Two UNM students participated in a panel presented as part of the New Jersey Association of Professional Mediators Civil & Divorce Mediation Seminar in May. Emma Williams and Shin Hlaing presented on dispute resolution issues with a focus on the 2025 American Bar Association Opinion 518, which discusses the legal obligations and duties of lawyers who serve as mediators in civil cases. Williams just completed her third year at UNM, while Hlaing graduated this May and plans to attend law school in the fall.

Mediation is the most common way that cases are resolved in the legal system as the involved parties work together to reach a resolution without going to litigation. Mediators are there to be neutral parties working towards that goal.

UNM professor and pre-law advisor Lawrence Jones moderated the discussion, which also featured professionals Joni Jones and Bruce Matez. The two students also contributed to written materials for the event and wrote opinions on the ABA issuance. Both students were a part of the new "Dispute Resolution and Law" class, created and taught by Jones during the spring of 2026.

"Speaking on Opinion 518 at NJAPM's 11th Annual Civil & Divorce Mediation Seminar was a very exciting and compelling experience for me, both personally and professionally. While it was initially nerve-racking, since it was my first professional speaking opportunity to an audience well-versed in mediation, I found it to be incredibly rewarding," Williams said.

"My biggest takeaway from this experience was the utmost support I received from not only my fellow panelists but also the organizers and participants. It made the experience incredibly impactful to me. I truly enjoyed being able to speak to and be a part of such a supportive legal community. It made me excited to continue my education in law and mediation and to see what the future holds for ethics in mediation."

Hlaing, who was not always on a pre-law track, said the event was extremely helpful not only for the experience but also for the professional exposure.

"Hearing from professional mediators practicing in New Jersey was very helpful to me as someone who has not had professional exposure to the legal field," she said. "There is a stereotype that a lot of political science majors are pre-law, but for the longest time I was not a pre-law student. This led to me pursuing classes and experiences more related to "politics" than "law." This speaking opportunity not only provided me with an opportunity to apply what I learned in Prof. Jones' class but gave me much needed professional exposure."

Anju Jessani, the co-chair of the NJAPM conference, said that the organization received extremely positive feedback on the two student participants.

"Shin and Emma were included in theme development of the ethics program, participated in preparing written materials, attended our technical check, and presented on May 1 to an online audience of approximately 120 professional mediators with backgrounds in law, mental health, and finance with aplomb," Jessani said.