A MAIN STREET LAWYER AND WELL-RESPECTED MEDIATOR

Since 1973 I've been part of the Sebastopol and Sonoma County communities and have gone from fostering discussions about the environment and the Russian River to developing a popular mediation program at the Sonoma County Superior Court. I'm proud to take a leadership role in the California mediation community as my roots as a hometown lawyer go deep.

I am one of the few California attorneys who qualified for the bar exam by reading the law rather than attending law school. In my early years as an attorney I was struck by watching individuals of modest means face massive legal bills and a litigation system that supported drawn-out battles, effectively exacerbating problems rather than solving them. After these experiences I continued to diverge from the legal tradition and committed myself to mediation. I turned to mediation as a way to help people make good decisions and find creative, cost-effective solutions.

My Leadership Roles In Mediation Profession Locally, Statewide, Nationally and Internationally

In order to convey the benefits of mediation, I took a leadership role in the Sonoma County Bar Association's early effort to encourage mediation at the local court level. I was hired by the Sonoma County Superior Court in 2000 to create and run the Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Sonoma County's Superior Court for nearly five years where I watched the practice grow in popularity. While serving as the director, I called the case management conference in every civil case filed in the Court and mediated many of them.

I then became the Mediation Program Administrator at the California Court of Appeal in San Francisco. There I handled mediation appeals cases involving significant assets and publicized disputes including an attorney fee appeal involving a trust dispute between a large financial institution and a Washington, D.C. trust attorney and a $1 billion lawsuit involving Chevron Oil Refinery.

At that time, I also took on a leadership role with the American Bar Association's Section on Dispute Resolution and spearheaded an effort to create a mediation research task force. As chair of the task force, I have lectured extensively on the benefits of using empirical research to improve mediation techniques, including a public lecture regarding my widely received paper "A Call for Evidence Based Research on Mediation Quality " in Melbourne, Australia. This report will be published before April 2018 and is a landmark event in the history of the practice of mediation worldwide.

Returning To My Roots: Sonoma County

In 2014 I returned to live and work in Sonoma County as a lawyer, mediator and community member. Upon returning, I continued to expand my mediation practice: I have accepted a role as one of the only Northern California attorneys on the California Association of Realtors' mediation panel. I've settled over a million dollars in personal injury cases, have worked hard to help people create estate plans, protect their businesses and manage real estate issues.

My experience ensures effective, professional negotiation assistance and my commitment to community drives me to lend a helping hand.

Learn more by clicking on the link below:

Then, contact me via email or by calling (415) 894-9649 to discuss your case. My law office, Gary Weiner Lawyer & Mediator, is located on Main Street in Sebastopol.