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manousso_new_logo7 Become a Professional Mediator – Headquartered in Houston, Texas, USA, since 1993

@Do you have questions?
There are many answers below with training dates and fees.  Or call!

Click here for tuition and special discounts, like our early bird and active college student. Or call, Dr. Barbara Manousso at 713/557-1010.

ZOOM live: we are doing business, family, and divorce mediations with interactive/real time course training  online.  Call us at (713)557-1010 text/talk!

For the best in mediation training, select a mediation training program with proven leadership and lecturers who identify themselves with academic credentials and professional standing, like the staff of Manousso Mediation and Arbitration, LLC: Solution2Conflict, who are actively engaged as practitioners and leaders in the mediation and ADR field.

Have you listened to Manousso Musing on PodCasts or YouTube?

Make sure that your trainers meet the qualifications for and are members of professional mediation organizations, such as Texas Mediators Trainers Round Table (TMTR) and Texas Credentialing Association, or you won’t be getting a quality training.

Manousso Mediation and Arbitration, LLC. is an accredited sponsor of continuing education credits (CEU), approved by the State Bar of Texas, Committee on MCLE, as well as other professional organizations, such as CEU for CPA, LPC, and HR.


Arbitration Training ONLINE with ZOOM: live and interactive.

($550.00) Ask about special discounts.

Earn MCLE/CEU 10 and 4 in ethics for JD, CPA, LPC, SW, HR on Friday, 12 April 2024, from 9:00 AM until 6:00 PM, plus writing a brief opinion that will be explained in class.


Basic Mediation Training ZOOM LIVE and INTERACTIVE. 40 hours.

($975) Ask about special discounts.

Earn MCLE/CEU 40 and 4 in ethics for JD, CPA, LPC, SW, HR, includes Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR training), handouts, and notebooks:

Our next class will start be from Wednesday to Friday, April 17, 18, 19, 2024, and then the next week on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 23rd and 24th, 2024, from 10 AM to 6:30 PM daily.

All classes will be ZOOM live and interactive. Students must be ON CAMERA and attentive for the whole program for certificate and MCLE/CEU affirmative.


Advanced Mediation: Family-Divorce-Child Custody training live, interactive, on ZOOM. 30 hours.

($895) Ask about special discounts.

Earn MCLE/CEU 30 and 4 in ethics for JD, CPA, LPC, SW, HR.

Class will be held from <Tuesday to Friday – on March 19, 20, 21, 22, 2024, from 10 AM to 6:00 PM.  Join the eleven lecturers and interactive class on ZOOM!
New: Domestic Violence for Advance Family Training required by TX legislation
the four (4) hours required by Texas statute is yours for $150. (This Domestic Violence training is INCLUDED in our Advance Family 30 hours of training above.)

If you have taken the 30 hours of Advance Family training, but only need this DV-4 hours, then register under Advance Training drop-down ^ button.

If you are already an attorney or mediator who does not have the Texas Statute Required domestic violence (DV) training, you can take the DV only  class that will be held on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, from 1 PM until 5:00 PM. Please send an email note with your name to mediation@manousso.us with
Subject: Domestic Violence Certificate


Parenting Coordination and Facilitation Training

($525) Ask about special discounts.

ZOOM live and interactive: Sign up for this and Advance Family at the same time and use the early bird discount (SAVE $$$) for both classes

16 hours-MCLE/CEU 16 and 4 in ethics for JD, CPA, LPC, SW, HR

In 2024, Friday and Saturday, September 20th and 21st, 2024, from 9:00AM until 5:30PM, daily.  >> AMICUS training: The PCF skills are excellent for Amicus attorneys in communicating with high conflict clients.


Elder and Adult Family Mediation Training

($600), specially discounted for family mediators.

If you have questions, call (713)557-1010. Classes are held ZOOM live and interactive.

20 hours-MCLE/CEU 20 and 3 in ethics for JD, CPA, LPC, SW, HR on Tuesday, May 7th, 1 PM to 5 PM, Wednesday, May 8th, from 10 am until 6:30 PM, Thursday, May 9th, 2024, from 10 AM until 6:30 PM

Note our NO refund policy, once you have paid for a training, but you can always reschedule online classes with a rescheduling fee of $150, if you cancel within 72 hours.

Our classes can be taken in any order, although you can’t mediate until you meet all the requirements of Texas statutes.

Classes will be held on ZOOM, so it is required for certificate attendance that students use a computer and remain on camera, ATTENTIVELY, for the duration of the training.  

Handicap accessible training venue: ZOOM live!

