Mediator Resume

Founded Resonate Mediation and Arbitration LLC in 2019 after serving for over 18 years on Pennsylvania's highest state trial court in Philadelphia. Serves as private mediator, arbitrator, and court-appointed special discovery judge in complex litigated civil cases. Serves as court-approved mediator in mass tort cases. Often hired to allocate large settlements among multiple plaintiffs. Distinguished fellow of the International Academy of Mediators. Taught evidence at the National Judicial College for 10 years. Prior to becoming a judge, litigated employment and class action cases.

Resonate Mediation and Arbitration, LLC - (Founder) Mediator, Arbitrator; Court-Approved Mediator for mass tort cases; Court-Appointed Discovery Judge

Professional Neutral. I do not work as an advocate, only a neutral.

Founder/Mediator/Arbitrator/Court-appointed Discovery Judge, Resonate Mediation and Arbitration, LLC, 2019 - Present; Judge, Court of Common Pleas of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 2001 - 2019; Faculty (advanced evidence), National Judicial College, 2007 - 2019; Partner/Associate, Kairys Rudovsky Epstein Messing & Rau, 1995 - 2001; Attorney, Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia (PILCOP), 1987 - 1995; U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer, 1982 - 1984 (Thailand). Adjunct Instructor at Temple Law (2019), Penn. Law (1998), Villanova Law (1995).

Founder, Mediator & Arbitrator, Resonate Mediation & Arbitration, LLC (December 2019-present). Mediates and arbitrates complex civil cases including construction, products liability, employment, FELA, wage and hour, defamation, premises liability, insurance, professional liability, personal injury, commercial, aviation, civil rights, dram shop, motor vehicle, assault and battery, contracts, consumer, property damage, business disputes and mass torts. Serves as Court-appointed special discovery judge and is a Court-approved mediator for asbestos and other mass torts. Judicial experience includes serving for over 18 years as a state court trial judge in Philadelphia. (July 2001-October 2019) Appointed, elected and retained (endorsed by both parties). Selected as judicial team leader, where for five years, managed every major civil case filed during a year, up to 6,000 cases, presided over all discovery matters, handled pre-trial and settlement conferences, decided motions and assigned cases for trial. Developed technological systems to better manage high-volume caseload adopted as court model for other team leaders. Taught evidence at National Judicial College to judges from throughout the country. Served as a trial judge in one of the nation’s highest volume jurisdictions, presided in over a thousand trials, mostly major civil jury trials, and authored dozens of opinions. Developed a reputation among lawyers and judges for ability to manage complex, multi-party, lengthy, or hotly contested civil cases. Also known as judge who could successfully assist counsel in resolving difficult cases prior to trial. Representative trials include professional medical and legal liability, construction injury (skylight, roof, scaffold falls), employment (discrimination, contract, tenure, wage, sexual harassment), defamation, dram shop, sexual assault, products liability (tires, construction & factory equipment, kitchen products), contract, business disputes, property damage, personal injury, wrongful death, and mass torts (drugs, asbestos, mold and toxins) with some trials lasting two months. Prior to the bench, served as a trial attorney for 14 years specializing in complex class action and employment litigation in federal court. Handled Title VII, ADA, ADEA, PDA, FMLA and Section 1981 & 1983 litigation.

Since beginning private mediation practice in December 2019, has mediated over 300 civil cases with the majority resolving at mediation and others resolving after continued follow up. As a state trial judge and judicial team leader, mediated hundreds of cases to resolution over the course of over 18 years on the bench. Since 2020, has served on AAA Employment Mediation and Arbitration Panels and Settlement Judge. Serves as court-approved mediator to resolve asbestos and other mass tort cases involving numerous parties prior to trial. Mediates complex civil cases including employment, sexual assault, partner dissolution, construction, products liability, defamation, insurance, professional legal and medical liability, personal injury, commercial, aviation, civil rights, dram shop, motor vehicle, assault and battery, contracts, property damage, and mass torts. Prior to mediation, convenes a pre-mediation conference with all counsel to identify issues and barriers to resolution and agree upon a process to best facilitate a resolution. ADR Trainings: IAM (40 hours) (2022 & 2024) NADN Advanced Mediation Course (40 hours)(2022 & 2024) AAA, Multi-Party, Multi-Faceted Dispute Resolution: The Online Experience (>15 hours) (2021) Straus Institute, Pepperdine University, Mediating the Litigated Case, 2020 Center for Understanding in Conflict, Mediation, 2016, 2018 – 2019 National Judicial College, Certificate in Dispute Resolution Trial Skills, 2013 (120 hours) National Judicial College, Mediation, 2013 (40 hours) National Judicial College Certificate in Judicial Development & General Jurisdiction Trial Skills, 2009 (120 hours) Participates in ongoing trainings.

Mediated employment (Title VII, 1981, ADEA, ADA, PDA, FMLA, Wage & Hour), sexual assault, premises liability, professional medical and legal liability, professional legal liability, construction injury, dram shop, products liability, mass tort, motor vehicle, catastrophic injury and wrongful death, civil rights, contract, assault and battery, FELA, fire, fee disputes, commercial, partner separations, and business disputes.

