AM until 5:00 PM. In addition to MSC training hours, participants will earn 24 hours of CLE credit, including 1 technology hour and 3 hours of ethics/professional responsibility credit.

The first two days of the training – Monday and Tuesday - are approved by the NC Dispute Resolution Commission as the MSC 16-Hour Supplemental Training. You may qualify to meet the MSC training requirement with only the 16-hour supplement if one of the following applies to you:

• You are currently a certified North Carolina FFS mediator wanting to become an MSC mediator (no DRC pre-approval required)
• You are a lawyer who previously completed another state's 40-hour MSC training and would like approval in NC (DRC pre-approval letter required)
• You were previously certified as a North Carolina MSC mediator, and your certification has lapsed by more than three, but less than seven, years (no DRC pre-approval required)

Before registering, please review the threshold requirements for education and work experience here. You may register for the training right away if you are a licensed attorney in NC or elsewhere and have at least five years of legal practice experience. Non-attorneys and mediators from other states must provide a provisional pre-training letter from the NC Dispute Resolution Commission to The Mediation Center before registering to demonstrate that they have been pre-approved.

Contact the NC DRC to learn more about mediator certification requirements and approval processes.

Registration fees include lunches and light refreshments.

All proceeds benefit The Mediation Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit that provides community mediation and family visitation services in Buncombe, Henderson, Transylvania, and Polk counties.

Monday, October 20

8:00 AM - 11:00 AM: Conflict and Resolution: What Mediators Need to Know

11:00 AM - 11:45 AM: The Mediation Process Demonstration and Discussion, Part One

11:45 AM - 12:45 PM: Lunch

12:45 PM - 1:30 PM: The Mediation Process Demonstration and Discussion, Part Two

1:30 PM - 3:00 PM: Getting Mediation Started: Setting the Stage for Settlement

3:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Role-Play Scenario

Tuesday, October 21

8:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Statutes and Rules for MSC Mediators

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM: Exam on the Statutes and Rules

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Standards of Professional Conduct, Part One: Confidentiality

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: The Culture of Insured Claims

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Role-Play Scenario

Wednesday, October 22

8:00 AM - 9:00 AM: The Stages of the Mediation Process

9:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Mediator Skills: Reframing and Asking Good Questions

10:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Mediator's Bag of Tricks

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Logistical Issues in Mediation

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Role-Play Scenario

Thursday, October 23

8:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Overcoming Barriers and Dealing with Impasse

10:00 AM - 12:00 PM: The Human Element: Emotional and Cognitive Issues

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Decision Analysis and Risk Assessment: Helping Parties Decide

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Role-Play Scenario

Friday, October 24

8:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Standards of Professional Conduct for Mediators, Part Two

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM: Technology Considerations for Mediators

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Understanding Bracketing

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM: Lunch

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Lessons Learned: War Stories from Experienced Mediators, A Panel Discussion

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Role-Play Scenario

Sarah Corley is an attorney licensed in Georgia and California, and a mediator with more than 20 years of experience. She began her career as a lawyer specializing in litigation and employment law. In 1996, she started her own mediation practice, MediationWorks NC, and has worked as private mediator ever since. She is certified by the NC Dispute Resolution Commission in Superior Court, Family Financial and Clerk of Court mediation, and serves on the panel of mediators for federal district court and the United States Postal Service. She is a member of the NC Academy of Superior Court Mediators and the NC Association of Professional Family Mediators.

Tara Lynn Kozlowski is the Executive Director of the North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission. She has been with the Commission since July of 2018. Prior to working with the Dispute Resolution Commission, Mrs. Kozlowski was a family law litigator and mediator, practicing with a small firm in Wake County, North Carolina. Mrs. Kozlowski obtained a Bachelor in Science degree in Chemistry from Indiana University, and her J.D. from The University of Toledo College of Law in 2006. She lives in Apex, North Carolina with her husband, their two daughters, and a yellow lab.

Sharon Tracey Barrett is a retired Superior Court Judge and a former Buncombe County District Court Judge. She currently serves as an Associate Judge and Justice for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and as an Emergency Superior Court Judge. Through a practice called Barrett Resolutions, Sharon now works as a mediator and arbitrator. She is a member of the North Carolina Chapter of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals. She graduated cum laude from Boston College in 1983 and received her J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1986. She practiced law in Asheville for nineteen years, focusing primarily on civil litigation, until she became a judge in 2005. From 2002-2003, she was President of the Buncombe County Bar. She served for many years on the board of directors of The Mediation Center.

Laura Jeffords, MPA, is the Executive Director of the Mediation Center. Laura has over 18 years of experience as a professional mediator and mediation trainer. She leads the Mediation Center’s DRC-certified training program for District Criminal Court Mediation. She has trained hundreds of community members to mediate criminal court, family, Pr*son re-entry, and neighborhood conflict. She works with district courts in Western North Carolina to ensure that people who access the criminal courts to address family, neighborhood, and community conflict have the opportunity to use mediation instead. Laura has a particular interest in mediating organizational conflicts, conflicts where violence has occurred, and conflicts rooted in issues of race and gender. She collaborates with community mediation colleagues from around the country to lead seminars that encourage mediators to think more deeply about issues of race and bias in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution. She is certified in the Inclusive Mediation model, which is a radically nonjudgmental approach to mediation that prioritizes self-determination, violence prevention, and party relationships. Laura is also a certified Medicaid Appeals mediator.

Fred Barbour has lived and practiced law in Asheville for more than 36 years. For the first two thirds of his practice, he spent most of his time in the courtroom in hearings and trials, or outside the courtroom investigating cases and preparing them for trial. Since then, he has focused on mediation. His experience gives him perspective in counseling clients to make choices likely to lead to favorable resolution of their conflicts and helps him serve more effectively as a mediator guiding discussions about settlement. While each case and each mediation is different, his extensive experience informs his interactions with clients and attorneys and increases the odds of successful settlements.

Clifford "Kip" Marshall is a founding shareholder and the President of Marshall, Roth & Gregory, PC and has practiced law for more than 40 years in Asheville and the western region of North Carolina. He is admitted before all the courts of the State of NC, the Cherokee Supreme Court, Eastern Band of Cherokee, the U.S. District Court for the Western, Middle and Eastern Districts of NC and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. He is a certified NC Superior Court mediator and has been called to mediate matters arising in the NC courts and federal district courts.

You may transfer your registration to another person at no cost at any time.

Do not request refunds from Eventbrite. E-mail [email protected] to request a refund.

Cancellation Timelines – Please note that ticketing and processing fees are not refundable at any time

• At least 60 days prior – Refund of amount paid except for ticketing and processing fees
• At least 30 days but less than 60 days prior – 75% refund. Coupon code for 25% off one future training*
• At least 15 days but less than 30 days prior – 50% refund. Coupon code for 50% off one future training*
• Less than 15 days prior – 25% refund. Coupon code for 25% off one future training*

*Coupon codes expire in 24 months from the last day of the scheduled training and have no cash value

Host or Publisher The Mediation Center