Texas Justice Center for Mediation and Arbitration in Bellaire off I-610 West Loop.

Ranch Office Conference Room and Virtual Office

Ranch Office Conference Room and Virtual Office

Heights Mediation Center

Brochure

The Texas Mediation Center in Bellaire and Heights Mediation Center are modern, well located, facilities dedicated to ADR meetings, where you can proudly invite your mediation and arbitration clients.

See brochure.

Advanced Family and Divorce Mediation Training

Under standards adopted by the Texas Mediation Trainers Roundtable, Texas Bar Association, and Texas State Statute, this course includes the four hours of domestic violence training required under Texas statute. 
The four hours of domestic violence training can also be taken alone, if student already is a family mediator.


Dr. Barbara Sunderland Manousso is the course coordinator and lead instructor. Eleven distinguished lecturers complete the faculty~

Click here to register for the Advanced Family and Divorce Mediation course

Curriculum
 

Minimum course time: **30 hours

Effort to incorporate Academy of Family Mediators requirements, including the following identified outcomes-

  1. Awareness of theories and current research and literature underlying conflict and its resolution, and their applicability to family mediation;
  2. Ability to screen for appropriateness of mediation, including knowledge and ability to screen for domestic violence and an awareness of appropriate response(s) when domestic violence or its potential has been identified;
  3. Awareness of the consequences of separation/divorce for adults and children;
  4. Ability to work with the substantive information encountered in separation/divorce mediation;
  5. Ability to facilitate problem-solving between the parties, especially in the areas of divorce including, but not limited to, parenting, support, division of assets/liabilities, insurance, tax filing, and the like; and
  6. Ability to recognize when the assistance of other professionals might be helpful to the mediation process and to facilitate this discussion with the parties.

Below are the six main topics covered:

I.Family Law

  1. Overview of legal system and terms relating to family law
    1. History and evolution of legal rights of parents
    2. Parentage (never married parents)
    3. Suits affecting the parent-child relationship (SAPCR)
    4. Dissolution of marriage
    5. Adult guardianship
  2. Allocation of resources
    1. Itemization, characterization, valuation and division of assets and liabilities
    2. Finances
    3. Taxes
  3. Parenting Plans
    1. Conservatorship
    2. Parental rights and duties
    3. Parental access
    4. Child support
    5. Non-parental access (grandparents, etc.)
    6. Special issues of children with disabilities

II.Family Dynamics

  1. Family Systems
  2. Blended Families
  3. Psychological aspects of divorce and parenting

III.Child Development

  1. Stages of development
  2. Impact and response to divorce

IV. Family Violence

  1. Screening
  2. Impact of statutory requirements
  3. Dynamics. of family violence patterns, including power imbalances
  4. Effect of family violence on children
  5. Child abuse
  6. Substance abuse
  7. Stalking
  8. Protective orders
  9. Reporting laws and procedures
  10. Anger management
  11. Mediation safety plans, including caucus models
  12. Violent children

V.  Practice Considerations

  • Ethics
  • Agreement memorialization
  • Unauthorized practice of law (UPL)
  • Pro se cases
  • Enforcement
  • Styles-of-mediation through Self-awareness
  • Impact of cultural differences
  • Marketing tips and considerations

VI.  Skills

  1. Communication
  2. Relationship-building
  3. Information gathering
  4. Problem solving
  5. Conflict resolution theory
  6. Referrals to professional support services (such as, social study/psychological evaluation,
    therapy, parenting education program, anger management counseling, family violence shelter,
    certified financial planning, certified public accountancy, etc.)

Role Play: Includes demonstrations, role-plays, and debriefing.

*    Adopted September 11, 2000
**     Note that TMTR, in agreement with other national and state organizations using the standards promoted by ACR, has raised the number of required hours to accommodate the need for training on domestic violence and to raise the time spent on role-play
.

Lecturers


Dr.
Barbara Sunderland Manousso
, Ph.D., MPH, CFRE

Texas Credentialed Distinguished Mediator
Certified Collaborative Law Mediator
2018 LifeTime Achievement Award from the Association for Conflict Resolution Houston Chapter
2019 Texas Association of Mediators Suzanne Adams Award (Texas’ top mediator)
2018 Houston Business Journal’s Woman Who Means Business for Professional Services
2016 Houston Woman’s Magazine, One of Fifty Most Influential Women in Houston
Fellow of the World Mediation Association

