A History of the Ray Corollary Initiative

Our History: Planting the Seed for Change

            The Ray Corollary Initiative, Inc.™ (“RCI”) is a 501(c)(3) corporation dedicated to increasing the utilization of all available talent in the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) field by removing existing barriers to the appointment of qualified arbitrators, mediators, other neutrals historically under-represented in the ADR field.  In response to the call to action of the American Bar Association (ABA) Resolution 105, the RCI was launched to encourage ADR providers and selectors to strive for their rosters or proposed panels of neutrals to include at least 30% of historically underutilized neutrals.

            The RCI’s transformative work is based on empirical evidence. The framework for the RCI’s initiative was laid out in a law review article by Prof. Homer C. La Rue and Arbitrator Alan A. Symonette, The Ray Corollary Initiative: How to Achieve Diversity and Inclusion in Arbitrator Selection.[1]

           In synopsis, the article documents that the ADR user-community acknowledged that there was a lack of representation by race, gender, and other identifiable qualities in the pool of persons whom they regularly call upon for arbitration or mediation services, and participants further acknowledged the need to correct this imbalance. It documented additional acknowledgment by the ADR user-community that many of those who are responsible for the selection of arbitrators and mediators are lawyers who are responsible for the representation of their clients’ interests. As such, they typically avoid selecting an unknown mediator without an assurance that the mediator has the perceived requisite knowledge, skill, and experience. To decide otherwise would, in the minds of many lawyers, compromise the interests of their clients, something that their ethical obligations do not permit. That risk aversion translates into the decision not to call upon the services of a neutral whom the lawyer does not know, or one whom the lawyer cannot easily learn about from a close colleague. This research found that that mediators from racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in the ADR field, no matter how experienced, are usually unknown to the relatively small group of lawyers who are responsible for selecting arbitrators and mediators. Although arbitration was included in the dialogue, much of the discussion centered around mediation, the initiative that resulted from the forum dialogue thus also focused on mediation.

           The authors of the article believed that a key ingredient for the success of the type of reform they proposed is that ADR service providers and users voluntarily agree to a plan with substantially the following elements:

a. That users of neutral services affirmatively demonstrate that they
have considered persons historically under-represented in ADR slates.
— at least 30% of the candidate pool — for appointments as
arbitrators, mediators and other ADR neutrals;

b. That providers of arbitrator rosters make such consideration by the
users possible by providing appropriate selection lists;

c. That the results of such intentional voluntary considerations by
service users should be objectively measured and reported periodically
to measure the fidelity of efforts to reach the 30% consideration goal,
and research its impacts.

           Prof. La Rue and Arbitrator Symonette noted that the 30% metric is not aimed to change the criteria for the section of neutrals.  Rather, the goal of the 30% metric is to change the composition of the available pool of neutrals, short-listed for selection, thereby overcoming the existing unconscious bias in the selection process.  Based on their proposed use of the 30% metric, Prof. La Rue and Arbitrator Symonette laid out a new transformative framework (the RCI Pledge) to address the lack of women and people of color in ADR slates in a manner that does not alter the parties’ autonomy for the selection of neutrals and/or the selection criteria established by the parties.   Prof. La Rue and Arbitrator Symonette also outlined in their law review article a nationwide plan of action to bring together the ADR community-advocates, practitioners and neutrals-to collaborate in a process designed to address the statistical underrepresentation and historical barriers to access that have prevented the utilization of all of the available talent in the ADR field.

The Response By the ADR Community: “If You Build It, They Will Come.”

           The ADR community answered the call for action.  Rostering entities and private selectors of ADR neutrals recognized that the exclusion and lack of access for many qualified individuals underrepresented in ADR is an existential risk to the continued legitimacy of arbitration, mediation and other forms of ADR. Initially, the RCI was adopted as an initiative of the National Academy of Arbitrators (“NAA”). In so doing, the NAA also helped the RCI to establish an internet presence. Simultaneously, the American Bar Association (“ABA”) assisted the RCI by drafting the RCI Pledge that would enable appointers to announce their intention to assess the 30% metric. CPR (The International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution) was the first rostering entity to fully adopt the RCI Pledge and to include the 30% metric in the preparation of its slates of neutrals.

