Francis Ford Mediation
35 Harvard Street
Worcester, MA 01609
Office: 508-791-7776
Mobile: 508-769-9922
fran@FordMediation.com
 
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Category: About Mediation

The Economic and Professional Imperative: Why Compensation is the Bedrock of a Sustainable Mediation Profession author.

The Economic and Professional Imperative: Why Compensation is the Bedrock of a Sustainable Mediation Profession

Abstract The mediation profession stands at a precarious crossroads, oscillating between its historical roots in community volunteerism and its modern...

By N. Edward (Ed) Timken
How Do We Encourage AI for Ethical Dispute Engagement? author.

How Do We Encourage AI for Ethical Dispute Engagement?

Recently my colleagues Leah Wing, Chris Draper, and Scott Cooper, and I began discussing the possibility of governing the development...

By Daniel Rainey
Optimizing Mediation – Table of Contents author.

Optimizing Mediation – Table of Contents

Copyright 2025 - All rights reserved - ODR.com, Inc. INTRODUCTION About this “Book" About the Author Acknowledgements The Most Informative...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: About this “Book” author.

Optimizing Mediation: About this “Book”

Table of Contents Next INTRODUCTION: ABOUT THIS BOOK So, what exactly counts as “a book” these days? In the pre-digital...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Online Mediation:  Balancing Automation, AI & the Human Touch author.

Optimizing Online Mediation: Balancing Automation, AI & the Human Touch

Summary: This video captures a roundtable discussion featuring Jim Melamed, a pioneer in online dispute resolution (ODR). The discussion centers...

By Jim Melamed
ABA Ethics Opinion 518 – Dawn of a Golden Age for Mediation? author.

ABA Ethics Opinion 518 – Dawn of a Golden Age for Mediation?

Republished with permission by: Will Work For Food Our special guests this week, Prof Ellen Waldman Dispute Prevention Specialist for Institute...

By Jeff Kichaven, Ellen Waldman, Natalie J. Armstrong-Motin, David Shraga, Jean Lawler
ICODR Podcast 41 with John Helie, Co-Founder of Mediate.com and Founder of ConflictNet author.

ICODR Podcast 41 with John Helie, Co-Founder of Mediate.com and Founder of ConflictNet

In this episode, Ian interviews ODR pioneer John Helie. John founded ConflictNet in 1988 as a communication forum and information...

By John Helie, Ian MacDuff
Optimizing Mediation: The Most Informative Mediation Website? author.

Optimizing Mediation: The Most Informative Mediation Website?

Table of Contents Next What is the most informative mediation website? Ask Google AI: “What is the most informative mediation...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: The Mediate.com Team author.

Optimizing Mediation: The Mediate.com Team

Table of Contents Next SECTION 1:THE MEDIATE.COM JOURNEY The Mediate.com Team Mediate.com is now entering our 30th year of operation....

By Jim Melamed
From Pain to Purpose: Why Child-Centered Reform Can’t Wait author.

From Pain to Purpose: Why Child-Centered Reform Can’t Wait

The moment I truly understood conflict wasn’t in a training room, it was in my own home. Years of studying...

By Katy Harris
Rediscovering Light: What Helen Keller Teaches Us About Seeing Through Conflict author.

Rediscovering Light: What Helen Keller Teaches Us About Seeing Through Conflict

Applying the SPIRE model of wholebeing to healing and mediation When a marriage ends, it can feel as though the...

By Yanine Simpser
Optimizing Mediation: Mediation Advocacy Over Three Decades author.

Optimizing Mediation: Mediation Advocacy Over Three Decades

Table of Contents Next Mediation Advocacy Over Three Decades 200+ Conference Appearances Clare Fowler at NW Dispute Resolution Conference Announcing...

By Jim Melamed
ICODR Podcast 40: Jim Melamed, Co-Founder & Former CEO of Mediate.com author.

ICODR Podcast 40: Jim Melamed, Co-Founder & Former CEO of Mediate.com

In this ICODR Podcast, Ian MacDuff interviews Jim Melamed, co-founder, in 1996, and former CEO of Mediate.com until 2020, at which point...

By Jim Melamed, Ian MacDuff
Mediate.com Great Reads Book Club Upcoming Gatherings & List of Videos author.

Mediate.com Great Reads Book Club Upcoming Gatherings & List of Videos

Welcome to Mediate.com‘s ‘Great Reads’ book club with authors of recently published books in both the popular and academic presses. Our goal...

By Colin Rule, Clare Fowler, Jim Melamed
Mediate.com “All-Star Authors” author.

