
Nancy J. Highness


Mediation First LLC
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PMB B1-133
15600 NE 8th Street
Bellevue, WA 98008
USA
206-399-1805
Fax: 425-895-8349
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Description of Practice

Mediation Focus Areas: Business, Workplace, Employment. Fact finding EEO investigations. Facilitation Services, FINRA Arbitrator.
Certified to administer the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and Conflict Dynamic Profile (CDP).
Professional Background
MA: Early Childhood Education, Arizona State University
MBA: Seattle University
Basic and Advanced Negotiation Training: Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School(June 1993 and June 1994)
Mediation Training: Harvard Law School(April 1994)
Mediation Training: DRC of Snohomish and Island Counties (Sept. 1993)
Collaborative Negotiations and Cooperative Problem Solving: CRRI (24 hours, March 1996)
DR in Employment Cases, Advanced Practice Institute (20 hours, December 1998)
Advanced Mediaton Training: National Association of Security Dealers Regulation
FINRA Approved Mediator
Washington Mediation Association Certified Mediator
FINRA Approved Arbitrator
Experience
65+ family dissolution/parenting plan mediation
300+ Business/Commercial Mediation
100+ Employment/Workplace Related Mediaiton
65+ Family dissolutions/parenting plan mediations (no longer practicing in the family mediation area)
8 hours EEO update Continuing Education required yearly.
Degrees
BA, MA: Education, Arizona State University
MBA: Seattle University
Training
Dates | Trainer(s) | Title |
9/93 | DRC of Snohomish & Island Counties: Trainer: Laura Pierson | Basic Mediation Training (40 hours) |
6/1993 | Harvard Law School-Program on Negotation: Trainer: Linda Singer, Michael Lewis, Frank A.E. Sander | Negotiation Workshop (40 hours) |
4/1994 | Harvard Law School-Program on Negotiation | Mediation Training (40 hours) |
8/1997 | National Assoc. of Securities Dealers(Sam Imperati) | Mediation Skills Training (24 hours) |
5/1998 | US Postal Service: Western Region | Transformative Mediation:Advanced Skills Training (16 hours) |
12/1998 | Advanced Employment Mediation Training (Margaret Shaw, David Hoffman, Homer LaRue) | Advanced Employment Mediation (24 hours) |
1/2004 | Alliance for Education in Dispute Resolution (Richard Fincher) | Advanced Employment Law Mediation (20 hours) |
3/2004 | Simon Frasier University | Creative Conflict Management in Healthcare (24 hours) |
6/2005 | Pepperdine School of Law | Designing Dispute Resolution Systems (20 hours) |
8/2005 | Equal Employment Opportunity Commission | EXCEL Conference (24 hours) |
4/2010 | Vital Smarts | Crucial Conversations (16 hours) |
6/2010 | Vital Smarts | Influencer (16 hours) |
10/2010 | CPP | Myers Briggs Type Indicator (32 hours) |
4/2009 | Leadership Strategies | Effective Facilitator (32 hours) |
10/2007 | Harvard Negotiation Project | Teaching Negotiation in the Organization (16 hours) |
9/2007 | HSM Management Series | Innovative Negotiation Strategies |
11/2006 | DeBono Thinking Systems | Focus on Facilitation (24 hours) |
6/2006 | DeBono Thinking Systems | Lateral Thinking/Six Thinking Hats (16 hours) |
6/2011 | Interlocal Conflict Resolution Group | Facilitation Training (20 hours) |
6/2011 | WA State Department of Commerce | Foreclosure Mediation Training (20 hours) |
6/2011 | ICohere | Appreciative Inquiry Workshop (20 hours) |
4/2012 | Center for Conflict Dynamics | Becoming Conflict Competent (12 hours) |
4/2012 | Center for Conflict Dynamics | Becoming Conflict Competent Train the Trainer (12 hours) |
10/2013 | Cinnie Noble | CINERGY Conflict Management Coaching (20 hours) |
11/2017 | Marilee Adams | Inquiry Institute (20 hours) |
Laura Crashaw, PhD | Coaching the Abrasive Leader (8 hours) | |
9/2018 | Michael Lomax | Mediating with High Conflict Personalities (7 hours) |
8/2018 | TRACOM | Tracom Social Styles (6 hours) |
03/2019 | Liberating Structures | Immersion Workshop (14 hours) |
03/2019 | Liberating Structures | Global Summit (24 hours) |
03/2019 | Various | WSBA Northwest Dispute Resolution Conference (14 hours) |
04/2019 | Interpersonal Mediation Model | King County ADR Program (14 hours) |
Approach
Primarily facilitative. I believe it is the parties dispute and to begin to assert my own values, opinions, or beliefs is to turn the mediation into a settlement conference where their personal or emotional issues are diminished or ignored completely in favor of a settlement that I orchestrate.
Fees
I bill on an hourly, half-day or full-day basis. Fees generally split by the parties. Administrative fees are billed when appropriate. This is always discussed up front. The final invoice is always based on time, so if a client has booked a full day mediation and we finish in 6 hours 45 minutes, that is the time the client will be billed for, not 8 hours.
Other Information
I have been the Co-Chair for the WSBA ADR Section Northwest Annual ADR Conference for 8 years.
I was one of three Program Co-Chairs for the April 2008 ABA DR National Conference in Seattle, WA.
Areas of Practice
- ADA (5 mediated)
- Business (200 mediated)
- Civil (general) (200 mediated)
- Community (75 mediated)
- Contracts (100 mediated)
- Education (25 mediated)
- EEOC (75 mediated)
- Employment (100 mediated)
- Foreclosure (5 mediated)
- General (200 mediated)
- Health Care
- Labor - Management (10 mediated)
- Landlord - Tenant (100 mediated)
- Online Mediation (200 mediated)
- Organizational (50 mediated)
- Partnership (25 mediated)
- Postal Service (75 mediated)
- Securities
- Workplace (100 mediated)
Professional Services
- Mediator
- Systems Designer
- Fact-Finder
- Mediation Consultant
- Mediation Trainer
- Facilitator
References
Mr. Tom Melancon
SFEB ADR Coordinator
Ms. Chris Koser
former SFEB ADR Coordinator