Mediator Resume

Mediator, arbitrator, and employment attorney with deep experience resolving discrimination, retaliation, wage-and-hour, and executive disputes. Known for a persistent yet pragmatic style focused on efficient, creative resolution. Conducts mediations for federal and state courts and through Moxie Mediation. Certified in mediation through Harvard Law School Executive Education program and trained in workplace investigations through AWI. Brings more than 15 years of employment-law expertise and a reputation for fairness, preparation, and effective results.

Wagner Legal PC - Managing Partner Moxie Mediation - Owner The AI Shift, LLC - Founder Lumin Digital - Associate General Counsel - Employment & AI Ramo Law PC - Of Counsel

Arbitrator and Mediator

Founder, The AI Shift, LLC, 2025 - Present; Employment Practices & Policies Specialist (on assignment through Magnit Global), Block, Inc., 2025 - Present; Managing Partner, Wagner Legal PC, 2022 - Present; Of Counsel, Ramo Law PC, 2022 - Present; Of Counsel, For Purpose Law Group, 2022 - Present; Owner, Moxie Mediation, 2022 - Present; Partner, Scott Wagner & Associates PA (formerly Cathleen Scott & Associates PA), 2011 - 2022; Litigation Associate, Powers McNalis Torres & Teebagy PA, 2010 - 2011.

More than 15 years of experience handling and resolving employment-law and workplace disputes for employers, executives, and employees across the United States. Regularly appears in arbitration, mediation, and court proceedings, and before local, state, and federal administrative agencies including the EEOC, DFEH/CRD, FCHR, and Department of Labor. Represents and mediates matters involving sexual-harassment and hostile-work-environment claims; discrimination based on sex, race, disability, age, religion, pregnancy, and national origin; retaliation for protected activity; and wrongful-termination and whistleblower actions. Handles class, collective, and representative cases under Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FEHA, FMLA, FLSA, and PAGA, as well as common-law and contract-based claims. Extensive background in wage-and-hour and misclassification disputes, including overtime, off-the-clock work, meal-and-rest-break violations, expense reimbursement, and pay-equity issues. Experienced in evaluating exemption status and independent-contractor classifications and resolving related disputes through arbitration and mediation. Handles complex employment-agreement and post-employment matters, including executive contracts, severance, bonus and commission disputes, restrictive-covenant and non-compete litigation, confidentiality and trade-secret issues, and breach of employment or nondisclosure agreements. Advises and mediates disputes involving equity, stock-option, and deferred-compensation arrangements. Represents and mediates employment disputes under whistleblower, retaliation, and leave-of-absence laws, including ADA and FEHA interactive-process claims and FMLA/CFRA compliance issues. Experienced with disability-accommodation matters, flexible-work disputes, and workplace investigations involving harassment, retaliation, and pay-equity concerns. Provides employment-law counseling and investigation guidance for organizations in technology, healthcare, finance, higher education, nonprofit, and entertainment industries. Oversees complex internal investigations involving executive and employee misconduct, discrimination, retaliation, and harassment, and develops corrective-action and compliance recommendations. Drafts and updates global and domestic handbooks, codes of conduct, and workplace policies addressing harassment, discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour, privacy, and data-protection compliance. Mediates and arbitrates matters involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage-and-hour, executive employment, contract, and policy-violation claims. Skilled in resolving complex, high-emotion, and multi-party disputes and facilitating durable settlements in arbitration, mediation, and pre-litigation settings. Applies deep procedural knowledge and fairness principles to achieve efficient, balanced resolutions. Integrates understanding of emerging workplace-technology issues, including data privacy, ethical AI use, algorithmic decision tools, and cross-border compliance, into mediation, arbitration, and advisory practice. Recognized for combining legal expertise with an efficient, pragmatic, solutions-oriented approach in resolving high-stakes employment disputes.

