Speakers: Whitney Hodges and Dana Welch

Moderator: Lisa A. Romeo

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Whitney Hodges

Whitney Hodges is a partner in the Real Estate, Land Use and Natural Resources Practice Group in the firm’s San Diego office. She is the leader of the firm’s Cannabis Industry Team and the office Recruiting Chair. Whitney’s practice focuses on the representation of clients involved in real estate development. She advises and represents major residential, industrial, commercial and mixed-use development projects, as well as Native American Indian tribes, cannabis operators and renewable energy developers through all phases of the land use regulatory process and environmental compliance. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego.

Dana Welch

Dana WelchWelch has served as an arbitrator for over twenty-two years, presiding over nearly 400 matters, ranging from multi-million dollar cross-border transactions to single claimant employment disputes.  She is on the American Arbitration Association’s Large, Complex Commercial Dispute and Employment rosters. 
 
Dana is the Past-President of CalArb, Inc., President-elect of the College of Commercial Arbitrators, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.  She is also a member of the CLA’s Litigation Section’s ADR Committee.   Dana is a Northern California “Super Lawyer” in ADR and was included in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 Editions of Best Lawyers in America® for arbitration.
 
Before becoming a full-time arbitrator, she was the General Counsel of a technology-focused investment bank and a litigation partner at an AmLaw 50 law firm.

Lisa A. Romeo

Lisa is Vice President at the American Arbitration Association’s Boston Regional Office responsible for recruitment of potential arbitrators, outreach, education and business development for Commercial disputes in New England. She also manages of large, complex commercial arbitrations in Massachusetts and New York.    She is national co-lead for Technology business development for the AAA and also performs outreach and education in the Cannabis, Insurance and Franchise industries. Employed by the AAA since 1988, Lisa has a B.A. from Bates College and a Master of Science in Management from Lesley University focusing on Institutional Development.