Course Highlights:

Presented by:

Leyla Balakhane & Jennifer Terando

Professional Family Mediator

Attorney-Mediator-Registered Nurse

Body

In proud

collaboration with:

Mode of Delivery: Hybrid (Zoom and In-Person)

Online Sessions (via Zoom):

Dates: Tuesdays and Thursdays

August: 13, 15, 20, 22, 27, 29

September: 3, 5

Time: 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Special Extended Online Session:

Date: Saturday, August 17

Time: 9:00 AM - 2:30 PM

In-Person Sessions:

Dates: Monday, September 9

and Tuesday, September 10

Location: Downtown Los Angeles

Time: 9:00 AM - 3:30 PM

Register by May 31st to take advantage of our early bird discount and save on your registration fee!

Register below for your discount.

Leyla Balakhane, a skilled mediator in divorce and family matters, shows true excellence and care in resolving conflicts. Her wide experience as a leader, mentor, and educator has led her to devote her career to promoting empathy and understanding in family matters. She is deeply committed to ensuring every child can grow up in an environment filled with happiness, safety, and love. Leyla represents the true essence of kindness and dedication, serving as a prime example of making a real impact on society.

As a member of the Board of Directors of the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA), Leyla has the opportunity to influence the direction of the field, and as the chair of membership with SCMA, she plays a crucial role in shaping the future of mediation. Her dedication and service have been recognized with the prestigious 2023 President’s Award from the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA), highlighting her significant influence and commitment. Leyla’s expertise and achievements have earned her recognition as a distinguished member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Arbitration Panel (LACBA), the SCMA, and a Certified Advanced Practitioner of the Academy of Professional Family Mediators (APFM). She also sparks inspiration in her colleagues as the head of the monthly SCMA’s Professional Development Group for Family Law Mediators. With her extensive knowledge and expertise, she generously shares her wisdom and guidance with fellow professionals, elevating their abilities and empowering them to reach new heights. And through her connections, she brings in the most sought-after speakers to impart their knowledge and inspire growth in the field. Leyla plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of family mediation, both locally and globally. As a Board of Directors for the Academy of Professional Family Mediators, she brings her extensive knowledge and experience to the forefront, tirelessly working to refine and elevate family mediation practices. Globally, Leyla works with the Academy of Professional Family Mediators State, National, and International Mediation Associations committee. This role puts her at the core of worldwide efforts, where she collaborates with leading mediation experts globally. Her work is crucial in promoting their goals, sharing a common vision, and greatly advancing the practice of mediation worldwide.

At Edmund D. Edelman Children’s Court, she mentors other mediators, helping them navigate complex situations that affect children. Leyla empowers her clients, working with each family to discover options that fit their unique needs, thereby enabling them to have a say in shaping their future.

Leyla's ability to mediate is deeply rooted in empathy and understanding, which allows her to uncover the core of each dispute and reduce the stress and tension common in separations. Her collaborative method motivates families to work towards mending relationships, fostering positive dialogue, and making choices that serve their children's best interests.

Jennifer Terando, registered nurse, attorney and mediator, Jennifer has gone through extensive mediation training, including through the Los Angeles County Bar Association, Mediating the Litigated Case at the Straus Institute, The Southern California Mediation Association, and Early Dispute Resolution Training through the American Arbitration Association. Jennifer serves as a mediator with a focus on cases, involving medical and health law issues. In addition to providing private mediation services, Jennifer is a panel member of the following panels: The Los Angeles Superior Court Mediation Referral Panel, The Mediation Center of Los Angeles, The American Health Law Dispute Resolution Center, and provides volunteer mediation services to the Los Angeles Superior Court through the Center for Conflict Resolution. Jennifer is the immediate Past President of The Southern California Mediation Association.

You can learn more about Jennifer through www.YourRNAttorney.com.

Lori Dobrin, Esq.

BBill Eddy, LCSW, Esq

Sylvia Garibaldi, CEO

Sid Kanazawa, Esq.

Anthony Khoury, Esq

Matthew Khorsandi

Chip Rose

Jack Schaedel, Esq.

Lori Dobrin is a 38-year litigator recognized for her preparation, authenticity, empathetic demeanor and knack for building rapport and trustworthiness. After years of being a daily fixture at the Ventura County Courthouse through her court appearance work, she was asked to assist as a settlement officer and that is when she discovered her passion of facilitating resolution through the mediation process. Her completion of the intensive "Mediating the Litigated Case" offered by Pepperdine’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution was transformative and she continues to hone her craft, with training, education and leadership roles within various ADR organizations such as the SCMA .

Her combination of positivity, patience with perseverance has successfully helped and empowered participants to achieve certainty of outcome and closure to their disputes. Lori mediates civil litigation as well as pre-litigation disputes in the areas of personal injury, real estate, landlord/tenant, business disputes, medical malpractice, subrogation, and ADA cases.

