Judicate West

Judicate West is a proud sponsor of California International Arbitration Week (CIAW).?Together with leading arbitration institutions and organizations from around the world, we celebrate international arbitration in California through this week-long series of complimentary programs.?CIAW is presented by the Litigation Section of the California Lawyers Association with California Arbitration (CalArb) and will be in person March 10-13th at the W Los Angeles. For more details, please visit: https://lnkd.in/dEfKiVKh #ArbitrationMonday #JudicateWest #CIAW #ArbitrationWeek #AlternativeDisputeResolution

Congratulations to Judicate West neutral and member of our Federal Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/ghYEgv8A) Judge Monica Bachner, Ret., who will be honored with the prestigious Warren Knight Excellence in Alternative Dispute Resolution Award at The Association of Media & Entertainment Counsel's 2025 Counsel of the Year Awards this Thursday. We look forward to celebrating Judge Bachner and all of the honorees! #JudicateWest #MediationMonday #AMECAwards #TheAMEC

We are proud to welcome Michael A. Strauss, Esq. to our exclusive roster of neutrals and Employment Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/e6u-mFmR). He is based in Los Angeles and available for #mediations, #arbitrations, and #privatejudging assignments statewide. Michael brings a wealth of #employment law experience, having spent more than 18 years representing plaintiffs and defendants in almost every type of employment dispute. He began his career in a general litigation firm, before founding his own law firm that focused entirely on employment litigation. In 2022, he became a settlement officer with the Los Angeles County Superior Court’s Resolve Law Virtual Mandatory Settlement Conference program and now also serves on the court’s Mediation Volunteer Panel and the U.S. District Court, Central District of California’s Mediation Panel. In 2023, he turned his attention to being a full-time mediator and arbitrator, specializing in employment law matters. He has earned a reputation as a fair and respectful negotiator and effective settlement driver, admired for his patient, persistent, and practical style. Read more about Michael: https://lnkd.in/gTCrWMpd #MediationMonday #JudicateWest #AlternativeDisputeResolution #ADR

A few weeks back over one hundred lawyers, Judges, politicians and friends gathered to honor and thank David De Alba, a former Judge who served for 21 years on the Sacramento Superior Court, including a term as Presiding Judge. Known for his broad expertise across a variety of case types - particularly civil, including civil settlement and complex civil matters - De Alba is now active in mediation and arbitration. “He’s a pillar of the legal community and highly respected,” says Presiding Judge Bunmi O. Awoniyi. “When asked who had been mentored by Dave, nearly everyone in the room - including state, federal and appellate judges- raised their hand. That is an amazing legacy,” adds former Presiding Judge Michael G. Bowman. I too was mentored by De Alba - back in 2001 as a young criminal prosecutor in the Attorney General’s Office where he worked as part of Executive leadership. Twenty years later, I had the pleasure of working with him as he led a critical phase of the construction and planning of our new Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye downtown courthouse, slated to open to the public late this year. We all thank and honor our friend, mentor, super lawyer and Judge David De Alba.

We are proud to share that Judicate West neutral Hon. Norman P. Tarle, Ret. (https://lnkd.in/gnnUJ6VT) will be a speaker along with an esteemed panel for the Beverly Hills Bar Association's MCLE program 'Crafting Effective Mediation Briefs: Strategies for a Successful Mediation' this Monday, February 24th. This program covers: - Essential elements of a persuasive mediation brief - Tailoring briefs for different audiences and mediation types - Understanding mediation privilege and confidentiality considerations For more information and to register, please visit: https://lnkd.in/gM--zUwd #JudicateWest #AlternativeDisputeResolution #Mediation #CLE #BeverlyHillsBarAssociation

We are proud to welcome Judge Geoff Goodman, Ret. to our exclusive roster of neutrals. He is based in Sacramento and available for #mediations, #arbitrations, and #privatejudging assignments statewide. For more than 15 years, Judge Goodman served on the Sacramento County Superior Court bench, presiding over all types of complex civil and criminal matters. He has served on an assignment basis for the past two years as the court’s Supervising Civil Settlement Judge whereby he conducted hundreds of settlement conferences and supervised attorneys acting as judges pro tem since his retirement from the bench in 2022. Prior to his appointment, he began his career in the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office and then spent a decade in private practice, focusing on civil litigation. Judge Goodman has built an excellent reputation in the legal community throughout his combined legal career spanning over four decades, and is known as fair, intelligent, and respectful. View his full profile: https://lnkd.in/ghGyG6Ba #JudicateWest #AlternativeDisputeResolution #ADR

We are pleased to share that Judicate West neutral Hon. Leo S. Papas, Ret. (https://lnkd.in/gpmcKzwd) recently presented at UC San Diego Extended Studies Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. During the program 'Conflict Resolution and Mediation: An Inside Look', Judge Papas discussed how mediation can transform conflict into collaboration and shared how it applies in a variety of fields including legal, commercial, diplomatic, workplace, community, and family relations. Based in San Diego, Judge Papas is a member of Judicate West's Federal Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/ghYEgv8A) and Employment Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/e6u-mFmR) and available nationwide for #mediation services.

We are excited to share that Hon. Robert Moss, Ret. (https://lnkd.in/gZc6Pbhh) was recently featured in the OCTLA Gavel Magazine's Winter edition. Judge Moss has gleaned incredible insight from two decades of distinguished service to the Orange County Superior Court and most recently as a mediator, arbitrator, and private judge with Judicate West. Check out the full article below in which he discusses his thoughts on arbitration.

We are proud to welcome Dan Grunfeld, Esq. to our exclusive roster of neutrals and Federal Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/ghYEgv8A). He is based in Los Angeles and available for #mediations and #arbitrations statewide. Dan brings nearly four decades of legal experience to his role at Judicate West. As an advocate in high-stakes matters, and representing clients on both sides in a wide array of civil matters, he has achieved remarkable success through mediation and arbitration. Most recently, Grunfeld served as an independent consultant on trial, litigation and mediation strategy; before that, he served as an office loss prevention partner and led the statewide litigation department for a national law firm. He also spent 10 years as the president and CEO of Public Counsel, the nation’s largest pro bono public interest law firm. Finding common ground where none seems to exist has been a defining aspect of Dan’s career, and his experiences collectively will give him the ammunition to excel in this new chapter and become a trusted resource for parties in resolving even their most challenging cases. Read more about Dan: https://lnkd.in/g4259jEA #MediationMonday #JudicateWest #AlternativeDisputeResolution #ADR

We are proud to share that Kristin Rizzo of our Employment Practice Group (https://lnkd.in/e6u-mFmR) will be a speaker along with an esteemed panel on Early Case Evaluation for the Labor and Employment Law Section of the California Lawyers Association's 2025 New Employment Practitioner Conference.