CPR Institute’s 43rd Annual Awards
CPR Institute’s 43rd Annual Awards for Contributions to the Alternative Dispute Resolution Field Celebrated
New York, NY – The International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR Institute), a global nonprofit think tank focused on alternative dispute resolution (ADR), honored outstanding scholarship and practical achievement in the field during the 43rd Annual Awards Ceremony on Feb. 12 at the CPR Institute’s 2026 Annual Meeting in San Diego.
“The Annual Award recipients embody the very best of what the ADR field can achieve. Through their visionary thought leadership, powerful scholarship, and unwavering commitment to advancing dialogue, they are shaping a more informed, innovative, and accessible future for dispute resolution,” said Serena Lee, CPR Institute’s president and CEO. “Their contributions will inspire practitioners for years to come, lighting the path toward meaningful alternatives to litigation.”
Lee presented the James F. Henry Award for outstanding achievement by individuals for distinguished, sustained contributions to the field of ADR to the Hon. Daniel Weinstein (Ret.). The award is named for CPR’s founder and longtime president and CEO, who was instrumental in developing business-focused ADR practices and institutions.
Judge Weinstein, who co-founded JAMS, has shaped the field through his innovative work promoting peace worldwide, as well as through his philanthropy, mentorship, and teaching, inspiring generations of talented practitioners. He designed processes tailored to unique, complex, and highly sensitive cases, including international Alien Tort Statute claims and human rights matters. He created CASA (Class Action Settlement Administration), which was used for the Union Carbide settlement, African American farmers’ discrimination claims, and compensation and overtime claims in the retail industry.
His most enduring legacy is the Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship Program, which identifies, trains, and supports conflict-resolution leaders from around the world, creating a global network dedicated to fostering peace. The Fellowship Program has trained more than 150 Fellows from over 90 countries.
Judge Weinstein expressed his gratitude to the CPR Institute after receiving the award from Lee. “I feel like I’m here with a family of people cause CPR to me has always represented the kind of stability in the crazy world of mediation and conflict resolution that all of us have been involved in the last four decades, five decades,” Weinstein said. “So, I’m really honored to get your award, and I feel like I’m with comrades and friends here.”
The CPR Institute’s Annual Awards program criteria focus on scholarship addressing the resolution, prevention, or creative management of major disputes involving public or business institutions, including disputes among corporations, between government and corporations, or among multiple parties. The review committee comprises judges and lawyers from leading corporations, top law firms, and academic institutions across the United States.
The Outstanding Book Award was presented to the editors of Discussions in Dispute Resolution: The Coming of Age (2000–2009), (Oxford University Press 2025):
Art Hinshaw, Andrea Kupfer Schneider, and Sarah Rudolph Cole.
When the three professors accepted their awards, Hinshaw explained the significance of this honor in academia. “We academics consider this the Academy Awards of our field, and that’s not a joke. It is a career-defining moment,” he said.
This second volume offers a retrospective examination of the field of alternative dispute resolution and advances understanding of core ADR concepts, including disputant autonomy, access to justice, equal justice, evolving perspectives on legal and legalistic processes, and the systemic effects of dispute resolution frameworks on both processes and participants.
The Outstanding Short Article Award was presented to Erin Gleason Alvarez, for “The Gender Sidelining Trap in Mediator Selection,” 2025 J. Disp. Resol., Issue 1, Art. 5.
This is the second time Alvarez has been recognized at the CPR Awards Ceremony. She won the Outstanding Student Article Award 19 years ago!
“I feel very strongly that my career has developed within and because of this community, so this means a lot to me,” Alvarez said.
The Outstanding Professional Article Award was presented to Harold Abramson for “Time-Pressured Negotiations,” 30 Harvard Negotiation L.R. 141 (2025). This article examines an area heretofore not addressed – time-pressured negotiations.
New York Law School’s training film, "Representing Clients in Mediation,” received the Special Award for Notable Use of Media in the Field of ADR. Peter Phillips accepted the award on their behalf, noting that they use a modular approach to train on the various segments of mediation. “It’s a particular delight to be standing in front of you. I was hired as a senior vice president for CPR by its founder, Jim Henry, and worked for many, many years. To come back in this circumstance, this occasion, with this honor means a great deal to me,” Phillips said.
