Mediation Experience

 

Since 2007 I have received bench referrals and worked as an on-site mediator in several Northern California counties, including: Lake, Mendocino, Sonoma, Marin and San Francisco Superior courts. I was the court appointed civil mediator under contract to the Mendocino Superior court (2011-13); and started a free civil mediation program in the Marin Superior court in 2014 where now all contested civil harassment cases have the opportunity to settle before trial. These court programs honed my skills at resolving sensitive and emotionally-charged cases such as unlawful detainer and restraining order cases (currently over 800 cases in each).  Other areas of experience include: small claims appeals, breach of contract, insurance, construction defect and merchant-consumer, as well as tenant-subtenant, elder abuse, juvenile, workplace violence, neighbor, and HOA disputes. I also regularly mediate grievances related to police conduct as part of the new SF Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC) Mediation Program.

 

My court mediation work now is limited to the Marin court (average 2-3 cases per week), but I maintain a private practice covering the entire Bay Area including: mediation services (pre-file, pre-trial or post-trial), consulting and training services, other neutral services (such as civil stand-by or property exchanges), and fiduciary services (trustee, estate negotiations). With a background in health, administration, and a 25+ year environmental consulting career, my scientific and professional background makes me a capable neutral expert; able to work with complex technical and legal issues; and provide analysis in cases involving health, environmental, real property, development and resource rights.

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Mediation Training Received

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Initial Training: 26-hour Mediation Intensive Training Program given by The Center for Mediation in Law (Gary Friedman, Instructor); supplemental training (approx. 14 hours), including: mediation agreement writing, overview of the Evidence Code, substantive legal overview for specific civil matters, working with self-represented litigants, and working with a co-mediator.

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Over 200- hours of Ongoing Training: Effective mediation agreements; Party diversity and cultural competency; Language barriers and the use of translators; Juvenile restorative justice; Employment-Labor; Real property; Unlawful detainer; Small Claims; High conflict dynamics in mediation; Ethics in Mediation; and Intergovernmental Agency conflict resolution.

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Other Professional and Educational Background

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• Academic Administrator, UCSF- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, SF, CA (2015 to present)

• Environmental Scientist, Planner, Program Manager; Ecology and Environment, Inc. SF, CA  (1987 to 2009)

• Rental Property Manager/Landlord, SF, CA (2000 to present)

• Masters of Public Health (MPH) in Environmental Health, UC Berkeley

• B.S. in Biology (minor in Economics), St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY

 

Acknowledgments

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• Judiciary Special Recognition Award, Sonoma County Superior Court (2011)

• Certificate of Appreciation, Sonoma County Bar Association, Annual Pro Bono Awards (2009)

• Founder’s Award, Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers, No. California chapter (2000)

 

Affiliations/Associations

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• Bar Association of San Francisco, ADR Section, Mediation Subsection; member

• RECOURSE Mediation Services; Panel mediator, volunteer

• Association for Dispute Resolution of Northern California (ADRNC); member

• St. Mary’s Park Improvement Club (neighborhood association); executive officer