The College of Commercial Arbitrators Summit II co-organized with the Center on International Commercial Arbitration
American University Washington College of Law, Grossman Hall
June 5, 2025

 

PROGRAM OUTLINE
The College of Commercial Arbitrators (CCA) Summit II marks the 100th Anniversary of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) and the 15th Anniversary of the CCA’s first Summit, which resulted in the CCA’s issuance of its Protocols for Expeditious, Cost-Effective Commercial Arbitration. The FAA was groundbreaking legislation. The CCA’s Protocols advanced the debate for additional rulemaking by arbitral institutions and captured what were, at the time, the best practices for arbitrators and disputants.
But both the FAA and the CCA Protocols merit thoughtful review. The Summit II panels will do just that. They will reprise the work of Protocol Review Groups, consider the impact of generative artificial intelligence tools on arbitral practice, evaluate the Roberts’ Court’s treatment of the FAA, explore unanswered questions under the FAA, and conclude with an interactive session that will take a critical look at the Protocols, and how they can improve arbitration for the next 100 years.

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CONFERENCE PROGRAM

REGISTRATION AND WELCOME (8:00-8:30)

FIRST PANEL: Updating Arbitration Procedures for the 21st Century: The Protocols Revisited and the Opportunities and Risks Posed by Generative Artificial Intelligence (8:30 – 9:45 am)

Moderator
Dana Welch, Principal, Welch ADR and President of the College of Commercial Arbitrators (2024-2025), California
Speakers
Serena K. Lee, President and CEO, CPR Institute and CPR Dispute Resolution Services, New York
Bridget McCormack, President and Chief Executive Officer, American Arbitration Association, New York
Sheila Oretsky, Greenberg Traurig, Miami
Kimberly Taylor, President and CEO, JAMS Arbitration, Mediation and ADR Services, New York
Albert Ravell, Managing Counsel, Commercial & Environmental Litigation, ConocoPhillips, HoustonStephen G. Yusem, Arbitrator, Blue Bell, Pennsylvania

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Networking Break (9:45 – 10:10 am)

SECOND PANEL: From Policy to Literally: The Supreme Court and the FAA (10:10 – 11:30 am)

Moderator
John M. Barkett, Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP, Miami
Speakers
Maureen Harms, Associate General Counsel and Managing Counsel, 3M Corp., Minneapolis
The Honorable Lorna Schofield, Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
Steve Skulnik, Thomson Reuters, New York
Imre Szalai, Loyola University of New Orleans Law School

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Networking Break, including lunch (11:30 – 12:00 pm)

Luncheon Program

THIRD PANEL: Chapter 2 of the FAA (12:00 – 1:15 pm)
Moderator
Horacio A. Grigera Naón, Professor of Law and Director, Center on International Commercial Arbitration, AUWCL, Washington D.C. 
Speakers
Björn Arp, Professor and Assistant Director, Center on International Commercial Arbitration, AUWCL, Washington D.C.
George Bermann, Walter Gellhorn Professor of Law and Jean Monnet Professor of European Union Law, Columbia Law School, New York
Carolyn Lamm, Partner, White & Case and Distinguished Faculty Chair, University of Miami School of Law, Miami

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Networking Break (1:15 – 1:30 pm)

FOURTH PANEL: The Future of the FAA (1:30 – 3:00 pm)
Moderator
Richard H. Silberberg, Silberberg Dispute Resolution LLC, New York
Speakers
David Brodsky, Principal, Brodksy ADR LLC, Wainscott, New York
Tracey B. Frisch, Associate General Counsel, American Arbitration Association, New York
Richard Frankel, Professor of Law and Director of the Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution Program, Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Drexel University, Pennsylvania
John Burritt McArthur, Law Office of John Burritt McArthur, Berkeley, California
Honorable Lee Rosenthal, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Texas 
Harout Samra, DLA Piper, Miami
Amy Schmitz, John Deaver Drinko-Baker & Hostetler Endowed Chair in Law, Moritz College of Law, The Ohio State University, Ohio
Stephen Ware, Frank Edwards Tyler Distinguished Professor of Law, Kansas University School of Law, Kansas

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Networking Break (3:00 – 3:20 pm)

FIFTH PANEL: What We Have Learned Today: The Future of the FAA and the CCA Protocols (3:20 – 5:00 pm)
Moderator
Thomas Stipanowich, Professor of Law and William H. Webster Chair in Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University, California; Arbitrator and Mediator (JAMS)
Speakers
John K. Boyce III, Boyce ADR, San Antonio
Thomas Hanrahan, T.P. Hanrahan Dispute Solutions, California
The Honorable Faith Hochberg, Principal, HochbergADR LLC, New Jersey
John Holsinger, John R. Holsinger, LLC, New Jersey
Barbara Reeves, Arbitrator, JAMS, and Immediate Past President of the College of Commercial Arbitrators, California

Registration

Registration cost is $450, which includes the conference materials, coffee breaks and lunch, as well as the reception in the evening. To register, please
Click Here

Accommodations

List of nearby hotels for those who will be staying in a hotel during the June 5th Summit in DC.

Glover Park Hotel
2505 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20007
Phone:(202) 337-9700

Omni Shoreham Hotel
2500 Calvert Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
Phone: (202) 234-070

Courtyard Bethesda Chevy Chase
5520 Wisconsin Ave, Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Phone : (301) 656-1500

Embassy Row
2015 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036
Phone : (202) 265-1600

Days Inn
4400 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008
Phone : (202) 244-5600

Venue

The conference will take place at the Center on International Commercial Arbitration at:
American University Washington College of Law, located in Tenleytown,
4300 Nebraska Ave, NW
Washington, D.C. 20016