Mediation a Commonwealth Perspective 2019 - New Speaker announced

New Speaker Confirmed - Gary Adair, Wilson Nesbitt Speaking on the Judicial Review judgement on mediation and legal aid

Mediation – a Commonwealth perspective will provide those attending with a timely and insightful overview of the changing role which mediation now plays in dispute resolution in Commonwealth countries.

Attendees will hear from The Rt Hon Sir Declan Morgan, the Lord Chief Justice for Northern Ireland, Brian Speers, the President of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and Mr Justice Vasheist Kokaram, High Court, Trinidad and Tobago who will provide his unique perspective on mediation, Gary Adair, partner and head of the Commercial Disputes Team at Wilson Nesbitt Solicitors in Belfast who will reflect on the recent Judicial Review judgement on mediation and legal aid.

LOCATION:                       Law Society House, Belfast

DATE:                               Tuesday 4th June 2019

TIME:                                12.30pm - Lunch and Registration and

                                          1:00pm - 3:00pm the event

BOOKING DETAILS:         cpdbookings@lawsoc-ni.org

CPD:                                  2 hours General Group Study

COST :                               £40

Programme

Introduced by: The Rt Hon Sir Declan Morgan, Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland

Sir Declan Morgan was educated at Peterhouse, Cambridge. He was called to the Bar in 1976 and took Silk in 1993. He was Senior Crown Counsel for Northern Ireland from 2002 until his appointment as a High Court Judge in May 2004. He was appointed to the Family Division in January 2007 and in September 2008 became one of two judges with responsibility for judicial review.

Sir Declan was appointed Chairman of the Law Reform Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland in 2004. In April 2007 he was appointed Chairman of the Northern Ireland Law Commission. He will be stepping down from that position at the end of the summer. Sir Declan Morgan became Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland on Friday 3 July 2009.

Presented by: Brian Speers, President Commonwealth Lawyers Association

Brian Speers is managing partner of CMG Cunningham Dickey Solicitors in Belfast. He is regarded as one of the most experienced solicitor mediators in Northern Ireland and has pioneered the use of mediation for the resolution of commercial disputes and has lectured extensively in mediation both locally and internationally. He has been an active member (and former Chair) of the Education Committee of the Law Society of Northern Ireland (LSNI). Brian is also an elected member of the Council of LSNI and a former President of the LSNI for 2010 -2011. He has been Treasurer of the Law Society of Northern Ireland since 2015. Brian is the Law Society of Northern Ireland’s nominee to the Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) an international lawyers organisation involving all the 53 jurisdictions in the Commonwealth. In 2017 he was elected Vice President and in April 2019 he was elected President of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association.

Key Note Speaker: Mr Justice Vasheist Kokaram, High Court, Trinidad and Tobago

Justice Vasheist V Kokaram is a Judge of the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago. Prior to his appointment in 2009 he was a partner in the firm MG Daly and Partners specialising in industrial relations, public law, international trade and mediation. Justice Kokaram was the Chair of the Court Annexed Mediation Pilot Project in 2010 and is currently a member on the ADR Implementation Committee in the Supreme Court, Trinidad and Tobago. Justice Kokaram was the Chairman of the Mediation Board of Trinidad and Tobago (MBTT) 2010 to 2018. As Chairman he advocated the use and application of mediation as a means of developing a more peaceful and productive society. He led several public educational campaigns on mediation from 2010 to 2018 at the MBTT which convened several national Annual Mediation Symposia and also produced publications on mediation and certification. Prior to his appointment as a Judge he was a community mediator appointed under the Community Mediation Act from 1998 to 2005.

Speaker: Gary Adair, partner and head of the Commercial Disputes Team at Wilson Nesbitt Solicitors in Belfast

Gary Adair holds a bachelor’s degree in History and Politics and a Master of Legal Science degree from Queens University Belfast.  Gary joined Wilson Nesbitt in 2006 and became partner in 2016.  He specialises in providing services to commercial and corporate clients as well as individuals in commercial disputes, property litigation, construction litigation, insolvency and restructuring, judicial review and recovery actions.  Gary has significant experience in representing clients in various ADR mechanisms including mediation, arbitration, adjudication as well as mediation.  Gary is a member of the Professional Negligence Lawyers Association, the Construction Lawyers Association and hold a Certificate in Advanced Advocacy.  Gary has successful engaged in mediation as part of a number of large commercial disputes both during or prior to the commencement of legal proceedings or other ADR processes.  Gary recently represented the Applicant in the High Court of Northern Ireland decision in Rose Njoki Edmunds v Legal Services Agency for Northern Ireland wherein the Court held that Civil Legal Aid is available to cover the costs of mediation during a High Court case.