The AALS Committee on Sections has selected the AALS Section on Alternative Dispute Resolution as 2023 Section of the Year.
First established in 2018, the AALS Section of the Year Award recognizes excellence in member support and other activities that promote the association’s core values. Such activities include: community/pro bono service; expanding membership and member engagement; supporting faculty scholarship; providing mentorship and teaching support; and developing impactful programming.
The AALS Section on Alternative Dispute Resolution was selected for their commitment to excellence in teaching, preparing members on the NextGen Bar Exam, developing engaging programing, collaborating with Mitchell Hamline School of Law to digitize dispute resolution teaching resources, and increasing outreach to law faculty.
“I am thrilled to see our Section recognized with this AALS honor. The members of the Executive Committee worked tirelessly this year to create a mentorship program for junior scholars and put infrastructure in place to help law faculty prepare students for the NextGen Bar exam,” said Section Chair Donna Shestowsky (University of California, Davis School of Law). “Given that the bar exam will now test dispute resolution concepts, teaching materials that ADR faculty already develop and share in a spirit of collaboration will help a much broader set of faculty members as they update their courses to reflect this major change.”
The AALS Section on Alternative Dispute Resolution provides opportunities for early career scholars to present their work to receive feedback and recognition for their scholarship through the New Voices mentorship program and an annual works-in-progress conference. The section also presents two annual section awards: the New Voices in Dispute Resolution Award and Best Scholarly Article.
The Section of the Year Award was presented to the Section on Alternative Dispute Resolution twice at the Annual Meeting: first at the AALS Awards Ceremony by Kerry Abrams (Duke University Law School and Chair, AALS Committee on Sections) to Chair Shestowsky (pictured above), and again at the Section Leadership Information Session to founding member Ronald G. Aronovsky (Southwestern Law School, pictured below).
