SPEAKERS

*all times Eastern Time Zone (check your local time)

	Kurt Dettman is the Past President of the Executive Board of Directors and Region 1 (USA and Canada) of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation (DRBF), He is the Principal of Constructive Dispute Resolutions, an ADR practice specializing in all aspects of dispute avoidance and resolution in the construction industry. He has written extensively about Dispute Resolution Boards, and conducts training on Dispute Board practice and administration, including the new Dispute Board Manual released in 2019. Kurt is a recipient of the Al Mathews Award for Dispute Board Excellence in 2020, the DRBF's highest honor.
	Dr. Leslie Ellis is the founder and principal of The Caissa Group, a litigation consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. Dr. Ellis has been conducting research on jury, arbitrator, and judicial decision making for over 25 years and she works with attorneys on high-risk and complex civil cases to develop themes and trial/hearing strategies through the use of focus groups, mock trials, damages assessments, and survey-based venue analyses. She also assists with witness preparation, voir dire, and jury selection. Dr. Ellis has been involved in a wide range of high-stakes and high-profile cases, including securities fraud, accounting/auditing fraud, False Claims Act, antitrust, intellectual property, insurance, mortgage fraud, white collar crime, contract, toxic tort, products liability, class action and employment matters. Dr. Ellis is also a frequent speaker on the topic of juror, arbitrator, and judicial decision making. She received her BA in Psychology from Northwestern University and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
	Dr. Patricia D. Galloway is an international chartered arbitrator of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), Dispute Review Board (DRB) member and mediator with over 40 years of experience specializing in energy and construction matters. She is a Fellow in the College of Commercial Arbitrators (its only non-lawyer elected to the college), a Fellow of CIArb, a member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals and a member of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation (DRBF). Dr. Galloway is a licensed professional civil engineer and was the first woman president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) in 2004. She holds a Certificate in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine Law School-Straus Institute, a Diploma in International Arbitration, a Climate Leadership Certificate from Diligent and is a NACD certified board member. She is a member of several arbitral institution energy, construction and commercial panels including the ICDR/AAA’s commercial, energy, construction, large complex case and Megaprojects panels as well as CIArb, LCIA, USCIB (ICC) and the CPR’s cross-border, energy and construction panels. She serves on the ICC ADR and Arbitration Task Force, the ICDR Technology Task Force and is a member of the ICDR Publications Committee, the AAA Energy Committee, the AAA DRB Task Force Committee, the CPR Energy Committee and the CPR Construction Committee. She also serves on the CPR DRB Task Force and the ICC ADR and Arbitration Task Force. Dr. Galloway also served on the AAA Board of Directors from 2009-2020 and is a Past Chair of the National Construction Dispute Resolution Committee (NCDRC). Dr. Galloway has lectured and published numerous articles regarding mediation and arbitration and has received numerous awards including the AAA’s Director of the Year.
	Nicholas Gould, BSc (Hons), LL.M., FRICS, FCIArb, MCIOB, is Past President of the Executive Board of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation and a partner in the specialist construction, engineering and energy lawyers Fenwick Elliott LLP, where he conducts a mix of international dispute resolution and non-contentious work. He is a solicitor-advocate, chartered surveyor, accredited adjudicator and CEDR Chambers lead mediator. He acts for contractors, employers and governments in the building, construction, engineering, infrastructure, transport, energy, oil and gas, and process engineering sectors. Dispute resolution experience spans litigation, arbitration (domestic and international), adjudication, DAB/DRB, mediation, early neutral evaluation and expert determination. He regularly acts as lead mediator in multi-party multi- million disputes. Nicholas is a certified adjudicator and sits on international dispute boards and as arbitrator. Chamber & Partners 2011 notes Nicholas for his “ability to pre-empt potential problems and provide advice in a clear manner that maintains the individual needs of clients”. Legal 500, 2011 edition list Nicholas as a leading figure for Construction and Mediation who is “extremely knowledgeable and listens carefully to his clients”. The IBA’s 2008 and 2013 editions of International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers Today listed Nicholas as one of the “ten most highly regarded individuals internationally for construction law” and the IBA’s Who’s Who Legal 2015 listed Nicholas in the top five in Europe.
	Robert Hoxie is responsible for overseeing planning, environmental, design and construction activities for O’Hare and Midway International Airports. Chicago O'Hare is now focused on delivering its multi-billion dollar O’Hare 21 terminal-focused capital program, which comes on the heels of a US $6bn airfield realignment program that included four new runways and two reconstructed and lengthened runways in the midst of one of the world's busiest airfield. O’Hare 21 includes more than $6bn in major terminal expansion and modernization projects and approximately 100 individual projects to upgrade and replace airport facilities and infrastructure. Prior to joining the CDA, Robert provided strategic and technical advice across a range of aviation facilities planning, environmental and business disciplines to airport owners, operators and investors. He led or supported several airport master planning projects, for O’Hare International Airport as well as for other US and international airports. Robert has also assisted private sector investors and national governments with privatization and infrastructure transactions for airports in Asia, Europe and South America on issues related to demand/capacity analyses, business planning, capital expenditure program structuring and traffic forecasting. Robert holds a BA in architecture and a BS in civil engineering from Lehigh University.
