What's New?

Although fully retired from legal practice as of May of 2018, I continue to be actively involved in mediation, facilitation and conflict management activities. I became a certified mentor-mediator in Virginia, assisted with a presentation to the Young Lawyers Conference of the VSB about becoming a mediator, assisted with the mediation training in November for Virginia’s pilot appellate mediation project, and organized and moderated the VBA Special Issues Committee program, Reuniting America, Can We Be Part of The Answer? The program took place at the end of January, 2019. Feedback indicates it was a big success. The program was not a political discussion but a discussion about communication practices, civility and techniques to raise the level of interaction and dialogue within groups, communities and the country so we do better together.

That program featured an extraordinary panel of educator, legal educator, military educator and practicing attorney all of whom brought different perspectives, experiences and wisdom to the discussion of how we can do better and inculcate knowledge and desire to do better. As soon as the video of the program is posted, I will relay news about that here.

A large question is how the VBA and volunteers working with us can carry the ideas forward in concrete initiatives. Stay tuned!

Jeanne Franklin