Mediator focusing on employment, workplace, and business disputes. Mediating nationwide through court, agency, and private programs. Experienced with complex and emotionally charged employment matters involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, whistleblower, wage-and-hour, executive-contract, and accommodation claims. Serves on mediation panels for the U.S. District Court, Central District of California, the Southern District of California, and the Resolve Law LA Mandatory Settlement Conference Program for the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Serves on panels for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and California Lawyers for the Arts, and conducts private mediations through Moxie Mediation. Handles both voluntary and mandatory mediations in hybrid (remote/in-person) formats. Mediates disputes under Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FEHA, FMLA, FLSA, CFRA, PAGA, and related statutes, as well as breach-of-contract, confidentiality, defamation, and trade-secret claims. Skilled at facilitating settlement in multi-party and parallel arbitration or litigation proceedings. Draws on more than a decade of experience as an employment litigator and advisor for both employers and employees. Brings balanced perspective from handling discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage-and-hour, whistleblower, executive-compensation, and restrictive-covenant matters. Completed Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation - Mediation and Advanced Negotiation Training (40 hours). Certified through the Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI) for workplace investigations and report writing. Applies trauma-informed and culturally aware mediation techniques to foster open dialogue, trust, and resolution. Regularly mediates cases involving executives, professionals, and creative talent in technology, healthcare, education, entertainment, and nonprofit sectors. Experienced in addressing power dynamics, personality conflicts, and communication breakdowns that can derail resolution. Certified as a Florida Supreme Court Circuit Civil Mediator, with experience mediating civil and employment disputes under Florida’s state mediation program. Integrates understanding of emerging workplace-technology issues, including data privacy, responsible AI use, and algorithmic decision tools, into mediation practice. Recognized for combining deep employment-law knowledge with a practical, solutions-oriented approach to resolving complex workplace disputes.

Regularly mediates and arbitrates complex employment and workplace disputes involving claims under federal and state law, including Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA, FLSA, FEHA, CFRA, and the California Labor Code. Handles matters at all stages of litigation, from pre-filing and EEOC/DFEH charges through discovery, trial, and appeal, and in private, court-connected, and administrative mediation settings. Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation: Extensive experience with discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims involving age, disability, race, gender, sexual orientation, pregnancy, religion, and national origin. Mediates complex workplace harassment cases, including sexual-harassment and hostile-work-environment disputes. Addresses retaliation, whistleblower, and protected-activity claims under both federal and state statutes. Wage-and-Hour and PAGA Disputes: Handles individual, representative, and class claims alleging failure to pay minimum wage or overtime, off-the-clock work, misclassification of employees or independent contractors, meal- and rest-period violations, reimbursement disputes, and wage-statement errors. Experienced with Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) actions and California Labor Code enforcement issues, including settlement structure and penalty allocation. Wrongful Termination and Leave-of-Absence Issues: Mediates wrongful-termination, constructive-discharge, and failure-to-accommodate claims, as well as disputes involving medical, family, or disability leave under FMLA, CFRA, and ADA. Regularly resolves disputes implicating interactive-process obligations, attendance and performance management, and requests for reasonable accommodation. Executive, Contract, and Compensation Matters: Resolves executive and professional-level employment disputes involving compensation, bonuses, equity, restrictive-covenant, and confidentiality agreements. Handles independent-contractor and consulting-agreement issues, partnership separations, and severance negotiations. Mediates claims involving breach of contract, defamation, and interference with business relationships. Whistleblower and Public-Policy Claims: Experienced with whistleblower retaliation and public-policy wrongful-termination cases under federal and California law, including issues arising under SOX, OSHA, and state whistleblower protection statutes. Frequently mediates disputes concerning alleged fraud, ethics violations, and protected reporting activity in both public and private workplaces. Unfair Competition, Trade-Secret, and Business-Tort Disputes: Addresses unfair-competition and trade-secret-misappropriation claims, including allegations under the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act (CUTSA) and restrictive-covenant enforcement. Mediates employment-related business-tort claims such as breach of fiduciary duty, interference, and conversion arising from workplace separations or competition issues. Other Employment and Workplace Issues: Resolves disputes involving privacy, data protection, social-media use, employee discipline, and compliance with internal policies and codes of conduct. Mediates multi-party disputes involving overlapping issues of employment, intellectual property, and contract interpretation. Applies subject-matter depth and practical resolution strategies to each mediation, emphasizing efficiency, professionalism, and lasting settlement outcomes.