	Scott Lowe is a Principal of Trauner Consulting Services, Inc., a firm he has led for 30 years. His distinguished career spans more than four decades in the construction industry. He is an expert in construction claims analysis, schedule analysis, specification writing, and training. He is an accomplished and published writer, including the co-authorship of two books, Construction Delays, Third Edition and Construction on Contaminated Sites. Scott is a Professional Engineer in Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Wyoming. He is the past Chairman of CMAA’s Time Management Committee. During his tenure, he led the development of CMAA’s scheduling standards and procedures. Scott has provided expert witness testimony before the American Arbitration Association, the Armed Services and Civilian Boards of Contract Appeals, in court, and in other forms of dispute resolution. He has extensive experience in the preparation of expert reports and written testimony, interrogatories, discovery requests, questions for depositions and cross-examination, and trial exhibits. He has also presented many times at mediation. Scott has been qualified as an expert witness on the issues of cost and damages, delay, inefficiency, contract interpretation, and other issues related to the determination of the reasonable value of a claim, or change, and appropriate time extensions.
	Lindy Patterson QC is a Barrister with 39 Essex Chamber, London. She specializes in arbitration and adjudication, both internationally and within the UK. She is recognized as a leading construction and energy disputes specialist. She has extensive experience as counsel for clients in these sectors. As senior partner in a major commercial law firm before joining 39 Essex Chambers, she represented clients in large scale complex disputes in major infrastructure, energy and oil, and gas projects. She is Past President of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation’s Region 2 Board or Directors and served on the DRBF Executive Board of Directors in 2018-19. She is on the FIDIC President’s List of International Adjudicators; and serves on the following panels: TeCSA Adjudicators; Transport for London Conflict Avoidance Panel and RICS (Scotland).
	Matthew Poirier has 31 years’ experience in construction management, mega-project/program management and project controls. He received his B.S. in Construction Management from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston MA where he is also currently an Adjunct Professor for the Construction Management Capstone Course. Matthew has a unique balance of experience - as the first half of his career was working for large construction contractors and the latter half for owner/agencies as an advisor/consultant (often embedded within those public management structures). He is an innovative and seasoned professional in project controls, construction project scheduling, construction scheduling delay analysis, construction cost estimating, cost control, program budgeting, claims analysis, claims avoidance, risk management, constructability, dispute avoidance, dispute resolution, oversight reporting, and program management. He has an extensive background in analyzing and improving project controls processes and procedures. Matthew started his career as a cost engineer and field engineer - working for Kiewit Construction Company. He then transitioned to the Bechtel Corporation where he gained valuable experiences as a project controls engineer, cost estimator, and construction scheduler. He later transitioned his career into various roles representing various owner/agencies as he leads as the Vice President of Project Controls for Keville Enterprises. Most of Matthew’s career has been dedicated to complex project and program management on mega infrastructure / transportation projects in the New England region. He has been a project controls manager on 4 high-profile programs that have a total value of over $23 Billion. He has extensive experience in Design-Bid-Build and Design-Build projects – both in the development of the contracts and the management of the contracts. Matthew has served on multiple mega-project / Design-Build selection committees – including 4 mega-bridge projects and one large transportation program. Matthew also has experience in alternative project delivery utilizing the Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) experience and was a key contributor to a dispute resolution on a CM-at-Risk (resort expansion project).
	Michael Powell is Vice President for the Construction Division of the American Arbitration Association® (AAA) and manages the Los Angeles Regional Office. Mr. Powell, a 30-year veteran with AAA, is responsible for expanding the use of AAA construction and commercial Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) services in the Pacific West region. In this role, he frequently interacts with clients who file cases and the panelists who serve as arbitrators and mediators. Mr. Powell also has national responsibility for developing the AAA’s construction caseload and works closely with construction industry associations through the AAA’s National Construction Dispute Resolution Committee (NCDRC). In this capacity, he assists the corporate, legal and public sector communities by educating them on proven dispute avoidance and resolution techniques and in designing dispute resolution systems to meet their specific needs. Mr. Powell is a graduate of California State University, San Bernardino. He is an author and frequent presenter on the subject of Alternative Dispute Resolution. He gives back to the ADR community with service as an active Board Member and past President of the California Dispute Resolution Council (CDRC), and is an advisor to several local ADR member organizations.
