Events

UPCOMING EVENTS

TUESDAY, 11th OCTOBER 2011
VADR/DSCV Presentation Event
Demystifying High Conflict:  A Series of Practical Strategies

VADR, together with the Geelong Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria are presenting in Geelong a repeat of the August 27 talk which took place in Melbourne. Dr Sandra Fenton, high conflict specialist, and Luise Raedar from the State Services Authority  will explore a series of practical strategies for dealing with high conflict people in ADR.

Free copies of their book: Dealing with High Conflict Behaviours, will be available at the venue if back from the printers as scheduled (if not, your name and address can be taken and the book sent to you).

Where: The Phoenix Hotel, 55 Moorabool Street, Geelong.
When:  5.45 for a 6.15 pm start
Cost:   Free to current VADR members, $20 for non members. A generous amount of finger food will be provided.

If you'd like to attend, please email admin@vadr.asn.au or deborahmacfarlane@gmail.com. 

TUESDAY, 25th OCTOBER 2011
VADR CPD Event
Setting up your own Mediation Practice: Pitfalls, Problems and Positives

You are invited to a VADR CPD presentation on Tuesday, 25 October 2011 to hear Spencer Flint from Dispute Mediation Services Australia speak about setting up a private mediation practice.   An FDRP, Spencer established his own practice together with another FDRP shortly after qualifying in 2005 and it is now a flourishing concern.   Spencer will describe what business principles relate specifically to a private practice in mediation, discuss pitfalls he and his colleague experienced and how they overcame these as well as providing some examples of where they have been successful. Spencer came to mediation late in life, having run a successful olive farm with a large restaurant and entertainment centre, lectured extensively on dispute resolution and several other subjects, and worked as a pilot for thirty years. He is also a marriage celebrant.
 
Where: Coopers Inn (2nd floor), cnr Exhibition and Little Lonsdale Streets,
When:  5.15 for a 6 pm start
Cost:   Free to current VADR members, $20 for non members. Finger food is provided.

If you'd like to attend, please email admin@vadr.asn.au or deborahmacfarlane@gmail.com. 

PAST EVENTS

THURSDAY 25 August 2011 at 6.00
DEMYSTIFYING HIGH CONFLICT

Click here to download a flyer about this event

PROMOTING VCAT AS AN ADR CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE
JUSTICE IAIN ROSS
President of VCAT
Tuesday, 12th July 2011

Click here to download a flyer about this event

MANAGING RISK WITHIN AN INTEGRATED COMPLAINTS HANDLING SYSTEM:  A NEW MODEL
LYNNE WITYNSKI
State Services Authority
Tuesday, 10th May 2011

Click here to download a flyer about this event

STRATEGIES FOR POWER IMBALANCES CASE STUDY: FINANCIAL OMBUDSMAN SERVICE
AMIE COUSINS
Manager Conciliation Team Financial Ombudsman Service
Tuesday, 22nd March 2011

Click here to download a flyer about this event

CONCILIATION V MEDIATION PRACTICE IN WORKPLACE DISPUTES
ANNA LEE CRIBB
Commissioner for Fair Work Australia
17th February 2011

Click here to download a flyer about this event

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
23rd November 2010

At the AGM on 23 November 2010, Pat Marshall spoke on the topic: The highly intelligent mediator: when mind and method meet.

The Australian Standards are clear about a desired outcome of mediation, namely that the dispute should be settled by the parties exercising optimal self determination. The knowledge and skills necessary to achieve this outcome are outlined throughout the document. What is not spelled out is the sort of intelligence required to respond to the situation, or context, which is involved in the very exercise of self determination. The concept of 'intelligence' has been developed beyond an emphasis on performance in the academic realm, or cognitive intelligence, to include aspects such as: social and emotional competence; political 'nous'; and strategic insight. Pat examined these intelligences and competencies and analysed how they correlate with the knowledge and skills set out in the Standards, and how they might enhance the capability of parties to achieve the outcomes they seek, in a way which respects self determination. A differentiation was made between ‘entry’ level competencies for the mediator role, and those competencies which define good practice.

VADR - SATURDAY WORKSHOPS
Power Imbalances through Family Violence in Family Dispute Resolution
31st July 2010
Allie Bailey and Margot Scott

Mediation practitioners travelled from afar, including from Wagga in NSW and Gippsland, to participate in this workshop. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn from practitioner experts and to develop an understanding of how to design and implement safe processes. The workshop format enabled an in-depth study of the complex issues raised in a Family Mediation when there is family violence present. The presenters’ knowledge gained through years of practice was supported by theory and research, as well as practical tools such Screening Checklists and examples of questions that would delve into areas such as Exploring the Power Imbalance.

In response to the interest generated by last year’s event, Power Imbalances in Mediation, Allie Bailey from Victorian Legal Aid, Roundtable Dispute Management, was invited to present a five hour workshop. Allie and her co-presenter, Margot Scott from the Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria, led the group in exercises to understand and identify the impact of violence in families and how the resulting power imbalances can play out in a mediation setting. Using a case study approach, participants were given opportunities to develop their skills and to test their understanding of issues. The workshop covered the topics of Screening, Risk Assessment, Protective Factors, Typologies of Violence, Safe Processes, and Safety Focussed Parenting Plans. Although specifically targeted to power imbalances in families, these strategies and approaches are able to be adapted for other mediations characterised by significant power imbalances.

VADR would like to thank the presenters, and all the participants, for an excellent day.  Accredited mediators gained 5 CPD points. 

CPD EVENT
THURSDAY, 22nd July  2010

On 22 July, Tony Nolan SC, past Chair and currently Deputy Chair of the Victorian Bar’s Dispute Resolution Committee, spoke to a packed room on the inconsistencies in the way confidentiality in mediation is currently treated under State and Federal legislation. 

Tony’s presentation was both informative and entertaining, and he presented the current situation so lucidly that even non-lawyers had no trouble understanding this rather complex area. Click here to download Tony Nolan's Powerpoint presentation (Powerpoint file).

CPD EVENT
THURSDAY, 10th JUNE 2010

On 10 June, Professor John Zeleznikow spoke about decision support for mediators and parties involved mainly in family dispute resolution, although the theoretical discussions of the principles behind decision support apply across the board to all forms of mediation.

Decision support, for those who could not attend, covers a range of processes used to assist people come to the decisions they may make in mediation, either through the simple provision of information, compensation/trade-off strategies where parties or the mediator can enter different variables (such as percentage of time spent with children, income etc.) to test the various scenarios they are considering and online family dispute resolution for the development of which John and his business partners Relationships Australia Queensland have received a large ARC grant. 

VADR members can contact Events Coordinator Deborah Macfarlane at deborahmacfarlane@gmail.com if they would like to obtain a Powerpoint of John’s talk.

CPD EVENT
  TUESDAY 24 NOVEMBER 2009
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: WHEN TO MEDIATE?  

By popular request FDR practitioner Ian Goodhardt returned to VADR to discuss the issue of domestic violence and family dispute resolution, together with Allie Ballie,  formerly of the Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria, and also an FDR practitioner who has worked with various FDR services and provided consultation on the development of the national FDR screening guidelines relating to family violence.  Both members of the panel are seasoned presenters and welcomed frequent interaction with the members of the very appreciative audience.

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