The Outstanding Student Article Award was presented to two students:
Natalie Freiin von Beust of the European University Viadrina in Germany, for her master’s thesis “Third Party Funding in International Commercial Arbitration: Financing Justice or Compromising Integrity? An Analysis of Opportunities, Regulatory Frameworks and Risks” (2025), and Alexandra Hoffman of Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, “Bargaining for Equity: The WNBA’s CBA and the Future of Gender in Sports Negotiation” (2025). The students said they were honored to have received the award and to learn from the attendees at the conference.
Honorable Mentions were Faith Hasher of Quinnipiac Law School, “Cultural Differences in International Trade and Diplomacy: Legal Challenges and Negotiation Strategies" (2025), and Maureen Onyelobi of Hamline’s Prison to Law Pipeline Program, “Bissonnete v. Lepage Bakeries Brings A Temporary Consensus in Transportation Evolutionary Law” (2025).
Duncan MacKay, Deputy General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer of Eversource Energy received the James P. Groton Award for Outstanding Leadership in Dispute Prevention. CPR established the award in 2022 after recognizing James P. Groton, an early pioneer and advocate for dispute prevention, for his lifetime achievements.
MacKay is a tireless promoter of Dispute Prevention. He was a significant contributor to the drafting of CPR’s Dispute Prevention & Management Board Rules, serves as a Co-Chair of CPR’s Dispute Prevention Committee, and is on the Dispute Review Board. He has fostered dispute prevention at Eversource for many decades, most recently providing training to its legal staff.
MacKay said being honored with this award in Jim’s name was truly meaningful to him. “Coming from an organization that I deeply believe in and have been a strong supporter of, and they’ve been terrific in providing resources and information and support to me and to our business. It’s been a terrific journey, and Jim certainly provides inspiration to me and to all of us to keep our eye on the ball and resolve disputes early and prevent them if we can, and if not, use dispute prevention to put things right,” he said.
CPR Institute is proud to recognize Diego Faleck as “Partner of the Year” in recognition of his many years of service to CPR and his steadfast commitment to its mission. A member of CPR’s Brazilian Advisory Board (BAB) for many years, Faleck was appointed to BAB leadership in 2024. Since 2023, he has also served as co-chair of one of CPR’s largest international events—the International Mediation Competition (IMC), which has been held annually in Brazil since 2017. Faleck has spoken at CPR’s Brazilian Congresses, at CPR+USP conferences at the University of São Paulo, at CPR’s programs for São Paulo Arbitration Week and IMC Week mediation programs, at CPR’s Global Conferences, at the annual Brazilian Mediation Day in Paris, and at CPR’s annual meeting.
Faleck is a business mediator, settlement counsel, and dispute-resolution process designer. The founder of Faleck & Associados, he leads a team of 130 full-time mediators and is known as the “Brazilian Ken Feinberg” for designing and implementing compensation systems through mediation and facilitation following major aircraft accidents and large environmental tragedies.
Judges for the Annual Awards: cpradr.org/annual-awards
The winners’ published work can be accessed here: cpradr.org/news/am25-award-winners
The International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR Institute):
Established in 1977, the CPR Institute is an independent nonprofit think tank that promotes the prevention and resolution of conflict to better enable the pursuit of purpose through the CPR Institute and its subsidiary, CPR Dispute Resolution Services LLC.
The CPR Institute builds capacity for dispute prevention and resolution through the thought leadership of its diverse members – companies, leading mediators and arbitrators, law firms, individual practitioners, and academics – who share best practices and develop innovative tools for dispute management through committee discussions and projects, publications, education and training, and hosting events.
To learn more, visit cpradr.org.
CPR Dispute Resolution Services is a responsive, user-focused provider of dispute management services – arbitration, mediation, custom appointing services, and a panel of dispute prevention specialists - that leverages resources generated by the CPR Institute. The Panel of Distinguished Neutrals is a carefully curated, diverse group of prominent, experienced subject matter and ADR professionals on over 30 specialty panels.
To learn more about CPR Dispute Resolution, visit drs.cpradr.org.
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