Believes resolution starts well before the day of mediation. Encourages early communication with counsel and parties, including pre-mediation brief exchanges and calls, to identify key issues, confirm decision-making authority, and address information gaps that can block settlement. Uses this preparation to ensure that by the time the session begins, the discussion is focused, efficient, and productive. Approaches mediation with a sophisticated, compassionate, and efficient style centered on practical resolution. Recognized for persistence and creativity in helping parties find common ground in complex or high-emotion disputes. Tenacious yet patient, committed to continuing dialogue and exploring multiple pathways to settlement when progress seems unlikely. Prioritizes structure and efficiency, keeping parties engaged without prolonging sessions unnecessarily. Promotes candid discussion and reality-testing that allow participants to evaluate risk and reassess positions. Uses targeted issue framing and creative settlement design to maintain momentum and identify solutions that align with each party’s interests. Builds trust quickly with counsel and unrepresented participants, establishing a tone of respect, neutrality, and professionalism. Draws on extensive experience as an employment-law litigator and negotiator to understand leverage, evaluate claims, and help parties make informed decisions. Known for balancing empathy with pragmatism and persistence with fairness. Encourages critical reflection rather than positional bargaining. Works tirelessly and proactively to assist parties in reaching resolution, emphasizing informed choice and creative problem-solving as alternatives to costly and time-consuming litigation or arbitration.

Conducts mediations and arbitrations in virtual, hybrid, and in-person formats using Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet with secure breakout rooms, waiting rooms, and screen-sharing for joint and private sessions. Skilled at managing multi-party sessions, staggered appearances, and hybrid participation with clear audio/video protocols. Uses Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace for document management, calendaring, and collaboration. Relies on Adobe Acrobat Pro for organizing, redacting, and compiling exhibits and DocuSign for executing settlement agreements. Shares materials via OneDrive or Google Drive with restricted access for confidentiality. Implements strong confidentiality and cybersecurity practices, including password-protected meetings, host controls for recordings and screen-sharing, and multi-factor authentication. Employs VPN-secured connections and encrypted storage for case materials consistent with AAA and ABA data-privacy standards. AI-Assisted Resolution Tools: Utilizes AI-assisted workflows only with the informed consent of the parties and when such tools can enhance clarity, efficiency, or creativity in the resolution process. This includes generating neutral agendas, issue summaries, and plain-language term-sheet options within confidentiality parameters and without uploading sensitive or identifiable content to public systems. Develops and (with party consent) employs custom, proprietary AI solutions designed to support mediation and arbitration preparation and process, such as non-confidential checklists, process maps, and issue-spotting templates. These tools are designed to assist, not replace, the mediator’s role in judgment, fairness, and human-centered communication. When transcripts are helpful and expressly authorized by the parties, may integrate AI-enabled transcription tools such as Otter or Fathom for note accuracy, without recording or storing audio/video unless all parties consent. Approaches technology as a way to make the mediation process more accessible, efficient, and transparent, but never at the expense of neutrality or confidentiality. Ensures that all technology used in mediation supports informed participation, procedural fairness, and trust between parties.

Stetson University College of Law (J.D., concentration in International Law - 2010); Miami University (B.A., Journalism and Political Science - 2007). International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) (Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US) - 2024); Florida Supreme Court (Certified Circuit Civil Mediator - 2022); Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI) (Certificate Holder in Workplace Investigations - 2022); Harvard Law School Executive Education, Program on Negotiation (Certificate in Mediating Disputes - 2021); Seton Hall University School of Law (Certificate in Health and Hospital Law - 2010).

Licensed attorney admitted to practice in Florida (2010), California (2016), Ohio (2018), and New York (2023). Admitted before the United States District Courts for all federal districts in Florida, California, and Ohio.

