ROADS TO Resolution ~ Closure ~ Certainty

To be an excellent lawyer for a client in mediation it is not enough to just say, “Oh I’ve got a mediation tomorrow, here, let me pick up the file and head on out.” To be excellent, it takes more than that. Listen to this episode as Host, Jean Lawler–commercial + insurance mediator and arbitrator–shares her list of top 3 things that excellent lawyers do for their clients in mediation.
Resources mentioned:
Holding the Calm: The Secret to Resolving Conflict and Diffusing Tension by Hesha Abrams
Will Work For Food: The New Possibilities Hour, Holding the Calm, The Advanced Course, Presented by Hesha Abrams
To read the full episode transcript please see the Podcast Website.
About the Host:
Based in Los Angeles, CA, Jean Lawler is an attorney and mediator, focusing on commercial, insurance and civil litigation matters pending at the trial and appellate levels - wherever filed. She regularly mediates a wide variety of insurance, business, and tort matters, as well as federal ADA accessibility lawsuits re architectural barriers and websites. CIPP/US (Certified Information Privacy Professional) certified, Jean also mediates matters involving data breaches, ransomware, and cyber losses. She has mediated hundreds upon hundreds - thousands - of cases over the years with a myriad of issues. For a more detailed sampling of the types of mediations that she has conducted and participated in, both when in practice and as a full-time mediator, please refer to her web page detailing Representative Matters.
Prior to becoming a full-time mediator in 2017, Jean was a Senior Partner in a Los Angeles based litigation firm, representing corporations, professionals, non-profits, individuals, and insurers in a broad range of matters, at trial and on appeal - mediating hundreds upon hundreds of cases over the years. Her legal experience has been diverse and international, and she has a deep knowledge of the insurance industry, insurance policies and the various risks they insure against (primary, excess, reinsurance, program, surplus lines, London Market, and international insurers). She also served as a Managing Partner of her former law firm, at times chairing the firm’s Insurance Law, Cyber & Privacy Law, International Law, and Business & Real Estate Transactions practice groups and, ultimately, served her many clients as counselor and trusted advisor.
As she would tell you if asked: “I absolutely love what I do! I would be honored to serve as your Mediator or Arbitrator.”
Connect with Jean:
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Are you an attorney, claims professional or party with litigation pending in California? Are you keeping up with the latest in California Section 998 offers? Watch your 998’s and how you word them!

In this quick “Thursday Tip of the Day”, Host, Jean Lawler–commercial + insurance mediator and arbitrator–provides a case law update on two California appellate court cases that were decided on October 28, 2022, examples of 998 offers that were either not properly extended or accepted by one party or the other - and the consequences of such.

• Trujillo v. City of Los Angeles
• Council for Education and Research on Toxics v. Starbucks Corp. et al

To read the full episode transcript please see the Podcast Website.
Since this recording, an appellate decision in the case of Chen v. BMW of North America was published, providing an excellent discussion and roadmap of a 998 offer that was correctly extended, in accord with statutory requirements, and how the 998 offer should be applied. There, a settlement on the courthouse steps was for the same amount as a 998 offer that had been issued by the defense approximately 2 years prior. This opinion can be found at: www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/H048257.PDF.
About the Host:

Based in Los Angeles, CA, Jean Lawler is an attorney and mediator, focusing on commercial, insurance and civil litigation matters pending at the trial and appellate levels - wherever filed. She regularly mediates a wide variety of insurance, business, and tort matters, as well as federal ADA accessibility lawsuits re architectural barriers and websites. CIPP/US (Certified Information Privacy Professional) certified, Jean also mediates matters involving data breaches, ransomware, and cyber losses. She has mediated hundreds upon hundreds - thousands - of cases over the years with a myriad of issues. For a more detailed sampling of the types of mediations that she has conducted and participated in, both when in practice and as a full-time mediator, please refer to her web page detailing Representative Matters.

