Wednesday, September 23, 2026 from 12:30-1:30pm (PT)

Last Resorts: Using Counter-Design in ADR and Beyond

Dan Berstein, MHS | MH Mediate

Andrew Mamo, Professor of Law, University of Cincinnati, Donald P. Klekamp College of Law

Via Zoom

RSVP HERE

Collaborative conflict resolution processes aren’t always possible, especially in bureaucracies where communication is limited. When all else fails, rejected parties can still make progress: Andrew Mamo introduced a theory of “counter-design,” where parties challenge and reimagine dispute resolution systems through activities like unveiling, tagging, and assembling. An example is Dan Berstein’s work convincing dispute resolution organizations to update policies that were stigmatizing mental illness. This workshop uses Dan’s stories as counter-design case studies. Participants will receive tools they can use right away to [1] create better systems so there is no need for counter-design, and [2] apply counter-design strategies when stuck in a system that is not working.

Andrew Mamo

Andrew Mamo is a professor of law at the University of Cincinnati Donald P. Klekamp College of Law. His research concerns the history and theory of dispute resolution and negotiation, with an emphasis on the history of dispute resolution practices, the role of technology in dispute resolution, and the professionalization of dispute resolution. His current projects include a study of the institutionalization of dispute resolution services in the late twentieth century. Mamo received his SB in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, his PhD in history from the University of California, Berkeley, and his JD from Harvard Law School. After graduating from law school, Mamo clerked for Judge Hisashi Owada and Judge Julia Sebutinde of the International Court of Justice in The Hague. He then worked on cross-border capital markets and project finance transactions at a major international law firm in Singapore. Mamo joined Harvard Law School as Lecturer in Law and a Clinical Instructor at the Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program, teaching negotiation and supervising teams of clinical students representing clients on a range of dispute systems design projects. Prior to joining the College of Law, he was an Assistant Professor of Law at Northern Illinois University College of Law.

Dan Berstein

Dan Berstein is a mediator living with bipolar disorder, working to adapt conflict resolution best practices to promote empowering mental health communication and prevent mental illness discrimination. Since 2012, Dan’s company, MH Mediate, has helped professionals, organizations, and government agencies address challenging behaviors without discriminating against people who have mental health conditions. MH Mediate provides free resources to help different stakeholders use conflict resolution tools to prevent mental illness stigma. They are hosted on the Dispute Resolution In Mental Health Initiative (DRMH Initiative) website, originally funded by the AAA-ICDR Foundation and developed in partnership with the CUNY Dispute Resolution Center. MH Mediate’s Mental Health Safe Project (MH Safe) also provides free addendum content to parties affected by discriminatory guidance about mental illness. Its DisabilityRadar.com website empowers people to anonymously report problems. Dan leads the Rights, Ethics, and Voices in Dispute Resolution (REV-DR) project to help parties know their rights and how to respond to misconduct. Mitchell Hamline School of Law’s DRI Press recently published a new edition of Dan’s book, Mental Health and Conflicts: A Handbook for Empowerment, which was originally published by the ABA. Dan holds degrees from the Wharton School and the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.

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