MO-AFCC January 2026 Lunch and Learn

The Missouri Chapter of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (MO-AFCC)
Join the MO-AFCC for this FREE lunch-and-learn session, being offered via Zoom Webinar.
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Caucus in Family and Divorce Mediation: Practice, Ethics, and Evolving Standards​ 

Friday, January 9, 2026, 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
via Zoom Webinar
Approved 1.8 CLE (Ethics) and 1.5 CEU (Ethics)
Brought to you in part through the generous support of our sponsors:

About the Session

We will explore the evolving role of caucus in both attorney-assisted and non-attorney-assisted mediation.  Our panel of mediators will discuss when and how caucus can be used effectively, how to define and manage confidentiality within the caucus setting, and strategies to balance neutrality and transparency.  Participants will gain insight into the benefits and potential pitfalls of caucusing, including its impact on party self-determination, trust-building, and settlement dynamics.  The program will also address recent updates to the Revised Model Standards in Family and Divorce Mediation, focusing on how these revisions affect the ethical and practical use of caucus.​

Our Presenters

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​Kimberly Bettisworth, JD - Kimberly has almost thirty years’ experience practicing exclusively in the area of domestic relations and family law. She is an accomplished mediator and advocate. While Kimberly enjoyed a strong career as a litigator, she has now shifted her practice almost exclusively to mediation. Kimberly finds mediation extremely rewarding because it places the direction and outcome of the case squarely in the control of the parties, who have the best vantage point and motivation to resolve the case productively, respectfully and efficiently. Kimberly also serves as the Chief Specially Appointed Contempt Attorney for the St. Louis County Court’s Indirect Criminal Contempt Docket, having been an inaugural volunteer attorney at the creation of the Docket in 2010. Throughout Kimberly’s legal career she has been an active ally for victims of domestic violence. Kimberly graduated from Michigan State University in 1991 and from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law in 1994. Kimberly received the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award from the St. Louis County Bar Association in 2002 and is a former Chair of the Young Lawyers Section of the Missouri Bar.
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​M.J. Crawford, LCSW - M.J. Crawford is director of the Domestic Relations Services Department at the Family Court of St. Louis County which oversees The Exchange Center, Domestic Violence Court, and Domestic Relations Services. Prior to becoming the director of the department in 2019, M.J. spent sixteen (16) years in the Domestic Relations Services Unit of the Family Court of St. Louis County providing alternative dispute resolution in order of protection dockets and the Parenting Court Docket, facilitating custody plan development with co-parents, managing cases post judgment, and supervising visitation to court-referred families. M.J. is currently President of the Missouri Chapter of AFCC.  She completed her Master of Arts in Education in Counseling Psychology at Seton Hall University and earned her Bachelors of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Sexuality, Marriage and the Family from the University of Waterloo in Canada.  She currently resides in St. Louis County with her husband, children, and Westie.  ​
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​Nicole Pace, LCSW - Nicole is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Mediator.  She practiced social work with children, ages 0 to 18 and their families in Chicago for over 10 years.   She completed my Bachelor of Social Work at the University of Missouri at Columbia and Master of Social Work at the University of Denver. Her work has focused on families and children, with an emphasis on peace and justice. Nicole offers complete divorce / separation mediation or with portions of the mediation process, such as “parenting plans”.  She also provides family mediation, divorce coaching, co-parent mediation.  She is member of AFCC and a former board member of the Missouri Chapter, she is a trained Parenting Coordinator, a Collaborative Divorce Coach and a member of the Collaborative Family Law Association of St. Louis. 

Learning Objectives

This workshop will:
  • Describe appropriate circumstances for using caucus in attorney-assisted and non-attorney-assisted mediation.
  • Present best practices for defining and maintaining confidentiality within the caucus process while preserving mediator neutrality.
  • Discuss the intersection of the Revised Model Standards for Family and Divorce Mediation with the use of caucus.

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