Training & Continuing Education
Upcoming Lunch & Learn
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 | 12:00-1:00pm CST
BUILDING TRUST IN THE MEDIATION ROOM
To be an effective mediator, the parties must trust you to be fair, impartial, and honest – however, you only have a small window of time to create a working relationship with them. Join us for our December Lunch and Learn with MILES Mediation and Arbitration mediator, Barry Howard. A former attorney who has mediated more than 2,200 cases ranging from personal injury and employment disputes to complex commercial and professional liability matters, Barry brings deep experience navigating high-stakes situations where trust is essential to resolution.
In this session, Barry will show you how to create trust between you and the parties at mediation, including information to discuss and disclose at the beginning of the mediation process, techniques for establishing rapport and building trust with the participants, and how to avoid damaging trust throughout the mediation process.
This course provides one hour of general education CLE credits and (pending) one hour of general mediation issues
or general continuing education
CME credit.
About Barry Howard
Barry Howard is a former attorney who has been mediating cases since 2007; he has been a full-time mediator and arbitrator for the last four years. Barry has mediated personal injury, professional liability, medical malpractice, civil rights, employment disputes, construction defects and injury, wrongful death, and commercial disputes. His commercial dispute cases include multi-million-dollar equipment lease cases, breach of contract, transportation contracts, financial institution consumer transaction disputes, and mortgage/wrongful foreclosure cases.
Barry also mediates professional liability cases, including attorney malpractice, real estate agent errors and omissions (“E&O”), insurance agent E&O, and accountant professional liability. He has mediated more than 2,200 cases in person and more than 200 virtual mediations using Zoom. Learn more about him
here.
Mediation Training
Mediation training is a seminar focused on the theory and practice of conflict resolution skills necessary for an individual to apply to become listed as a TN Rule 31 mediator. Trainings are either a 40 hour general civil mediation course or 46 hour family mediation course. The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) ensures that mediation trainings comply with Rule 31 requirements, approves listing applications, and oversees court-related mediation under Rule 31. NCRC requires that volunteers be Rule 31 trained.
AOC guidelines and resources for Rule 31 Training
Complete text of Rule 31