Prior to becoming a full-time mediator in 2017, Jean was a Senior Partner in a Los Angeles based litigation firm, representing corporations, professionals, non-profits, individuals, and insurers in a broad range of matters, at trial and on appeal - mediating hundreds upon hundreds of cases over the years. Her legal experience has been diverse and international, and she has a deep knowledge of the insurance industry, insurance policies and the various risks they insure against (primary, excess, reinsurance, program, surplus lines, London Market, and international insurers). She also served as a Managing Partner of her former law firm, at times chairing the firm’s Insurance Law, Cyber & Privacy Law, International Law, and Business & Real Estate Transactions practice groups and, ultimately, served her many clients as counselor and trusted advisor.

As she would tell you if asked: “I absolutely love what I do! I would be honored to serve as your Mediator or Arbitrator.”

Connect with Jean:

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Website

YouTube Channel

Follow the podcast:

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“First of all, remember that when you're starting your mediation practice, that you’re really starting a business.” Commercial + insurance mediator and arbitrator, Jean Lawler, knows what it's like to “switch gears” from law practice to a mediation practice, and in this episode she shares her tips for how the seasoned-attorney-new-mediator can set up the “practice-facing” operations of a new mediation practice. From document storage, to case management programs, to email considerations and more, Jean provides an overview of the types of technology that are useful to mediators when launching a mediation practice.

To connect with Jean Lawler, follow her on LinkedIn or find her at LawlerADR.com

To read the full episode transcript please see the Podcast Website.

Links to providers mentioned in the show:

Microsoft 365 https://www.office.com/

Google Suite https://workspace.google.com/

Adobe https://www.adobe.com/

Zapier https://zapier.com/

Wufoo https://www.wufoo.com/

ADR Notable https://www.adrnotable.com/

Fourthparty https://corporate.fourthparty.app/

Quickbooks https://quickbooks.intuit.com/global/

Squarespace https://www.squarespace.com/

Acuity Scheduling https://acuityscheduling.com/

PIA https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/

MOO https://www.moo.com/us/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/

Clubhouse https://www.clubhouse.com/

LawPay https://www.lawpay.com/

Insurance can be an unknown and maybe even somewhat intimidating aspect of mediation if you’re not an insurance lawyer and if you don't know insurance. Yes, it takes years to understand all insurance, but you can learn to read any insurance policy in five steps, because there are at least five basic things that every insurance policy includes. In this episode, Jean Lawler–commercial + insurance mediator and arbitrator–draws from her deep knowledge of the insurance industry, insurance policies and the various risks they insure against to discuss how to read an insurance policy in five steps. Questions answered include:

• What do you find out when you look at the declarations page (“dec page”)?
• What is the insuring agreement?
• What are exclusions?
• What are conditions?
• What are endorsements?

To read the full episode transcript please see the Podcast Website.

About the Host:

Based in Los Angeles, CA, Jean Lawler is an attorney and mediator, focusing on commercial, insurance and civil litigation matters pending at the trial and appellate levels - wherever filed. She regularly mediates a wide variety of insurance, business, and tort matters, as well as federal ADA accessibility lawsuits re architectural barriers and websites. CIPP/US (Certified Information Privacy Professional) certified, Jean also mediates matters involving data breaches, ransomware, and cyber losses. She has mediated hundreds upon hundreds - thousands - of cases over the years with a myriad of issues. For a more detailed sampling of the types of mediations that she has conducted and participated in, both when in practice and as a full-time mediator, please refer to her web page detailing Representative Matters.
Prior to becoming a full-time mediator in 2017, Jean was a Senior Partner in a Los Angeles based litigation firm, representing corporations, professionals, non-profits, individuals, and insurers in a broad range of matters, at trial and on appeal - mediating hundreds upon hundreds of cases over the years. Her legal experience has been diverse and international, and she has a deep knowledge of the insurance industry, insurance policies and the various risks they insure against (primary, excess, reinsurance, program, surplus lines, London Market, and international insurers). She also served as a Managing Partner of her former law firm, at times chairing the firm’s Insurance Law, Cyber & Privacy Law, International Law, and Business & Real Estate Transactions practice groups and, ultimately, served her many clients as counselor and trusted advisor.
As she would tell you if asked: “I absolutely love what I do! I would be honored to serve as your Mediator or Arbitrator.”
To connect with Jean Lawler, follow her on LinkedIn or find her at LawlerADR.com.