Dispute Resolution Section & Labor and Employment Law Section Spring 2026 Meeting

New York State Bar Association

Dispute Resolution Section Labor & Employment Law Section

Dispute Resolution Section and Labor & Employment Law Section Joint Spring Meeting 2026

Friday, April 24, 2026

10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. MCLE Program 4:40 – 6:30 p.m. Reception

Location: New York State Bar Association 1 Elk Street

Albany, New York 12207

5.5 MCLE Credits

(4.5 Credits in Areas of Professional Practice: 1.0 Credit in Ethics)

This program is transitional and is suitable for all attorneys including those newly admitted.

Agenda

10:30 a.m. – 10:35 a.m.              Welcome and Introduction in the Great Hall

William H. Crosby Jr., Esq.

Chair for Dispute Resolution Section

The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. New York, NY

Abigail R. Levy, Esq.

Chair for Labor & Employment Section NYC Office Of Collective Bargaining

New York, NY

10:35 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.              Dispute Resolution in the Age of Remote Work:

Resolving Disputes Across Screens and Borders

Virtual Workplaces, Virtual Disputes - How DR Adapts to the Changing World of Work. The rapid expansion of hybrid and remote workforces has created new categories of workplace disputes and reshaped how those disputes arise, escalate, and are resolved. This session examines both the substantive employment law issues and the practical dispute resolution challenges presented by digital and virtual workplaces, including the evolving legal obligations of employers, shifting employee expectations, changes in organizational culture, and the impact of technology on conflict and its resolution.

Moderator:

Shakiya Wright-McDuffie

JAMS

New York, New York

Speakers:

Amy Melican, Esq.

Tapestry

New York, New York

Orin Kurtz, Esq.

Law Office of Orin Kurtz P.C.

New York, New York and Jefferson, New York

Krista Gottlieb, Esq.

ADR Center & Law Office

Buffalo, New York

Timothy S. Taylor, Esq.

Arbitrator & Mediator

Pittsfield, Massachusetts

1.5 Credits in Areas of Professional Practice

11:50 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.              Break

12:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.                Changes at the NLRB and Expanding the Use of

Mediation in the Collective Bargaining Process

A discussion of recent changes at the federal National Labor Relations Board and how it impacts your practice. Panel will review significant NLRB key decisions that were issued under the Biden Board and pending Circuit Court of Appeals litigation seeking to overrule some of these decisions including the Thryv decision expanding backpay remedies and the Cemex decision changing the rules for union organizing. The panel will discuss possible changes under the current Trump Board with the newly installed Board Members and General Counsel. Also, the Panel will discuss the benefits of incorporating mediation clauses along with the traditional grievance arbitration provisions included in collective bargaining agreements that can result in improving labor relations and provide more expeditious resolutions.

Moderator:

Karen P. Fernbach, Esq.

Fernbach Resolutions LLC

Great Neck, New York

Speakers:

Barry Peek, Esq.

Scheinman Arbitration and Mediation Services

New York, New York

Kimberly Lehmann, Esq.

Levy Ratner New York, NY

Peter Jones, Esq.

Bond Schoeneck & King

Syracuse, New York

1.5 Credits in Areas of Professional Practice

1:15 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.                  Lunch With Keynote Speaker

Speaker:

Hon. Rowan D. Wilson

Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals

Albany, New York

2:15 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.                  Managing Mass Employment Arbitration:

Perspectives from Arbitrators, Administrators, And Advocates

This panel will explore the legal phenomenon of mass arbitration -- high volume individual case filings used by parties to bypass class action waiver clauses. The panel will address the administration of large-scale employment mass arbitration filings, including institutional rules, fee structure and costs, process and merits arbitrators’ functions, bellwether and batching cases, mediation dual tracking and the future of mass arbitration.

Speakers:

Ann Lesser, Esq.

American Arbitration Association

New York, New York

Matt Levington

JAMS

New York, New York

Jennifer Lupo, Esq.

Lupo Dispute Resolution Services PLLC

New York, New York

Loretta Gastwirth, Esq.

Independent Arbitrator and Mediator

Great Neck, New York

Shannon Liss-Riordan, Esq.

Lichten & Liss-Riordan, P.C.

Boston, Massachusetts

Cliff Bloomfield, Esq.

JAMS

Washington, D.C.

1.5 Credits in Arears of Professional Practice

3:30 p.m. – 3:40 p.m.                  Break

3:40 p.m. – 4:35 p.m.                  Self-Represented Parties: Fairness, Neutrality,

and Advocacy in Employment Mediation and Arbitration

When self-represented (pro se) parties appear in employment and labor disputes — from mediation sessions to mandatory arbitration hearings — both neutrals and advocates face significant ethical and practical challenges. Mediators and arbitrators must maintain neutrality and impartiality while ensuring fairness, informed consent, and access to justice for unrepresented individuals. Attorneys may face questions about professional conduct and the boundaries of advocacy in an imbalanced proceeding. This session explores how ethical standards and professional responsibilities intersect — and sometimes collide — when one side lacks legal representation in employment and labor ADR processes.

Moderator:

David C. Singer, Esq.

Singer ADR Neutral Services

New York, New York

Speakers:

Alfred Feliu, Esq.

Feliu Neutral Services LLC

New Rochelle, New York

Carol Heckman, Esq.

Lippes Mathias, LLP

Buffalo, New York

Louis DiLorenzo, Esq.

Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC

Westchester, New York

1.0 Credit in Ethics

4:35 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.                  Q&A

4:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.                  Reception at the Bar Center