1. Workshop: Thursday, 23^th April 2026
Shuttle Mediation as a Tool in Highly Escalated Cross-Broder Family Cases

Workshop description

In highly escalated cross-border family disputes, direct dialogue between parents is sometimes no longer possible. High levels of conflict, deep mistrust, fear, or ongoing legal proceedings—particularly in cases involving allegations of international child abduction—can make joint mediation impossible. Either because one or both parties refuse to sit in one “room“ or having joint sessions might be unproductive or emotionally unsafe. In these circumstances, shuttle mediation may become a necessary structure to keep communication going while preventing further escalation.

In shuttle mediation, the mediator works separately with each parent—either in different rooms or through virtual breakout spaces—and carefully carries messages, questions, and proposals between them. This approach reduces confrontation and allows each parent to express concerns more openly while still participating in a structured negotiation process.

This webinar is designed for cross-border family mediators seeking practical tools for working with highly conflicted parents. The session will explore when shuttle mediation becomes an appropriate intervention and how mediators can use it effectively to maintain constructive communication. 

Participants will learn practical techniques for managing strong emotions, framing messages neutrally, and slowing down reactive communication. The workshop will also focus on keeping discussions child-focused, helping parents reflect on the needs and well-being of their children despite ongoing conflict. Particular attention will be given to the challenges that arise in cross-border disputes, including cultural differences, geographical distance, and legal pressures in child abduction cases.

Through examples and guided discussion, mediators will gain strategies for structuring shuttle sessions, clarifying proposals, and helping parents gradually move from entrenched positions toward workable arrangements.

By the end of the webinar, participants will have a clearer understanding of when and how to use shuttle mediation as a practical tool for managing highly escalated cross-border family disputes while maintaining constructive dialogue and a focus on the child’s best interests.

2. Workshop: Tuesday, 28^th April 2026
The Therapeutic Justice Approach & Mediation and Child Representation
within the Singapore context

Workshop description

This interactive webinar introduces the novel approach of “Therapeutic Justice”  (TJ) in (cross-border) family proceedings as practiced in Singapore, presented by two experienced MiKK mediators and family lawyers Aye Cheng Stone and Anuradha Sharma based in Singapore.

At the heart of this approach is the concept of therapeutic justice (TJ), which focuses on the emotional and psychological well-being of families involved in legal proceedings. Moving beyond purely legal outcomes, it promotes processes that reduce conflict, support communication, and prioritise the best interests of the child.

The workshop is designed to help participants understand TJ as a “lens” through which to examine how the law impacts psychological and emotional well-being. Participants will learn to distinguish between TJ “hardware” (laws, rules and procedures) and “software” (how legal actors apply and implement the law in practice), and will explore the three key TJ aims in family law:

• protective (ensuring safety),
• adjustive (supporting transitions), and
• supportive (promoting the best interests of the child).

Drawing on their practical experience, the speakers will demonstrate how these principles are embedded in mediation and court-connected processes in Singapore, including the close alignment between mediation, judicial practice, and multidisciplinary support.

Participants will also explore why TJ represents a smart, rather than “soft”, approach—one that integrates legal and non-legal outcomes. The session will highlight the role of mediators and lawyers in uncovering underlying interests rather than focusing solely on positions, while also addressing the professional realities of therapeutic practice, including risks such as burnout and secondary trauma. The importance of setting clear boundaries as an ethical and professional necessity will be emphasised.

The webinar is highly interactive, encouraging active participation through discussion, case examples, and exchange of experiences. Mediators will have the opportunity to engage directly with the speakers, ask questions, and reflect on how these innovative approaches can be applied in their own practice.

This session is particularly relevant for mediators working in or interested in cross-border family disputes and international child abduction cases.

3. Workshop: Thursday, 30^th April 2026
Diversity in Mediation

Workshop description

This MiKK Spring Webinar invites cross-border family mediators to explore diversity, bias, and inclusion in a practical and experience-based way. Designed as an interactive workshop, it combines short theoretical inputs with role plays, reflective exercises, and bias-awareness tools. Rather than treating diversity as a purely theoretical topic, participants are encouraged to explore how bias, assumptions, and difference may show up in real mediation situations.

The seminar takes a multidisciplinary approach, drawing on (family) mediation practice, mental health, counseling, and inclusive frameworks. Diversity is explored broadly and includes cultural and social backgrounds, disability, neurodiversity, and chronic illness. The concept of otherness is introduced as a practical lens for understanding difference, exclusion, and power dynamics in mediation.

Participants will work in small groups and plenary sessions, engaging in practical role plays and guided reflection.

This seminar is designed to strengthen mediators’ confidence in working with complexity and difference and to offer concrete, transferable tools that can be applied directly in their family mediation practice.

What participants will gain

By the end of the seminar, participants will be able to:

• Recognize and reflect on bias and power dynamics in mediation
• Increase self-awareness of personal assumptions and professional positioning
• Work more confidently with cultural diversity, disability, and neurodiversity
• Apply inclusive and culturally sensitive approaches in mediation
• Strengthen the quality and effectiveness of their mediation interventions

⭐⭐⭐Bonus Webinar⭐⭐⭐

4. Workshop: Tuesday, 5^th May 2026
Reflective Debrief
Finding Learning in the Middle of Intense Cross-Border Mediation

Workshop description

Cross-border mediations can be emotionally-taxing experiences for parties and the mediator.  What can you learn from these intense situations?  The Reflective Practice Institute International’s Reflective Debrief® model of case consultation invites mediators to return to the mediation to learn from the experience.  Unlike other case consultation methods, Reflective Debrief® focuses on the mediator’s experience rather than the parties’ behaviors.

 This presentation will include a short introduction to the principles of Reflective Practice and the Reflective Debrief® model together with a demonstration of the model.