American Arbitration Association® Announces Leadership Transition

President and CEO Bridget M. McCormack to step down; Board names former board member and current Chief Development Officer, Steve Errick, to serve as the Interim President and CEO

NEW YORK, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Arbitration Association (AAA^®) today announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Bridget M. McCormack will step down effective October 2 to take a leadership role focused on advancing the use of artificial intelligence in courts and judicial chambers — work she began as Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court and has continued throughout her tenure at the AAA. Her new organization will announce the appointment separately.

The AAA-ICDR Board of Directors has appointed former board member and current Chief Development Officer, Steve Errick, to serve as Interim President and CEO effective October 2, ensuring continuity in advancing the organization's commitment to providing trusted dispute resolution services. The Board will be conducting a formal search for the new CEO.

McCormack joined the AAA in February 2023 following a decade on the Michigan Supreme Court, where she served as Chief Justice from 2019 to 2022. During her tenure, the AAA greatly increased its annual cases filed to 580,000+; expanded its mediation practice and international footprint; and launched a variety of technology-forward partnerships, tools, and products, including the AAA AI Arbitrator. She also reinforced the organization's leadership as co-host of multiple podcasts, including the AI and the Future of Law podcast and the AAAi Podcast.

"An opportunity came along that sits at the intersection of work I have cared about throughout my career: access to justice, institutional innovation, and the potential of technology — especially AI — to fundamentally improve how our justice system serves people," said McCormack. "The chance to build something focused specifically on judges, at this moment in the evolution of the technology, felt like an opportunity I could not turn down."

"I leave with tremendous confidence in the AAA's future," she added. "The organization is strong, its mission has never been more important, and it has an exceptional leadership team and talented colleagues throughout who are deeply committed to its success."

"Bridget leaves the AAA stronger, more innovative, and more relevant than she found it," said J. Michael Kirkland, Chair of the AAA-ICDR Board of Directors. "The Board is grateful, and the Board is also clear-eyed: the strategy she helped build is the institution's strategy, and it continues without interruption under our interim President and CEO, Steve Errick. Our commitments to the parties we serve, to our panel of neutrals, and to our technology roadmap are unchanged."

Before her appointment to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2013, McCormack was Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at the University of Michigan Law School, where she co-directed the Michigan Innocence Clinic and helped found clinics in pediatric advocacy and domestic violence. She began her career as a public defender in New York City and taught at Yale Law School. As Chief Justice, she launched Michigan's statewide online dispute resolution platform and led the judiciary's transition to remote proceedings during the COVID-19 pandemic. She served as Strategic Advisor to the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School's Future of the Profession Initiative, where she taught courses on generative AI and its implications for the legal profession and civil justice.

For 100 years, the AAA has maintained an unwavering commitment to fair and efficient dispute resolution. That foundation continues to guide the organization as it provides trusted arbitration and mediation services, experienced panels of neutrals, and innovative solutions that help shape the future of dispute resolution.

About the American Arbitration Association
The American Arbitration Association is the largest provider of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services in the world. Marking its centennial in 2026, the American Arbitration Association has transformed how legal issues are resolved for better since 1926, turning disputes worldwide into opportunities for understanding and progress. A not-for-profit organization, the American Arbitration Association's mission is to deliver ADR services with integrity, transparency, and innovation. For more information, visit www.adr.org/.

SOURCE American Arbitration Association