Mediation
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What is a Mediator?
A mediator is a neutral party that helps facilitate a conversation with two or more people engaged in a conflict. An effective mediator lends wisdom, objectivity and structure to the dispute, providing the adversaries a path to move toward a resolution or at least steps toward agreement. The mediator is not a decision maker or a judge, and does not come to the conflict with their own agenda on how best to resolve the dispute. They do, however, provide an opportunity to gain clarity on the diverging perspectives of the parties, and how the issues and motivating interests can be seen in a new light. Mediators work with the parties to shift perspectives, get clear on what is most important and negotiate next steps and new agreements that balance all interests.
Elizabeth as a Mediator
Elizabeth has over 20 years’ experience in leading mediations.
She began her mediation career after she earned a master’s degree in social work and a minor in law from Columbia University. As Senior Director of the Safe Horizon Mediation Program (now the New York Peace Institute) she was instrumental in starting programs in family, civil, housing and criminal court, as well as keeping cases out of court by working with parties before they reached the point of legal intervention.
Elizabeth is a mediation trainer, and also serves as a mediator:
As a mediation trainer she is certified by New York State Unified Court System, and has since 2000 trained hundreds of mediators in basic skills, advanced family and divorce practice and small business commercial practice, as well as offering advanced training courses for experienced mediators and mentors.
As a mediator Elizabeth has experience working with many different types of cases, ranging from neighborhood/community disputes to high level corporate cases. Her current emphasis is on small businesses and family cases, including partnership disputes, marital mediation and divorce. Each of these cases involves a structure suited to the issue, but Elizabeth employs flexibility in her approach still working within an appropriate budget. She is highly skilled at crafting mediation processes that match the disputants so that each person gets what they need to make a good decision moving forward. She currently works as an adjunct professor at Fordham Law School and has taught at Cardozo Law School, Columbia Law School, and the New School for Social Research.
What to expect?
Elizabeth begins every mediation by meeting each party separately so they can get to know her, feel comfortable with the process and get a chance to explain what is most important, as they each see it. After those initial sessions, Elizabeth will meet with both parties for jointly for as many sessions as they need to accomplish their goals. There is no commitment to any number of sessions, and she will work with the parties to stay within a budget that makes sense for their dispute and finances. Once the mediation begins, most of the time the mediation will be conducted in joint session.