I enjoy working with people to resolve disputes. As a mediator, I have helped thousands of people facing the anguish and expense of litigation find satisfying agreements that allow them to focus on more positive pursuits.

I came to mediation after fourteen years conducting litigation with the San Francisco firm of Keker & Van Nest (formerly Keker & Brockett). I enjoyed a wide range of experience as a litigator handling a variety of disputes, split equally between representing plaintiffs and defendants. But I became convinced that there is a better way of resolving most disputes.

I also decided that my interests and talents are best suited to a practice in alternative dispute resolution, in particular mediation and settlement processes. I found myself enjoying the varied challenges of negotiating in complex situations involving many parties, attorneys and interests. My ability quickly to absorb and analyze a dispute from a business perspective and simultaneously to work with parties who are motivated by significant emotional and other nonlitigation concerns has proven invaluable. I believe that by treating participants with respect, understanding, and occasional humor, clients and attorneys can be satisfied with both the process and the results.

Although there are certainly some cases which will and should be litigated to conclusion, I believe most cases can and should be resolved by mutual agreement, and that the sooner they are resolved the better for the parties. While litigation is expensive, time-consuming and capricious, mediation permits the parties to come to their own agreement and offers the possibility of creative and flexible solutions which cannot be achieved in litigation. Coming to a resolution allows the parties to move to more productive pursuits in their lives and may permit a continuing beneficial relationship between all sides to a controversy.

My current practice is devoted entirely to alternative dispute resolution procedures with an emphasis on mediation. I have conducted over a thousand alternative dispute resolution proceedings in a diverse array of disputes, as more fully described on my curriculum vitae. I am comfortable working with business people making calculated business decisions and with people who feel strongly about the underlying events and/or relationships that give rise to a legal claim. In addition, I have participated in extensive training which has given me a variety of skills to apply to differing circumstances as needed. I previously taught Negotiation & Settlement and Alternative Dispute Resolution as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Hastings College of Law, and I have helped present a number of shorter programs to lawyers and neutrals.

If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me.