Legal education often centers on the trial and appellate process. However, only a small fraction of cases ever go to trial in the United States. For example, the Arizona Supreme Court reports that in 2017, of nearly 2 million civil and criminal cases filed in Arizona courts, 99.2 percent were resolved prior to trial. The Lodestar Center provides opportunities to develop expertise in the processes through which most legal matters are resolved: negotiation, mediation, and arbitration.
The Lodestar Dispute Resolution Center expands ASU Law’s efforts to understand the nature of conflict and its impact on the effectiveness of dispute resolution. Through research, teaching, and service, students, lawyers, and non-legal professionals learn the problem-solving methods and skills that lawyers and other conflict resolution professionals employ regularly to prevent and resolve disputes.
Our judicial system is not a system of trials but a system of alternative means of resolution.
The Lodestar Center is a nationally recognized center of excellence in the field of dispute resolution. Its efforts in teaching, scholarship, and service have been recognized by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (with the inaugural Ninth Circuit ADR Education Award in 2005 and again in 2019) and the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (with three CPR Awards – two for Outstanding Professional Article, one to Research Director Dr. Roselle Wissler and another to Faculty Director Professor Art Hinshaw, and one for Professional Achievement, Foreclosure Mediation Unit). The Lodestar Center is consistently ranked highly nationally among law school dispute resolution programs by U.S. News & World Report “Best Graduate School” rankings and is currently ranked 13th in the nation.
Sample Coursework
- Arbitration
- Contract Drafting and Negotiating
- Dispute Resolution in Employment
- Dispute Resolution Survey
- International Dispute Resolution
- Lodestar Mediation Clinic
- Mediation Advocacy
- Negotiation
- Negotiation in Sports Law
Student Opportunities
The Lodestar Center’s primary focus is to educate as many students as possible in dispute resolution theory, skills, and practice. Besides the courses listed below, students have access to externships at the Maricopa County Superior Court’s ADR Office, the Phoenix City Prosecutor’s Restorative Justice Project, and the Aurit Mediation Center. Students are also encouraged to take advantage of these additional programs and opportunities:
Lodestar Mediation Clinic
The Lodestar Mediation Clinic teaches students about alternatives to litigation while providing hands-on experience with the mediation process. Students begin the class with an intensive training program focusing on the theory, strategy, and skills involved in the mediation of legal disputes to provide the grounding to act as mediators for Justice Court litigants in an attempt to resolve civil cases before trial. Additionally, students co-mediate with professional mediators at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and shadow judges in judicial settlement conferences.
International Conflict Resolution Study Abroad
This program gives Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law students the opportunity to study firsthand conflict resolution theory and practice as applied to cross-border and international disputes. Students will visit historic and contested sites with cultural, political, and religious significance, meet high-level officials involved in conflict resolution efforts, and speak with individuals directly impacted by international conflict. This annual program will rotate among several international locations.
Upcoming Study Abroad:
Fall 2021 - Israel / Palestine
Trip: December 12-21, 2021
Moot Court Competition Teams
Students can receive invaluable training by participating on teams for two high-profile competitions – the ABA Representation in Mediation Competition and the William C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot (Vis Moot). Students in the Representation in Mediation Competition work through the mediation process to further their client’s interests. Our Vis Moot teams represent business organizations through the international commercial arbitration process engaging in both written and oral advocacy have regularly competed in San Diego, Vienna, and Hong Kong and are routinely recognized for their brief writing and advocacy skills. Be on the lookout for information announcing these competitions.
Dispute Resolution Student Association (DRSA)
Students interested in informal or alternative dispute resolution are encouraged to join the DRSA. Get access to distinguished dispute resolution professionals through regular speaking and networking events, and get to know your peers who share an interest in negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and other informal resolution methods.
Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Scholarship
This annual scholarship recognizes demonstrated excellence in and engagement with international dispute resolution and ASU Law's Alternative Dispute Resolution program. A generous endowment from Les and Linda Schiefelbein makes this scholarship possible. Les Schiefelbein is an ASU Law alum ('72) and internationally recognized arbitrator with over 40 years of experience in complex commercial and government disputes. Click here to apply
MLS Conflict Resolution
Conflict is everywhere. The best leaders know how to manage and resolve conflicts before they become major distractions or create negative consequences. Having the right perspective, along with effective problem-solving skills, will make you an indispensable leader with your company and community.
The Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University's Master of Legal Studies with an emphasis in Conflict Resolution is designed to provide professionals the skills and knowledge to effectively navigate conflict in various circumstances and environments.
Taught by experienced faculty and professionals, this program will provide you with a background in legal principles and analysis to lay the foundation for practical problem-solving strategies and conflict resolution techniques.
Visit the Conflict Resolution emphasis pageUpcoming Events
40-hour Family Mediation Training
June 2-4, 2021
June 16-18, 2021
Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference
January 14, 2022
Bruce E. Meyerson Lecture
TBD
Signature Events
The Lodestar Dispute Resolution Center engages the community through high quality events and training programs for lawyers and other professionals who work with conflict. These events and programs provide world-class educational experiences and many qualify for continuing education credit.
Bruce E. Meyerson Lecture
The Bruce E. Meyerson Lecture brings renowned personalities and dispute resolution professionals to ASU Law to address students, attorneys, and the public. Past lecturers include Kenneth Feinberg (oversaw the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, Boston Marathon bombing victims fund, and BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill claims settlement fund, among others), who spoke about unconventional responses to unique catastrophes, and David Boies (litigated such high-profile cases as Bush v. Gore, California’s Prop. 8 ban on same-sex marriage, and U.S. v. Microsoft), who explained the ways mediation and dispute resolution have changed litigation practice. These insightful lectures are open to the public and made available online.
Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference
The Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference brings together arbitrators, mediators, academic and other professionals from across the world to discuss international disputes in global commerce, sports, technological innovation, and more. Recent topics included China’s One Belt, One Road initiative, arbitrating climate-change related disputes, and technology in arbitration. Read more about our friend, partner, and international arbitrator Les Schiefelbein in the Kluwer Arbitration Blog.
Expertise
Faculty Director;
John J. Bouma Fellow in Alternative Dispute Resolution
Clinical Professor of Law
Research Director
Director
Program Coordinator
Professor of Law and Deputy Director of the Academy for Justice
Professor of Law
Clinical Professor of Law
Clinical Professor of Law
Richard Morrison Professor of Water Law
Professor of Law
President’s Professor;
Conflict Transformation Project;
Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, Arizona State University
Professional Mediator, The Aurit Center for Divorce Mediation
Legal Alignment
Mediation Offices of Susan R. Bulfinch
Professor, Phoenix College
Executive Director, Insight Mediation
Senior Mediator, Maricopa County Community College District
Restorative Mediation and Law Services PLLC
Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska (Lincoln)