I devote a substantial portion of my practice to facilitation, working with entrepreneurs and family-owned businesses on inter-owner communication management, business structure and transition planning.
In my work, I am also called on to mediate disputes, meeting people as they reach an impasse in their business relationship and may be considering litigation as a means to resolving their differences.
Mediation is an alternative form of dispute resolution. It is private and offers the prospect of coming to a resolution without the acrimony, the publicity, and the cost, of litigation.
I am certified as a Mediator by Harvard Law School and as a Family Business Advisor by the internationally recognized Family Firm Institute.
My many years of experience as a business lawyer and a facilitator have influenced my style of practice as a mediator. I get to know the parties individually before I meet them again in the mediation.
My mediation engagements start with a separate Pre-Mediation Confidential Interview with each of the parties. The participation of counsel is welcome. This is an opportunity for me to have a more personal conversation and get a deeper understanding of the interests that are at stake. This is also an opportunity for me to earn the role of trusted broker, which helps me frame and manage the goals of the Mediation.
I have a particular focus on resolving disputes among Owners and Inheritors. This includes shareholder and partnership disputes and disputes among estate beneficiaries. Where appropriate, the resolution of a dispute among business owners in a Mediation can lead to a more comprehensive facilitation engagement focused on the business enterprise as a whole and the structures and policies governing the relationship among the parties. Learn more about my facilitation engagements here.
To book a mediation, please email me at dshlagbaum@dsbl-law.com.