The primary focus of my practice is mediation within the family context. Family mediations address conflicts or concerns regarding issues involving adult families, elders, adult siblings, estates and trusts, caregiving, divorce, parenting, post-divorce matters, and small family businesses. I also mediate disputes between couples who wish to remain married, unmarried cohabitants, neighbors, and/or friends. Outside the family realm, I mediate conflicts/concerns between co-workers, employees and managers, contractors and customers, or other providers of professional services and their clients or customers. My goal is to engage each party in having the best possible discussion about the issues of concern to them, and to support parties in working toward collaborative, mutually agreeable, and durable solutions.
My career has spanned the spectrum of conflict resolution, from the most adversarial to the most collaborative dispute resolution methods. As an eager young lawyer, I practiced as a trial attorney for several years in a large law firm. It did not take long before I realized that litigation was far too often an expensive, inefficient, time-consuming, and stressful approach to resolving disputes, often leaving all parties feeling dissatisfied, disenchanted with the courts, and with damaged personal or professional relationships. I moved on to work in the field of alternative dispute resolution, and have focused my work exclusively on mediation.
I have mediated over 300 cases in the last several years. These cases have involved issues brought by and related to families, elders, adult siblings, divorcing couples, separating friends, former significant others, neighbors, contractors/customers, landlords/tenants, expert witnesses/attorneys, and professional service suppliers and their customers.
I encourage people to consider mediation as a way to resolve issues more quickly, more efficiently, more economically, and with greater satisfaction. Mediation participants find that they are able to build creative, lasting solutions that support personal, family or professional relationships and reduce stress. Within every mediation, I am committed to the overarching mediation principles of mediator neutrality, parties’ self-determined and informed decision making, confidentiality and voluntariness. I view my role as helping parties navigate the slippery slopes of differences and conflict. My job is to facilitate my clients’ discussions; their job is to collaboratively work toward their best mutually agreeable solution.
B.A, Psychology, University of Rochester
J.D., University of California at Berkeley
Fees are based on an hourly rate, and no retainer is required. Please call or email to discuss fee specifics.
