Irvine, Calif. – The JAMS Foundation is pleased to announce the eight fellows who have been selected for the 2025 Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship Program. Each year, the Foundation approves fellowships up to $20,000 in support of projects developed by Fellowship applicants. Fellows join from across the globe, particularly in countries that do not have an established culture of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for cases in litigation.
“The Foundation has chosen another extremely talented group of ADR professionals from around the globe. With the success of the fellowship program, we are proud to continue supporting the growth of ADR globally. This would not be possible without the passion each of the Fellows and all those involved bring to create this enriching program.”
Ellen Bass, director of the Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship Program
Founded in 2008, the Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship Program is named to honor the contributions of JAMS neutral Hon. Daniel Weinstein (Ret.). With support from the JAMS Foundation in collaboration with Judge Weinstein, the program has provided opportunities for qualified individuals outside of the United States to study ADR processes and practices in the U.S., assisting them in their ability to advance dispute resolution in their home countries. Since its inception, the program has trained over 150 Fellows from more than 90 countries.
“The use of ADR around the world has grown substantially since the fellowship program started, and we are excited to welcome the newest Fellows to this year's cohort. Like the many Fellows before them, we have no doubt that these individuals will bring the same energy to help the program flourish. We also thank Judge Weinstein for his continued guidance.”
David Brandon, managing director of the JAMS Foundation and JAMS Institute
Listed below are the eight Fellows selected for the 2025 Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship Program.
Jorge Alonso Rodrigo (Spain) – Mr. Rodrigo is a career diplomat, currently serving as a policy officer in the Peace, Security and Defense Partnerships Division of the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels, where his work emphasizes conflict prevention, mediation and security partnerships with the United Nations (UN) as well as with Latin America. He holds degrees in economics and law from Zaragoza University, with a specialization in international law and a particular emphasis on UN-led conflict resolution initiatives. He subsequently earned a diploma in public international law from The Hague Academy of International Law and completed a master’s degree in peace, security and defense at the Gutierrez Mellado Institute, where his studies focused on crisis management, conflict resolution and peacebuilding. As part of his fellowship in the U.S., he plans to gain practical experience in structuring processes to bridge the gap between private sector mediation practices and public sector diplomacy to contribute to more inclusive peace operations, addressing the needs of conflict-affected communities.
Iva Břízová (Czech Republic) – Ms. Břízová is a lawyer, mediator and psychotherapist whose interdisciplinary work bridges the legal, therapeutic and organizational spheres to transform how conflicts are understood, communicated and resolved. She is the founder of Divorce Without Drama, an innovative initiative offering holistic ADR services to resolve family disputes amicably and foster long-term relationships. Accredited by the Ministry of Justice as a mediator, she participated in the interdisciplinary implementation of the Cochem Model, providing systemic changes to family law proceedings and prioritizing dispute resolution with a child-centered approach. She completed dual master’s degrees in law and media communication from Charles University, with an emphasis on international law and ADR, culminating in a qualitative comparative analysis of mediation in the U.S., Germany and the Czech Republic. While pursuing her fellowship in the U.S., she aims to enhance her knowledge of ADR systems to create scalable, interdisciplinary models for conflict transformation to bring systemic change to the Czech Republic, where ADR is underutilized in family disputes.
Christian Radu Chereji (Romania) – Dr. Chereji is professor and associate dean of the School of Political, Administrative and Communication Sciences at Babeș-Bolyai University, where he also is director of the Conflict Studies Center. An IMI-certified mediator, he further acts as mediator at ADR Center Global and is the owner of Christian Radu Chereji Mediation Office. He is an international mediation leader and trainer, and has designed and led mediation trainings focused on workplace disputes, company-community disputes and community-based mediation of land disputes. He also serves as a conflict management and community engagement consultant. During his fellowship project in the U.S., he intends to explore the intersection of development dispute resolution and mediation, focusing on enhancing strategies to address conflicts arising from large-scale development projects in Romania, throughout the region and internationally.
Luciana Drimel Dias (Brazil) – Dr. Dias is a lawyer, mediator and conflict resolution strategist with 30 years of experience, combining academic work, legal practice and leadership in ADR. As a full professor at Pontifical Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR), she taught law, negotiation and dispute system design, mentoring and developing the next generation of dispute resolution leaders in Brazil. She currently serves as CEO of Conflict Resolution (CR) Connection, established in 2020 to promote professional development in the field of mediation and conflict resolution. CR Connection provides innovative international opportunities for learning and networking events for judges, lawyers, mediators and other conflict resolution professionals in collaboration with universities and ADR providers. As part of her fellowship, she plans to deepen her understanding of ADR by attending advanced academic programs in the U.S. while learning best practices in dispute resolution through observation of conflict management procedures at JAMS.
Maksym Khodakivskyi (Ukraine) – Judge Khodakivskyi has served as a judge on the District Court of the city of Dnipro for over a decade, with a specialization in civil and administrative cases. A graduate of the LL.M. Program in Mediation at Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania, he is currently pursuing a doctorate in the civil law department at V.M. Koretskyi Institute of State and Law. He is a trainer at the National School for Judges of Ukraine on the use of mediation and further serves as a member of the board of the European Association of Judges for Mediation-Ukraine (GEMME Ukraine), where he leads a team of judges and mediators that are developing a comprehensive training course on alternative methods of conflict resolution. During his fellowship in the U.S., he plans to gain additional experience in mediation, especially in connection with the courts, to contribute to judicial efforts to foster a culture of peaceful dispute resolution in Ukraine.
Thidarat Liamsomboon (Thailand) – Judge Liamsomboon has over eight years of judicial experience in dispute resolution. Her dedication in prioritizing ADR in all cases as an integral part of her case management strategy to create more efficient, less adversarial and mutually beneficial approaches to resolving disputes resulted in the majority of her courts’ mediated cases being successfully resolved. A recipient of the highly competitive Office of the Judiciary scholarship funded by the Thai Government to support advanced legal studies, she is currently pursuing a doctorate in juridical science (SJD) at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, where her research examines the intersection of legal, technological and consumer protection issues in the rapidly evolving field of digital health, with a goal of proposing improvements to Thailand’s legal system. During her fellowship in the U.S., she hopes to develop ADR guidelines specifically tailored to the unique needs of Thailand’s health care system, offering patients and health care providers an accessible, culturally sensitive path to resolving disputes.
Nitish Ram Sadhu (Australia/Fiji) – Mr. Sadhu is an experienced mediator and lawyer with management and leadership skills in ADR in both the private and public sectors. He is the founder of Oceania Mediation and Conflict Resolution Services (OMCRS), which serves the Oceania region and promotes restorative justice practices, dispute system design (DSD) and online dispute resolution (ODR). He holds a Master of Dispute Resolution from the University of New South Wales and is a graduate in law of the Australian National University and the University of Wolverhampton, England. He is an IMI-certified mediator in addition to having been accredited as a mediator in Australia and Singapore. As part of his fellowship in the U.S., he intends to obtain additional skills and knowledge in designing and establishing private and court-connected mediation centers to assist in the development of a culture of mediation in Fiji.
Maedot Yeshak Tesfaye (Ethiopia) – Judge Tesfaye serves on the Federal High Court of Ethiopia and has over 10 years of judicial experience, presiding over cases involving a range of complex matters, including commercial and investment disputes. She has extensive training and experience in court systems, procedures and rules, in addition to specialized training and certification in dispute resolution and private international law. She is an active member of national and international organizations dedicated to dispute resolution, including the London Court of International Arbitration, the International Chamber of Commerce Young Arbitrators Forum and the International Building Quality Center, where she works to develop ADR protocols for effective dispute resolution mechanisms in emerging economies such as those in Africa, particularly with regard to the building and construction industry. During her fellowship in the U.S., she intends to focus on deepening her understanding of ADR methods to enhance her ability to incorporate dispute resolution practices into judicial systems and arbitration proceedings in Ethiopia.
About the JAMS Foundation
The nonprofit JAMS Foundation was established in 2002 by JAMS, the largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution services worldwide. The mission of the JAMS Foundation is to provide financial assistance for conflict resolution initiatives with national and international impact and to share its dispute resolution expertise for the benefit of the public interest.
The Foundation is funded entirely by contributions from JAMS neutrals, executives and associates, and a substantial annual donation from JAMS. To uphold the company's core value of neutrality, the Foundation accepts no donations outside of JAMS. The Foundation currently comprises 300 principal benefactors and has provided more than $14 million in grant funding since its inception.
About JAMS – The Way Forward
JAMS is the world’s largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services, handling more than 21,000 cases annually. With nearly 500 neutrals and 29 locations, JAMS delivers efficient, cost-effective and impartial solutions for business and legal disputes at any stage of conflict. Since its founding in 1979, its distinguished panel has included retired federal and state court judges, former litigators, transactional attorneys and other ADR professionals with deep industry and practice area experience. JAMS offers customized in-person, virtual and hybrid resolution services to provide a seamless experience through concierge-level client care, highly skilled case managers and advanced technology.
Building on this foundation, JAMS Pathways provides organizations with early conflict resolution, facilitation and training, helping teams prevent disputes before they escalate.
With a legacy of trust and innovation, JAMS helps parties find the way forward so they can focus on what matters most. Learn more at www.jamsadr.com and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, X and the JAMS ADR blog.