           The 2021 year ended with the RCI’s organizational formation and incorporation.  Since its inception, the members of the RCI’s Board of Directors have volunteered countless hours and contributed financially to build the RCI’s organizational capacity and the success of its mission. 

           Since the RCI’s formation, the list of organizations that have adopted the RCI Pledge continues to grow and to transform the ADR community. The organizations that have signed the RCI Pledge are listed elsewhere on the RCI website and is updated as new entities take the RCI Pledge.

The Path Forward:  The Opportunities And The Challenges That Lie Ahead For Us

“Differences are not intended to separate, to alienate.
We are different precisely in order to realize our need to one another.”
– Archbishop Desmond Tutu

           The RCI’s transformative work, with the use of the 30% metric, has provided the ADR community with a clear path to expanding the pool of highly skilled neutrals. The RCI continues to work hard to increase the selection of historically underrepresented neutrals by working with those who sign the RCI Pledge to ensure that each slate of neutrals for selection is composed of at least 30% or women that belong to a group statistically shown to be underrepresented in neutral selection.

           The RCI’s work also includes the study of the impact of the RCI Pledge on the dispute resolution field.  In addition, the RCI seeks to transform the old trope, “I only choose neutrals whom I know” into a statement of access and opportunity rather than one of exclusion. In that vein, the RCI organizes “Meet the Neutrals” events designed to introduce new arbitrators to the parties and to thus increase the selection of heretofore historically underrepresented arbitrators. The RCI has successfully created a safe space for selectors of ADR neutrals to meet neutrals whom they may have been unaware because those persons are not in the community of persons whom the selector knows.

           To increase access and opportunity for the inclusion of  historically underrepresented neutrals, the RCI has worked closely with the following organizations to introduce these neutrals to the ADR community: the American Bar Association (ABA) Dispute Resolution Section, Women in Dispute Resolution (WIDR) Committee of the ABA Dispute Resolution Section, Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations Scheinman Institute on Conflict Prevention, the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA), the AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Alliance, JAMS, the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (“CPR”), The National Academy of Arbitrators (NAA) and the NAA Research and Education Fund (NAA-REF), Miles Mediation & Arbitration, and the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), among others.  RCI’s collaboration with these organizations has allowed the RCI to expand the presence of women and minority ADR professionals who are now known by the selectors of arbitrators, mediators and other neutrals.

            In early 2024, in a historical collaboration between the AAA-ICDR Foundation and the JAMS Foundation, the RCI was awarded a joint grant in the amount of $750,000 over 3 years to support RCI’s effort to increase access and opportunity to facilitate the utilization of all of the available talent in the ADR field.

RCI, Inc. Selected for Its Contribution to Diversity in the Legal Profession

            In September 2024, the RCI was selected as the recipient of the 2024 ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law’s Honorable Bernice B. Donald Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession Award. The Award recognizes the impact of the leadership of the RCI its commitment to advancing access and opportunity for all and removing barriers to participation in the ADR community and the legal profession.

            The recognition from the ADR community of the RCI’s transformative work as well as the collaboration received from the stakeholders has enabled the RCI to lay a foundation to build a deeper, more inclusive ADR community that allows ADR users and providers to utilize all of the highly skilled talent available. 

           In 2025, the United States of America witnessed political and legal challenges to private programs designed to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion”, conflating them with unlawful discrimination. The mission of the RCI is to remedy discrimination and exclusion, and the RCI remains unwavering in its mission to expand the selection of skilled arbitrators, mediators, and neutrals from all backgrounds, recognizing that diverse work, life, and cultural experiences enrich the decision-making process. The organization stands firm in its commitment to ensuring that all available talent is utilized, driving the selection of skilled arbitrators and mediators who have been historically underutilized in the Alternative Dispute Resolution field.

           The RCI will not be deterred by the current political landscape or any efforts to undermine this important work.

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[1] 63 Howard LJ 215 (2020).  The law review article followed the presentation by Prof. La Rue and Arbitrator Symonette at the 13^th Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference of the American Bar Association Section of the Labor and Employment Law. The panel explored the opportunities and challenges in developing a more diverse roster of arbitrators.