After over 18 years as a judge presiding over hundreds of trials and settlement conferences, I saw clearly that the parties who resolved their own disputes, with their counsel’s guidance and a skilled mediator or judge’s help, were the most satisfied and often reached the best resolutions compared with those who went to trial. This revelation led me to leave the bench to use my skills for this superior method of resolving disputes: helping people with their counsel resolve their own disputes to achieve better outcomes rather than pursuing the expensive and lengthy process of gambling with stranger jurors who are less informed and involved than the parties and their counsel. To jumpstart and formulate a mediation plan, I have a pre-mediation conference with counsel to discuss key issues, obstacles and goals, and to mutually agree upon a process, including whether or not to have a joint session. I craft each mediation leaving flexibility to pivot based on the dynamics of the participants. During the mediation, I engage counsel and parties in educating one another about their different perspectives, issues, and risks, including those inherent in the litigation alternative. The process enables everyone to recalibrate and reassess their case. When requested, I will share my trial judge experience to raise potential legal and jury issues. When one approach does not work, another is tried. High emotion or deeply entrenched parties provide challenges I embrace. No matter how difficult the case, I love puzzling through possibilities and persist until the parties achieve a resolution. Not only do most of the cases resolve, the parties and counsel leave happy with the outcome.

Developed expertise in online Zoom technology including hosting multiple breakout rooms and document sharing, uses documents that can be electronically completed and signed, and maintains a totally electronic and paperless office. Currently offers online, hybrid and in-person proceedings.

University of Nevada-Reno/National Judicial College (MA, Judicial Studies-2019) Stanford Law School (JD, associate editor, Stanford Law Review-1987) Colgate University (BA, Psychology, high honors, Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude-1981)

Admitted to the Bar: Pennsylvania (1987); U.S. District Court: Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania, Eastern District of Virginia; U.S. Court of Appeals: Third and Fourth Circuits; U.S. Supreme Court.

NADN: Pennsylvania Chapter IAM: Distinguished Fellow Philadelphia Bar Association: Executive Committee State Civil Section; Former Co-Chair ADR Committee; Former Co-Chair Fee Dispute Committee; Pennsylvania Bar Association (Dispute Resolution Section). American Bar Association (Dispute Resolution Section) Online Courtroom Project, Advisory Board (2020-2022)

Master’s Thesis: “The Philadelphia Experiment in Civil Case Management–Journey From Disaster to Model Court” (December 2019). “11 Tips in 35 Minutes,” Moderator, Philadelphia State Civil Town Hall, September 3, 2025, Philadelphia, PA. “Early Investigation and Mediation: How to Own the Information,” Perrin Conferences Sexual Abuse Litigation & Coverage Conference, New York Bar Association, NY, October 17, 2024 (CLE for lawyers). “Mediation Panel: Strategies and Tactics,” Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association, Philadelphia, PA, March 13, 2024 (CLE for lawyers). “Effective Mediation Practice,” Montgomery County Bar Association, Norristown, PA February 28, 2024 (CLE for lawyers). “Everything You Wanted to Know About Mediation/Arbitration for Fee Disputes,” Philadelphia Bar Association, Philadelphia, PA, October 24, 2023 (CLE for lawyers). “Mediation: From Inception to Resolution,” Philadelphia Bar Association, Philadelphia, PA, October 19, 2023 (CLE for lawyers). “Ten Strategies for Artful Settlement Negotiations,” Philadelphia Bar Association’s Bench Bar Conference, Atlantic City, NJ, September 23, 2023 (CLE for lawyers & CJE for judges). “Expert Witnesses: A View from the Bench,” Temple Law School, Philadelphia, PA, April 4, 2023 (guest lecturer for law students). “A View from the Bench: Strategies for Skillfully Navigating Evidentiary Issues,” Winning Strategies Seminar, New Orleans, LA, February 24, 2023 (CLE for lawyers). “Answering the Question,” Thomas Kline School of Law, Philadelphia, PA, November 15, 2022 (guest lecturer for law students). “Evidence Tools for the Courtroom,” Federal Public Defender’s Office in Puerto Rico, February 17, 2022 (CLE for lawyers). “Pre-trial Practice,” Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, April 23, 2021 (Online CLE for lawyers). “Open Court: Return of In-Person Jury Trials in Philadelphia and Resolving Cases During COVID- 19,” Philadelphia, PA, April 22, 2021 (Online CLE for lawyers). “Entering the New Norm of Virtual Hearings,” Massachusetts Academy of Trial Lawyers Meeting, Zoom, February 19, 2021. “Mindful Practice of Law,” Villanova Law School, Villanova, PA, January 24, 2021 (mandatory professional development for law students). “Practical Tips for Judicial and Attorney Trial Planning,” Moderator, NITA and the Online Courtroom Project’s Summit “COVID, the Court, and the Future of the Jury Trial,” Remote Webinar (1800 registered participants) (November 20, 2020). “ADR in the Time of COVID,” Moderator, PBI Business Lawyers Institute, Remote Webinar, November 18, 2020 (CLE for lawyers). “How E-trials are Changing the Practice of Law,” International Legal Technology Association’s Annual Conference, Remote Webinar, August 28, 2020. “Tips on Conducting Mediation and Arbitration Remotely: The Future of ADR in the Pandemic World and Beyond,” Philadelphia Bar Association’s ADR Committee, Remote Webinar, August 26, 2020 (CLE for lawyers). Additional publication information available at https://www.resonatemediation.com/publication-and-press/

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and any location within 120 miles and for San Francisco, California or any location within 60 miles.

Hourly Rate: $725.00 Daily Rate: Not provided Study Rate: $725.00/hr Cancellation: Not provided Cancellation Period: 5 Days Comment: No charge for travel time. Global availability. Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

English

United States of America

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania