The AAA-ICDR mourns the loss of William K. Slate II, its former President and Chief Executive Officer, who passed away on June 10, 2022.

Mr. Slate led the AAA-ICDR for 19 years, from 1994 until his retirement in 2011, and provided extraordinary leadership and vision that led to numerous notable achievements, including the following:

• Founding of the International Centre for Dispute Resolution^® (ICDR^®) in 1996, now the frontrunner in international arbitration case filings.
• Ensuring the fairness of ADR through the drafting and implementation of the Due Process Protocols that documented the equitable resolution of consumer, consumer debt, employment, and healthcare disputes.
• The creation of the A. Leon Higginbotham Fellows Program to provide training, mentorship, and networking opportunities to up-and-coming diverse ADR professionals, a program that continues today.
• Expansion of the AAA-ICDR’s mediation services, including options for the resolution of disputes arising out of natural disasters.
  

Mr. Slate’s first column in the March 1994 Dispute Resolution Journal, which he also included in his final President’s Letter in the AAA-ICDR’s 2011 annual report, remains no less true today: “The AAA is poised to take on new leadership challenges as we further develop and refine ADR techniques and applications, to meet the discrete needs of a growing number of users in different fields.”

Mr. Slate was brilliant in his field of expertise, and was the epitome of grace and kindness. His respect for those he interacted with, in turn, led to their mutual respect for him. We are forever grateful to Mr. Slate for his leadership and dedication to the AAA-ICDR and the field of alternative dispute resolution.

Mr. Slate’s obituary, including information on funeral services and memorial donations, can be accessed HERE.