THE DISPUTE RESOLVER: What’s Up With Division 1 (No. 19)

Wasn’t the Puerto Rico meeting AMAZING!!! It started off shaky (haha) at the Division 1 social event at Casa Bacardi.

Marissa Downs and Construction Discovery Experts did a fantastic job planning and hosting this event. Thanks a ton! Here are a few extra photos from that event:

In addition to the social event, we held a practicum in Puerto Rico on Opening Statements and Direct Examination. We are typically wary of scheduling a practicum during midwinter meetings because attendees may prefer to be at the beach/pool rather than a conference room, but we proceeded forward. The attendance was fabulous and the presentation was excellent. Joe Imperiale moderated and planned this practicum on behalf of Division 1. I even played a witness on direct examination for Kelsey Funes, one of the presenters. Great work team on this practicum!!!

Division 1 New Leadership

The Governing Committee of the ABA Forum on Construction Law approved new Division 1 leaders at the Puerto Rico meeting. The new leaders are:

Kelsey Kornick Funes -- New Division 1 Chair (2023-2025). Kelsey has been a steering committee member of Division 1 for the past decade. She has led a number of programs and initiatives for Division 1 and the Forum and we cannot wait to see what Kelsey will do as Division 1 Chair!!!
Jade Davis - New Steering Committee Member. Jade helped kickoff Divsion 1's Toolbox Talk Series. She took a concept and developed the entire series during its first year. Jade has also particiapted in other Forum programs including a webinar.

Jessica Knox - New Steering Committee Member. Jessica revamped and added a ton of content to The Dispute Resolver. She is our liasion to the Tech Committee of the Forum.

We are so excited to continue to work with Jade and Jessica as steering committte members. Kelsey is going to take over as a Division 1 Chair at the Annual Meeting in Vancouver. I will stick around as the immediate past chair of Division 1!

Next Toolbox Talk Series -- March 23rd at 12PM ET. The next TTS will be on in-house counsel's perspective on improving arbitration. The panelists will be Leslie King O'Neal, Patricia Thompson, and Laura Abrahamson from JAMS. REGISTER HERE.

The full slate of TTS programs for 2023 is set. Visit this page to see the full lineup and register for the programs!

Next Division 1 Monthly Meeting is this Thursday, March 9, 2023. Register to attend this meeting and future monthly meetings by clicking HERE.

New The Dispute Resolver Team

Marissa Downs is the new Editor-in-Chief of The Dispute Resolver. She has put together a fantastic team and schedule of publications for 2023. The blog has a new look as well. Thanks TDR Team for giving new life and energy into the blog.

Law Student Building Results Event on March 29th.

For a third year in a row, Division 1 is working with the Forum's law student liasion and the Membership Committee to put on a program for law students about the practice of construction law. This year, the program is scheduled for March 29th. We are looking for Division 1 Members to attend the networking portion of the event. If you are interested, please contact me at rtdunn@pierceatwood.com or you can register for the event HERE.

Vancouver -- Annual Meeting on April 12-14.

Use this link to book your hotel room.

The program is on the Future of Construction Law. Division 1 steering committee member, and my law partner, Katie Kohm, is one of the Co-Chairs. She is working really hard on this program and I hope you will try to attend as the meeting will be fantastic! Division 1 is partnering up with Division 8 for our lunch meeting and social event. We are doing a sit down dinner on Thursday after the welcome reception (thanks Janie Winning for planning this).

Ashley Sherwood is leading the practicum on Cross-Examination and Closing Arguments. My law partner, Chris Whitney, is presenting at the practicum. We also have a former judge with a lot of construction experience on the panel.

***Don’t forget to make sure that your passport is valid. Also, please note that there are differences between Canadian and U.S. laws that may require your attention before you arrive at the border. More information can be found at the Canadian government’s website https://lnkd.in/gmSGTNmt . If resolving issues may be necessary for you, addressing them may take a little extra time, so if you have any questions, please review this Canadian information as soon as possible.***

After the Annual Meeting, the next meeting will be in Washington, DC on government construction on September 27-29, 2023. Division 1 Steering Committee Member, Catherine Delorey, is one of the co-chairs for that program.

On a personal note, I have heard that some people have asked for an update about my family's pets as I previously wrote about our pandemic pet snakes and cats. Pumpkin is now all grown up and he has a baby kitten sister that has joined us - Daisey. That brings us up to 4 cats, 2 snakes, a gecko, and some fish! Daisey is fitting in nicely. With all of the free ranging cats in Puerto Rico, I was concerned that we would end up taking few home :) Here are some photos of our trip to Puerto Rico, including from pigeon park, and Daisey/Pumpkin: