Be neutral: a publication of the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution, Dec. 2012

Be Neutral
Special Edition A Publication of the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution

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R E G I S T R A T I O N
R E N E W A L
A D R
I N S T I T U T E

From the Director: Reduce Your Holiday Stress by Renewing Now
Folks, before we whip all ourselves into full holiday hysteria, may I offer this gentle reminder to renew your registration sooner rather than later. It takes just a few minutes, which are a lot easier to find now, before you get caught up with family, friends, parties, presents, mail, mall, Prilosec, Prozac, etc.
We're busy here, too, renewing and registering neutrals as fast as we can, answering e-mails and phone calls from neutrals with questions about logging in and CE and affidavits and IDs.
Remember that when you call or e-mail us a request for help, the replies come from our staff, not computers. We respond to each query personally. But that means that when the office is closed for the holidays or the weekend, we can't help you. So please do not wait until 11:59 pm, Monday, December 31, to find out that you can't log in. We'll be watching the Peach Drop, just as you should be instead of renewing your registration at the last minute.
We've posted as much information online as possible to help you in case you get stuck while we're out of the office.
Don't remember your login ID? The answer is on the login screen. Really.
Don't remember your password? The answer is on the login screen. We promise.
So please renew soon, so you don't have the added stress of paying a late fee. For instructions and information, just click on the big purple box on our website:
The 2012 on-time renewal season ends December 31, 2012. Any renewal applications submitted after the on-time renewal deadline of midnight, EST, December 31, 2012, will be considered late, and late fees will apply. The late renewal deadline is midnight, April 30, 2013. Neutrals who do not renew by that date will be considered inactive. All neutrals will need to renew except those few whose registration expiration date is 1/1/2014. Check your information by logging into your neutral account. Find login instructions here.
Just as last year, only online renewals will be accepted in order to streamline the renewal process. Online renewal should take most neutrals 5-10 minutes to complete.
Renewal Applications: Online renewal access is now available through your personal online accounts. The online renewal application is already populated with your personal information, so most of you will need only to enter your continuing education information before proceeding to payment. Find login instructions here.
Renewal Fees: The basic renewal fee is $125; it is $150 for those registered in domestic relations mediation. Note: if you submit your application online after midnight, EST, December 31, 2012, it will be considered late, and your renewal fee will double to $250 or $300. We don't want you to have to pay the late fee, so please submit your online application before December 31, 2012.
You will have a choice of paying your renewal fee with a credit card through PayPal or by submitting a check. You do not need to have or create a PayPal account to use the PayPal function.
Note: If you are a volunteer neutral that is, you receive no compensation, no matter how small, providing ADR services within or outside a court program you and your court-connection program director can submit a sworn affidavit with your renewal application to have your fee waived this renewal season. To be considered a volunteer, you must have provided ADR services to a Georgia court program in the past year. 2012 volunteer affidavits are available under "Forms and Applications."
Continuing Education Requirements: All renewing neutrals must submit 3 hours of continuing education that they have taken in 2012. You cannot carry over CE hours from previous years or toward future years. CLE and CJE qualify as neutral CE as long as they were earned and not carried over. See the "Help! I Need CE!" link for information on all the ways you can earn CE credit.
Online Renewal Instructions: Renewing online is fast and easy because most of your personal information is already filled in online. All registered neutrals have an online neutral account created automatically for them. If you have never logged in to your online account, you must activate your account before using it the first time. Please see how to activate your existing neutral account by going to "Neutral Account Login Help" link. Then proceed as directed below.
To renew online, click on "Login To Your Neutral Account" at the top of the web page. The login page will appear in a new browser window. Enter your login ID and password. Your login ID is the first four letters of your last name and the last four digits of your SSN (i.e. smit1234). If your old password does not seem to work, try "password" (without quotation marks). If you have forgotten your personalized password, choose the "Forgot Password" function on the main login screen. After you are logged in, select "Renew Registration" in the menu. Follow the prompts and instructions carefully. Once you fill out and submit your online renewal form:
A summary of your online renewal form will be created in your browser. Please print a copy for your records;
If you paid through PayPal, please print a receipt of your PayPal renewal fee payment for your records.
Background Check Authorization: If you've submitted your "permanent" authorization form in the last year, you don't have to send it to us again. If you haven't submitted your permanent authorization, please download, sign and send us the form, under "Forms and Applications." Scan and e-mail, fax or mail us the signed form. Your renewal application cannot be processed without authorization to complete the background check.
Lawful Presence Affidavit and ID: The lawful presence affidavit and supporting ID are required again this year, even if you submitted them with your last application. The General Assembly did not amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act of 2011 (O.C.G.A. 50-36-1(e)), during the 2012 session. That means that all renewing neutrals will once again have to submit documentation that they are in the U.S. legally.
Therefore, as of January 1, 2012, before your registration can be issued, renewed or reinstated you are required to:
1. Execute a signed and sworn affidavit verifying your lawful presence in the United States. The affidavit to use for this purpose can be found at the GODR website under "Forms and Applications" or directly at this link: http://www.godr.org/files/GODR%20Lawful%20Presence%20Affidavit.pdf
2. Include with the affidavit a copy of a secure and verifiable document issued to you by a state or federal jurisdiction or recognized by the United States government and that is verifiable by federal or state law enforcement, intelligence, or homeland security agencies. A complete listing of acceptable secure and verifiable documents, as determined by the Office of the Attorney General, Georgia, can be found at the Attorney General's website under "Key Issues," then "Immigration Reports," or directly at this link: http://law.ga.gov/documents/list-secure-and-verifiable-documents-0
Your renewal application cannot be processed without your affidavit and ID.
Registration Benefits: In addition to a professional credential issued by the Georgia Supreme Court, your registration as a neutral entitles you to several other exclusive benefits that can save you money, time and aggravation. These include group-rate professional liability insurance for neutrals; group and individual health, vision, and dental insurance, retirement products, and more. You will also continue to receive our new monthly e-newsletter, which is designed to enhance your knowledge and practice as a neutral. We are working to create more value-added programs for neutrals, courts and trainers.
Some Tips: If you are mailing us important information, first make copies and file them, then send the material via a service that provides tracking and delivery confirmation. If you are faxing us important information, keep the fax transmittal confirmation. If you are e-mailing us important information, request a return receipt when your message is delivered or read (many e-mail programs allow this) and save it. Or save our responses to your e-mails.
For More Information: Please contact us at gaodr@godr.org or 404-463-3788 if you have further questions about the renewal process.
2012 Renewal Season Key Dates
Application Submitted November 1-December 31, 2012: On-time renewal, fees $125 (non-domestic), $150 (domestic), 3 CE hours required.
Application Submitted January 1-April 30, 2013: Late renewal application required, fees double to $250 (non-domestic), $300 (domestic), neutral in "lapsed" status until renewed, can still handle court-connected cases through April 30, 2013. Application Received/Post-Marked May 1, 2013, and later: Reinstatement application required, fees double to $250 (non-domestic), $300 (domestic), 8 hours of CE required, neutral in "inactive" status until reinstated, cannot handle court-connected cases starting May 1, 2013.
**Always send important documents to GODR via a service that offers tracking and delivery confirmation.**
Folks, TOMORROW is the 19th Annual ADR Institute and 2012 Neutrals' Conference, which will be held at the State Bar of Georgia Conference Center in Atlanta.
Our friends outside of Atlanta will be able "attend" the Institute remotely this year, as for the first time the Institute will be broadcast live to the State Bar of Georgia offices in Savannah and Tifton.
This year's conference will once again present an agenda of engaging local and national presenters on a broad variety of topics in the ADR field. Our goals are to bring national-caliber speakers to your doorstep, while also featuring the enormous well of talent and insight in Georgia's ADR community.
At least 6 hours of CE and 6 hours of CLE will be available.
Conference fees were held to last year's levels. A student rate half of the attorneys' early registration rate is available again upon request, whether registering early or on site: Early registration $115 for neutrals (no CLE); $170 for attorneys (CLE included); on-site registration $135 for neutrals, $190 for attorneys. $85 for students early registration or on-site. All fees include lunch.
Register now at http://www.iclega.org/programs/8114.html
19th Annual ADR Institute and 2012 Neutrals' Conference Agenda
TEN THINGS LAWYERS LIKE (AND HATE!) ABOUT MEDIATORS
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
TRACK 1: ARBITRATION ETHICS AND SOCIAL MEDIA Moderator: John A. Sherrill, Seyfarth Shaw LLP, Atlanta
Panelists: Joan C. Grafstein, JAMS, Atlanta; Valerie S. Sanders, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP; R. Wayne Thorpe, JAMS, Atlanta
TRACK 2: EMOTION IN MEDIATION: HOW TO BE SUCCESSFUL WHEN THE SPARKS START TO FLY William S. Goodman, Henning Mediation & Arbitration Service, Atlanta
TAKING THE WAR OUT OF WORDS: CUTTING EDGE TOOLS FOR MEDIATION Sharon Strand Ellison, Institute for Powerful Non-Defensive Communication, Oakland, CA
Optional Lunch Session: Mediation 101: The History of Mediation Jerry Wood, Director, Fulton County Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, Atlanta
NEGOTIATING AT THE NEXT LEVEL: HOW MEDIATORS THINK DIFFERENTLY THAN THE MEDIATED David A. Hooker, Fanning Institute, University of Georgia, Athens
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
TRACK 1: THE DISARMING POWER OF QUESTIONS Sharon Strand Ellison
TRACK 2: MARKETING YOUR PRACTICE: BUILDING YOUR REFERRAL ENGINE IN THE DIGITAL ERA Michele Gibson, President, Digital Smart Tools, Atlanta
SHHHHHH!!!!!! CONFIDENTIALITY AND MEDIATION Moderator: Steven J. Gold, Attorney at Law, Decatur
Panelists: Raymond G. Chadwick, Jr., Chadwick Mediation Services LLC, Augusta; Timothy Hedeen, Ph.D., Professor, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw; Martha Kitchens, M.A., L.P.C., L.M.F.T., Douglasville; Edith B. Primm, Justice Center of Atlanta, Inc., Atlanta
Register now at http://www.iclega.org/programs/8114.html
Shinji Morokuma, Director, GODR gaodr@godr.org

Be Neutral Back Issues Available Online
Be Neutral is sent monthly to all registered neutrals, generally at the beginning of the month. If you missed an issue, our back issues are posted at the bottom right of our website, under "Newsletter Archive." Please take a look. If you know people who want Be Neutral, please direct them to our subscription box at the bottom right of our website, where they just need to enter their e-mail addresses. Please forward this newsletter to anyone who might be interested in ADR in Georgia courts. Forward it just as you would any other e-mail. If folks who are not registered neutrals want to receive the newsletter free of charge, they can submit their e-mail addresses in the subscription box at the bottom right of our website. And sending us feedback is easy just reply to this e-mail as you would any other e-mail. We want to hear from you!

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Please forward this newsletter to anyone who might be interested in ADR in Georgia courts. Forward it just as you would any other e-mail. If folks who are not registered neutrals want to receive the newsletter free of charge, they can use the subscription box at below this text or submit their e-mail addresses in the subscription box at the bottom right of the home page of our website. And sending us feedback is easy just reply to this e-mail as you would any other e-mail. We want to hear from you !
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