Homer C. La Rue and William H. Taft V Join CPR Board of Directors
New York, NY—The International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR), a global non-profit organization that manages conflict to enable purpose, is pleased to announce that Homer C. La Rue and William H. Taft V have joined the CPR Board of Directors.
CPR’s Board of Directors is comprised of thought leaders from a variety of backgrounds with a shared goal of preventing disputes and finding ways to resolve them more effectively and efficiently when they do arise.
Homer C. La Rue is Professor of Law at the Howard University School of Law. Professor La Rue is founder and co-director of the Howard Law ADR Program and designed and directs the Law School’s ADR Certificate Program. He has extensive experience as a labor and employment attorney and for more than 35 years has served as an arbitrator and mediator in labor, employment and commercial disputes. Professor La Rue is President-Elect of the National Academy of Arbitrators and will take office in May 2022. Professor La Rue is the 2020 recipient of the D’Alemberte-Raven Award, the highest award given by the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution in recognition of decades of outstanding service to the ADR community. Professor La Rue is also a founder of the Ray Corollary Initiative™ (RCI), which seeks to ensure that there are at least 30% diverse neutrals on any pool from which arbitrators are nominated to serve on a tribunal. The RCI inspired CPR’s own Diversity Commitment. Professor La Rue received his J.D. and Master’s Degree in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University, and his B.A. degree from Purdue University.
William H. Taft V is a partner in the Litigation Department at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in New York. His practice focuses on commercial and corporate governance litigation and international arbitration. He has extensive experience leading complex commercial matters in a range of industries, appears regularly in state and federal courts, and has appeared in arbitrations under the rules of the major U.S. and international institutions. Mr. Taft was recently named a Future Star by Benchmark Litigation (2021). Prior to joining Debevoise, Mr. Taft worked at the RAND Corporation in Washington, D.C. Mr. Taft clerked for the Hon. Samuel A. Alito, Jr. when Justice Alito served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He received a J.D. cum laude from the New York University School of Law and a B.A. from Yale University.
“I am pleased to welcome Homer and Will to our Board of Directors,” said CPR President & CEO Allen Waxman. “They each bring unique experiences that will strengthen CPR’s mission of creating less conflict and more purpose. Homer’s background as an academic and a practicing neutral with extensive experience in ADR, as well as his leadership in developing programs to assist persons of color become mediators and arbitrators, including the RCI, will be an asset to our organization. Will’s experience as an advocate representing a variety of industries including commercial real estate, project finance, sports & entertainment, energy and insurance will bring valuable hands-on experience in dispute resolution and prevention and will contribute to our thought leadership in the field.”