Bar and Committee Leadership: Executive Council, Florida Bar Labor and Employment Law Section, Webinar Co-Chair Member, Florida Bar Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section Neutral Co-Chair, Webinar Committee, American Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section Dinner Committee and Editorial Board Member, Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine, Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) Labor and Employment Law Section Mediation Panels and Volunteer Service: Mediator, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (2022–2024 term) Pro Bono Mediator, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Cleveland Office Mediator, California Lawyers for the Arts Member, Resolve Law LA Mandatory Settlement Conference Program, Los Angeles County Superior Court Professional Memberships: Member, Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA) Member, Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI) Member, Columbus Chamber of Commerce

International and National Conferences (2024–2025) Chair & Panelist, “Handling Scandals Across Borders: Navigating HR Challenges and Crisis Management,” 6th Annual IFSEA International Conference, June 2025. Presenter, “Recruitment, Hiring, and the Use of AI within a Legal Framework,” Webinar, December 2024. Panelist, “AI and ADR: How Will AI Impact the Future of Mediation and Arbitration?” 18th Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference, November 2024. Speaker, 2024 AWI Annual Conference, September 2024, addressing AI integration, ethics, and workplace investigation trends. Presenter, “Navigating the AI Revolution: A Blueprint for Upskilling and Compliance in the Modern Workplace,” New York State SHRM Conference, September 2024. Panelist, “AI Integration in HR: Navigating the New Frontier of Employment Law and Upskilling,” HR Florida Conference & Expo, August 2024. Panelist, “Adapting Advocacy: AI’s Role in Modern Legal Practice,” California Lawyers Association Labor and Employment Law Section, July 2024. Panelist, “Entertainers and Their Entourage: Legal Classification in Entertainment and Sports,” Florida Bar CLE Webinar, June 2024. Presenter, “Using Artificial Intelligence for Employment Purposes,” Florida Bar Advanced Labor Topics Conference, April 2024. Speaker, “Labor and Employment Law in the Motion Picture and Television Industries: Employment 101 for Entertainment Legal Professionals,” June 2024. Instructor, “Workplace Investigations: Essentials for Lawyers,” multi-session professional-skills program, January–June 2024. Panelist, “Who to Believe: Sexual Misconduct Investigations and Fact-Finding Challenges,” IFSEA International Conference on Executive & Founder Issues, June 2024. Publications and Writing Author, “The Employment Law Odyssey of AI,” Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine (LACBA), February 2024. Co-Author, “AI in the Entertainment Industry: Creators at Heart,” Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine, May 2024. Author, “AI in the Workplace,” Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine, 2022. Author, “What Is Artificial Intelligence and What to Expect in the Future of Work,” ABA Labor & Employment Law Journal, 2019. Prior Speaking Highlights (2017–2022) Panelist, “Senior Executives, Sexual Harassment, and NDAs,” International Forum of Senior Executive Advisers Conference, 2022. Presenter, “Employment Issues: How to Help Someone With Cancer,” TRTCLE, 2022. Presenter, “The ABCs of EEO Laws: A Primer for Attorneys,” TRTCLE, 2022. Panelist, “Update on Gender Discrimination: The New Gender Equality,” Florida Bar Labor and Employment Section, 2019. Moderator, “Arbitration Strategies for Labor and Employment Lawyers,” Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA), 2019. Panelist, “Wage and Hour Basics,” American Bar Association Labor and Employment Conference, 2019. Panelist, “Careers in Labor and Employment Law: Where Are the Jobs?” ABA Labor and Employment Section, 2019. Panelist, “Impact of Marijuana Legalization in the Workplace,” ABA International Labor and Employment Committee Meeting, 2019. Panelist, “Ending the Gender Wage Gap,” ABA Labor and Employment Conference, 2018. Panelist, “Bridging the Gap: Issues in Equal Pay,” ABA Midyear Meeting, 2017. Panelist, “The 411 on the 420: Marijuana Laws and the Workplace,” ABA 11th Annual Labor and Employment Conference, 2017. Ongoing Engagement Frequently invited to speak on topics at the intersection of AI, employment law, and dispute resolution, including responsible AI integration, ethical considerations in workplace investigations, and the future of mediation and arbitration in the age of automation.

California: Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Orange, Fresno, Sierra, Monterey, Sonoma, Napa, and San Luis Obispo Counties Ohio Florida: Lee, Collier, Palm Beach, Miami Dade, and Broward Counties

Hourly Rate: Not provided Daily Rate: Not provided Study Rate: Not provided Cancellation: Not provided Cancellation Period: Not provided Comment:

English

United States of America

Burbank, California