Professor at the University of St. Thomas – Center for International Studies-Global Conflict Management
Former Chair of the Health Care Section of the International Association for Conflict Resolution
Former Chair of the Workplace Section of the International Association for Conflict Resolution
Former Chair of the Education, Research, and Training Section of the International Association for Conflict Resolution
Past President of the Association for Conflict Resolution Houston Chapter
Parenting Coordinator
Member of the University of Texas Consortium on Aging
Board Member of the Houston Gerontology Society

 


Melissa Back, J.D., Mediator, Arbitrator, Director at Manousso Mediation
Mediator, Arbitrator, Attorney, Adjunct Professor at the University of St. Thomas – Center for International Studies in Global Conflict Management
Co-Convener of the Texas Mediators Trainers Roundtable
Immediate-past present of the Texas Association of Mediators
Board Member and former President of the Association for Conflict Resolution Houston Chapter
EEOC Contract Mediator
Texas Credentialed Mediator

Parenting Coordinator and Facilitator

 


 

Lori LaConta, Esq., MBA, Mediator, Arbitrator
Texas Credentialed Distinguished Mediator
Certified Arbitrator
Immediate Past President of the Texas Association of Mediators
Professor in Conflict Management
President of Labor Employment Relations Association (LERA) Houston Chapter
Past-President of the Association for Conflict Resolution Houston Chapter

American Arbitration Association panelist
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services

Board Member of the Texas Association of Mediators

 


Judge Josefina Rendon, J.D., Mediator
Former Harris County District Civil Court 165
City of Houston Municipal Judge
Texas Credentialed Distinguished Mediator
Past President of the Texas Association of Mediators

President-elect of the Association for Conflict Resolution Houston Chapter

 


 

Dr. J. Scott Creighton
Mediator – Arbitrator
Psychologist
Texas Credentialed Mediator

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Denise French, MAFF, CVA, CRPC, CDFA

Founder & Sr. Advisor, Divorce Strategies Group 

1095 Evergreen Circle, Suite 200, The Woodlands, TX 77380

Office: 281-505-8177

Fax: 832-442-4912

www.DivorceStrategiesGroup.com

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Patricia Barrett, CFP, CDFA, Mediator
Certified Financial Planner
Certified Divorce Financial Analyst
 

Patricia Barrett is a Certified Financial Planner and Certified Divorce Financial Analyst. She is also a trained, experienced mediator.  For 15 years, she has been self-employed, working with individuals considering or going through divorce to help them to analyze their future financial security and reach a settlement.  She creates a unique set of tables to illustrate a budget, tax situation, and 20-year long-term cash flow to analyze future financial security. This is invaluable to one who is unsure of whether to keep the house or whether they will be okay financially.  While she works with many attorneys in the Houston area to guide their clients through the financial side of the divorce litigation, she also offers “Cooperative Divorce”, where she helps them avoid litigation. She acts as a neutral to help them settle the finances smoothly. She then co-mediates with a family law attorney to assure that their legal questions are answered. This helps the couple shorten the process, saving many thousands of dollars as they resolve the division of assets before employing an attorney to handle the paperwork. 

Prior to forming her own company, she worked for a Houston Trust Company as the Manager of their Financial Planning Department.  Patricia presents seminars to the public, therapist organizations, financial organizations, CPAs, attorneys and divorce support groups to educate them in financial and divorce issues.  She is an instructor for Manousso Mediation’s Advanced Family Mediation Training quarterly. She also speaks for the Guide to Good Divorce series given by prominent Houston attorney, Trey Yates.

Lifetime Planning, LLC
Love, Marriage, and Money

Email: pb@lifetimeplanning.cc

Website: https://LifeTimePlanning.cc

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Esteban Mayers, MA, Mediator

Cultural Diversity Specialist and Expert in Children Protective Services

DEI expert with 30 plus years in child welfare at state, county and non-profit levels.  Board member of David and Ivory Ministries, Board member of the Panamanian Emergency Response and Disaster Group and Board member of Dai-Ichi Shotokan Karate-Do, International.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Norma Trusch, J.D., Mediator, Collaborative Law

For over thirty years, Norma Trusch has been one of Houston’s leading divorce family attorneys and mediators.  She is world renowned for Collaborative Mediation, as well as being the former president of the international organization on collaborative law and process.  

 


 

Don Tomlinson, J.D., Mediator, Arbitrator
Former Ethics Professor at Texas A & M,
Attorney, Mediator, Arbitrator

 


Annette Henry, J.D., Mediator, Arbitrator
Annette is a specialist in family divorce and mediation.  She brings over twenty years of expertise to our students, whether students are or are not attorneys, divorce and child custody become less mysterious.