As we start to plan for next semester, here’s some great teaching tools about ombuds. From colleague and FOB Natalie Fleury, here is the latest information from the ABA Ombuds Task Force to help us in teaching about the role of the ombuds.
Recognizing that the ombuds role has increasingly become an important means of dispute resolution, the Dispute Resolution Section of the American Bar Association created an Ombuds Committee in the fall of 2013. The Committee’s Outreach Subcommittee identified a high priority outreach initiative: to facilitate law school teaching about the valuable role of ombuds in dispute resolution.
The Ombuds Committee appointed a Law School Outreach Task force to identify ways both to help increase teaching about Ombuds programs and to provide additional resources to aid in that effort. The Task Force developed materials to address both of these objectives, many of which are available in the Related Resources section of the ABA Ombuds Committee webpage. In particular, we have prepared the following:
PowerPoint slides that might be of assistance in presenting a lecture or two as part of another course dealing with dispute resolution. We have included information on evolution of programs; various types of programs; and legal issues that arise for these programs. The lecturer can choose from different options to adjust the presentation to the course.
A reading list, organized by type of ombuds program, that could be assigned in conjunction with any other texts used in the course. The list is also included at the end of the PowerPoint slides.
And finally, a list of potential guest speakers containing the names of a national roster of lawyers and practicing ombuds, many of whom have already taught courses on ombuds topics and who have volunteered to serve as guest lecturers or “color commentators” on ombuds programs.
