Friday, June 15, 2012

CNDR Hires New Director: Sheila Rose Purcell '86

After a national search, Sheila Rose Purcell, UC Hastings ’86, has been selected as the Center for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution (CNDR)’s new Director, effective July 30, 2012. Purcell succeeds Grande Lum, who was nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as Director of Community Relations Services at the Department of Justice.

Known nationally as one of the “godmothers” of court-connected ADR, Purcell has been ADR Director of the San Mateo County (CA) Superior Court Multi-Option ADR Project (MAP) since 1996. Starting with a one-year grant for a civil mediation program, Purcell developed MAP to include individually designed ADR programs in the family law, small claims, probate, juvenile delinquency, juvenile dependency and complex civil divisions of the court, providing referrals and ADR services in approximately 1,500-2,000 cases a year. Purcell has taught ADR Systems Design and ADR Survey at Hastings, and in 2010-11 she co-developed and now teaches CNDR’s groundbreaking Court ADR Systems Design Institute for foreign judges and lawyers.

“CNDR has a great program that I look forward to growing and offering both to our students and to the international community,” says Purcell.

Says Professor Melissa Nelken, CNDR’s Acting Director and Faculty Chair: “I am delighted to have Sheila Purcell join UC Hastings as the new CNDR Director and look forward to working with her on improving existing programs and developing new ones, both at UC Hastings and abroad.”

About CNDR:

The Center for Negotiation & Dispute Resolution (CNDR) at UC Hastings College of the Law is committed to offering superior education and cutting edge scholarship in dispute resolution to law students, attorneys, practitioners, and international visitors. In 2012, US News & World Report ranked UC Hastings #9 among the top law school dispute resolution programs in the country.

CNDR professors break new ground in the study of implicit bias in mediation and the psychological dynamics of negotiation and lie detection. CNDR hosts a biennial symposium, conferences, and workshops at which scholars and practitioners share research, case studies, and teaching techniques in the field.

Every year, 500 UC Hastings students – over a third of the total enrollment – take a dispute resolution course through CNDR. Students also master practical skills outside the classroom through CNDR’s Mediation Clinic, its ADR Externship Program, and its award- winning Negotiation and Mediation Team.

In the heart of San Francisco, steps from both Federal and State courts, CNDR utilizes its central location to collaborate with local community organizations, commercial alternative dispute resolution providers, and government agencies. Leading ADR practitioners in the San Francisco Bay Area add depth and breadth to our program as adjunct professors.