	Kenneth M. Roberts is Chair of the Construction Law Group at the law firm of Venable, LLP in Chicago. Mr. Roberts obtained his B.A. degree from the University of Iowa (1982) and his J.D. degree from the University of Iowa College of Law (1985). He has been an adjunct professor at Northwestern University’s Department of Civil Engineering Graduate Program since 2012. Mr. Roberts concentrates his practice in the field of construction law, project controls and procurement contracts. He engages in a range of services from preparation of and negotiation of contracts, project controls monitoring and advice during ongoing projects, negotiation of change orders and contract additions, alternate dispute resolution through mediation, arbitration, dispute review boards, and when necessary, litigation. Ken is President of the DRBF Region 1 Board of Directors and member of the DRBF Executive Board of Directors.
	Ann Russo is Executive Director of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation, the non-profit association dedicated to the use of Dispute Review Boards worldwide. She is co-editor of the Dispute Board Manual: A Guide to Best Practices and Procedures. Prior to joining the DRBF, she served as Public Relations Manager for J.A. Jones, Inc., an international construction and engineering firm based in Charlotte, NC, USA. She received the DRBF's President’s Distinguished Service Award in 2005.
	Ken Smith
	Dean Thomson is a shareholder in the firm of Fabyanske, Westra, Hart & Thomson, P.A., in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he has focused his practice for more than 38 years in construction law. He is a Fellow and President elect of the American College of Construction Lawyers, was the Chair of the Minnesota State Bar Association Section on Construction Law, and also served for six years on the Board of Directors for the Minnesota Associated General Contractors. Dean is an arbitrator and mediator for the American Arbitration Association, and he has consistently been rated as Band One Construction Attorney by Chambers, as Minneapolis “Attorney of the Year” by Best Lawyers in the areas of Construction Law and Real Estate Litigation, and for the past 20 years been listed as a Top 100 Minnesota “Super Lawyer” by the Minnesota Journal of Law and Politics. He also is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Minnesota Law School teaching courses in Construction Law and Remedies.
	Dr. Robert Vecchio has been with SOCOTEC Engineering, Inc. since 1985, currently as CEO, where he specializes in the root cause, fitness-for-service, probabilistic, and risk-based assessment of structures and systems. Over the past 40 years, Dr. Vecchio has made significant contributions to the understanding of a wide range of structural and system issues. Some of his specific capabilities include remaining life and degradation assessment, fracture mechanics, fatigue, stress corrosion cracking, creep, structural, and failure analyses, as well as oversight of mechanical behavior testing and engineering computer software development and application. His responsibilities also include the day-to-day management of the firm and it’s strategic vision.
	Wendy Venoit has more than 25 years of experience as a construction lawyer and arbitration advocate whose practice focuses on representing contractors and owners in litigation and arbitration of construction disputes. Wendy has extensive first chair experience in domestic and international construction disputes, including litigation in state and federal forums and mediation and arbitration before the AAA, JAMS, LCIA, ICDR and ICC. She is also regularly asked to counsel clients with respect to ongoing construction projects (serving as project counsel) to draft and negotiate contracts, interpret contract terms, assert and defend claims, and resolve disputes so as to avoid litigation. She was recently inducted into The Moles, a highly prestigious nationwide fraternal organization of heavy construction professionals.
	Kate Vitasek is an international authority for her award-winning research and Vested® business model for highly collaborative relationships. Vitasek, a faculty member at the University of Tennessee, has been lauded by World Trade Magazine as one of the “Fabulous 50+1” most influential people impacting global commerce. Her work has led to seven books, including: Vested: How P&G, McDonald’s and Microsoft Are Redefining Winning in Business Relationships, Getting to We: Negotiating Agreements for Highly Collaborative Relationships, and Contractingin the New Economy. She is known for her practical and research-based advice for driving transformation and innovation through highly collaborative and strategic partnerships. She has appeared on CNN International, Bloomberg, NPR, and Fox Business News. Her work has been featured in over 300 articles in publications including HBR, Forbes, Chief Executive Magazine, CIO Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Journal of Commerce, World Financial Review, and Intelligent Sourcing.
	Mike Whalen is a Managing Director in Deloitte’s Infrastructure and Capital Projects (I&CP) practice and leads the Technology, Media, and Telecom Industry for I&CP. He has more than 35 years of experience assisting some of the most prestigious global owners and EPCs improve the delivery of their mission critical capital construction programs. Mike has deep experience across all lifecycle stage gates including pre-Feed, Feed, FID, engineering, procurement, fabrication, construction, project controls, risk management, claims management, commissioning, close-out and dispute resolution. He also has significant experience assisting owners select and implement fit-for-purpose project delivery systems, contracting strategies, project governance and assurance frameworks. Mike has led numerous significant engagements in connection with some of the largest and most complex global mega/giga-projects on behalf of owners across numerous industries and asset classes including semiconductor fabs, data centers, oil and gas upstream and downstream projects, power, pharmaceutical, gaming, hospitality, and mining projects. Mike has presented expert witness testimony at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) as well as participated in alternate dispute resolution procedures including mediations and internal arbitrations for numerous owners and contractors. Prior to joining Deloitte, Mike was a Partner with another Big-4 firm where for part of his tenure he served as the National Director of Construction Advisory Services and as an expat construction Partner in Shanghai, China.