Mediate.com “All-Star Authors”

Over 30 years, Mediate.com has now published over 15,000 articles, videos and podcasts from over 2,800 authors!  This listing and...

By Clare Fowler, Colin Rule, Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Website History author.

Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Website History

Table of Contents Next Mediate.com Website History One way to appreciate the development of mediation on the Internet over the...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: Providing Digital Answers for Mediators author.

Optimizing Mediation: Providing Digital Answers for Mediators

Table of Contents Next Providing Digital Answers for Mediators Our Mediate.com Dynamic Website Package, developed by "Queen Carol," was one...

By Jim Melamed
The Case for Restorative Justice in Michigan’s Juvenile Justice System – Risks and Benefits author.

The Case for Restorative Justice in Michigan’s Juvenile Justice System – Risks and Benefits

Michigan is undergoing fundamental changes in its juvenile justice system. Driven by the 2024 legislative reforms and the dedicated efforts...

By Phillip Schaedler
Optimizing Mediation: Assisting Mediation Associations author.

Optimizing Mediation: Assisting Mediation Associations

Table of Contents Next Assisting Mediation Associations Utilizing Mediate’s user friendly Dynamic Website System, where we trained our clients to...

By Jim Melamed
Re-imagining Dialogue: Reflections & Insights on Convening, Circulation and Movement to Build Trust and Stitch Together Disparate Groups author.

Re-imagining Dialogue: Reflections & Insights on Convening, Circulation and Movement to Build Trust and Stitch Together Disparate Groups

John Paul Lederach discusses his reflections of decades of countless past dialogue experiences where what happened before, between and after...

By John Paul Lederach
The Oprah Effect: Insights from Behind the Scenes on The Practice Playbook Podcast author.

The Oprah Effect: Insights from Behind the Scenes on The Practice Playbook Podcast

In this special solo episode, Susan shares behind-the-scenes lessons from her appearance on The Oprah Podcast. Discover how years of preparation...

By Susan Guthrie
Providing Self-Represented Parties with an Outline for Pre-Mediation Statements author.

Providing Self-Represented Parties with an Outline for Pre-Mediation Statements

From Mediation Magazine In anticipation of the surge in consumer mediations involving self-represented parties (“SRPs”) there are procedures that can...

By Lori Sanford
Optimizing Mediation: “All-Star Authors” at Mediate.com author.

Optimizing Mediation: “All-Star Authors” at Mediate.com

Table of Contents Next All-Star Authors at Mediate.com Over 30 years, Mediate.com has published over 15,000 articles, videos and audio...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Website Resources author.

Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Website Resources

Table of Contents Next Mediate.com Website Resources All Topics at Mediate.com ALL TOPICS www.Mediate.com/All-Topics Most Popular Topics About Mediation Mediation...

By Jim Melamed
Optimizing Mediation: AAA Purchases Mediate.com & ODR.com author.

Optimizing Mediation: AAA Purchases Mediate.com & ODR.com

Table of Contents Next AAA Purchases Mediate.com & ODR.com Notable also is that the purchase of Mediate.com and ODR.com by...

By Jim Melamed
AI, Law, and the Boundaries of Personhood author.

AI, Law, and the Boundaries of Personhood

It sounds absurd at first (or I just woke up in 2035)—an Ohio lawmaker proposing a bill that bans people...

By Robert Bergman
Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Early Leadership author.

Optimizing Mediation: Mediate.com Early Leadership

Table of Contents Next SECTION 2:MEDIATE.COM LEADERSHIP Mediate.com Early Leadership Here are a number of projects that Mediate.com has led...

By Jim Melamed
Mediate.com Testimonials author.

Mediate.com Testimonials

As Mediate.com celebrates the publication of our 1,100th Edition of "This Week in Mediation," we are pleased to direct your...

By Jim Melamed
The 8 AI Ethics Trends Creating Unprecedented Practice-Building Opportunities in 2026 author.

The 8 AI Ethics Trends Creating Unprecedented Practice-Building Opportunities in 2026

More from Susan's Practice Playbook Series Copyright battles. Deepfake litigation. AI agent liability. These aren't emerging practice areas anymore. They're...

By Susan Guthrie
Paths Forward for Online Mediation – Index of Resources author.

Paths Forward for Online Mediation – Index of Resources

This index of resources is intended to assist readers to conveniently identify and access specific portions of the Mediate.com Online...

By Clare Fowler, Colin Rule, Jim Melamed, Forrest (Woody) Mosten

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