Upcoming Trainings and Events
Professional Development and Training
Lawyers looking to earn nearly a year’s worth of CLE and revive your legal practice at Rooted Practice: A Path to Becoming a Restorative Lawyer. We will assemble a small, purpose-driving group of lawyers for an immersive 3-day retreat June 18-20, 2026 designed to radically reimagine the practice of law—from one rooted in conflict to one grounded in healing. Held in the serene, forested beauty of Elk River Inn & Cabins in Slatyfork, West Virginia, this all-inclusive experience will offer over 20 hours of continuing legal education (CLE) while creating space for deep reflection, practical training, and community building. This retreat is for lawyers ready to shift from burnout and adversarial norms toward a restorative approach that centers justice, connection, and well-being. Through workshops, guided discussion, movement, and nature-based integration, you'll leave with both the mindset and tools to lead systemic change—starting with your own practice. Learn more and register here.
West Virginia Family Court Mediation Certification Training. Last fall, we offered the first training in nearly a decade for certification in Family Court mediation in West Virginia. The course will be offered again in a hybrid format. The online portion of the course will begin on August 6, 2026, with weekly meetings through September 24, 2026, from 6:00-9:00 p.m. The in-person segment will be at Blackwater State Park from September 16, 2026, from 6:00-9:00 and September 17 and 18, 2025, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The program will be submitted for continuing legal education credits for attorneys. Registerhttps://bit.ly/4bb1K4z. Registration is limited to twenty participants. UPDATE May 8: The course is nearly full and once full it is not scheduled to be offered again until August, 2027.
Upcoming Events and Conferences
South Bar Bar, Romney, West Virginia. Judge Merideth Haines has invited me to address the bar and help provide the details on both private mediations and those that are court-referred as part of their annual CLE program. The program is May 22, 2026 and my session is at 2:00 p.m.https://mywvbar.org/node/114305
Queens University, Kingston, Ontario. I’ll be joining a panel, Advancing Reflective Practices and Methods, on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, as part of this online symposium. https://www.queensu.ca/reflective-practice-legal-professionals/
Karen Richards Training & Mediation, Virginia. Virginia mediators must be recertified every two years and must have continuing education credits. Karen Richards, a highly respected long-term mediator in Virginia, puts together a “bonanza” of online workshops to meet the requirements. I’ll be presenting an online, two-hour version of my program that helps mediators uncover how the legal culture may be inadvertently affecting their mediations. https://krtrainmediate.com/event/mediator-recertification-training-bonanza-on-line-presentation-workshop-3-july-14-2026/
West Virginia Supreme Court, Bridgeport, West Virginia. West Virginia also requires recertification, and this year the Supreme Court will invite all family court-certified mediators to Bridgeport for an update on the court-referred mediation process and a refresher on our skills. I’ll be providing the skills training, which is currently scheduled for the second day of an in-person conference on August 4 and 5.
Virginia Beach Bar Family CLE. We are still in the planning stages but I am excited to be joining the Hon. Jennifer Shupert on October 1, 2026 in Virginia Beach to present on Becoming a Restorative Lawyer.