Lori currently serves as a neutral with ARC Alternative Resolution Centers, is a panel mediator with the Mediation Center of Los Angeles and is on the County of Santa Barbara’s Court-approved list of preferred mediators. Aside from her commercial mediation practice, she volunteers as a panel mediator for the US District Court, and as a Settlement Officer for the Superior Courts of Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura.

When not mediating, Lori enjoys spending time with her family, friends and enjoys being creative in the kitchen.

Bill Eddy is a family mediator, lawyer and therapist, and the Chief Innovation Office of the High Conflict Institute based in San Diego, California. He has provided training to mediators, lawyers, judges, mental health professionals and others on the subject of managing high-conflict personalities in over 35 states, 9 provinces in Canada, and twelve other countries.

As a lawyer, Mr. Eddy was a Certified Family Law Specialist (CFLS) in California for 15 years, where he represented clients in family court. Prior to that, he provided psychotherapy for 12 years to children and families in psychiatric hospitals and outpatient clinics as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW). Throughout his forty-year career he has provided divorce mediation services, including the past 15 years as the Senior Family Mediator at the National Conflict Resolution Center in San Diego, California.

Mr. Eddy is the author of several books, including:

• Mediating High Conflict Disputes
• High Conflict People in Legal Disputes
• Splitting: Protecting Yourself While Divorcing Someone with Borderline or Narcissistic Personality Disorder
• Calming Upset People with EAR
• BIFF: Quick Responses to High Conflict People
• BIFF for CoParent Communication
• BIFF at Work
• BIFF for Lawyers and Law Offices
• So, What’s Your Proposal: Shifting High Conflict People From Blaming to Problem-Solving in 30 Seconds · Don’t Alienate the Kids! Raising Resilient Children While Avoiding High-Conflict Divorce

He has a continuing education course for Mental Health professionals titled “It’s All Your Fault!”: Working with High Conflict Personalities. He has a Psychology Today blog about high-conflict personality disorders with over 6 million views. He has a podcast titled “It’s All Your Fault” which he does weekly with Megan Hunter.

He taught Negotiation and Mediation at the University of San Diego School of Law for six years. He has served on the part-time faculty of the National Judicial College in the United States and has provided several trainings for judges in Canada for the National Judicial Institute. He is currently on the part-time faculty at the Straus Institute of Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law teaching Psychology of Conflict Communication each year. He teaches once a year on Advanced Communication Skills as Conjoint Associate Professor at Newcastle Law School in Newcastle, Australia.

He is the developer of the New Ways for Families® method for potentially high-conflict families, which is being implemented in several family court systems in the United States and Canada, as well as an online co-parenting course (Parenting Without Conflict by New Ways for Families). He is also the developer of the New Ways for Mediation® method, which emphasizes more structure by the mediator and simple negotiation skills for the parties.

He obtained his JD law degree in 1992 from the University of San Diego, a Master of Social Work degree in 1981 from San Diego State University, and a Bachelors degree in Psychology in 1970 from Case Western Reserve University. His website is: www.HighConflictInstitute.com.

Sylvia Garibaldi, CEO and Founder of SG and Associates, is not just a marketing strategist, trainer, and speaker, but also the driving force behind the Serve First, Sell Later Marketing podcast, tailored exclusively for legal and financial professionals.

With a vast global audience, Sylvia's podcast has become a cornerstone in the industry, offering invaluable insights and strategies to help professionals reach new heights of success.

With a track record of transforming hundreds of legal, mediation, financial, divorce, and collaborative professionals into industry leaders, Sylvia's expertise in result-oriented marketing strategies is unmatched.

Her team at SG and Associates specialize in providing tailored online marketing, coaching, training and done-for-you digital marketing solutions, guiding clients to create thriving practices.

A featured expert and speaker at professional associations, conferences and companies worldwide, Sylvia's expertise is sought for her unparalleled talent in demystifying intricate marketing strategies in ways that get professionals motivated and inspired to grow their practices beyond what they imagined possible!

Connect with SG and Associates

Email: sgandassociates@rogers.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sylviagaribaldi/

Instagram: www.instagram.com/sylvia.sgandassociates/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sgandassociates1/

Website: www.sgandassociates.ca/

Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/serve-first-sell-later-marketing/id1720025844

Sid Kanazawa is a full-time mediator/arbitrator at ARC (Alternative Resolution Centers) who thought he understood mediations. During his 40 years of trial practice, he believed the myths - “if everyone is unhappy, it must be a good settlement,” “in-person is the only way to effectively mediate,” and “mediations should be scheduled just before trial.” After the pandemic forced him to mediate more than 100 cases online, he no longer believes the myths. Using a status conference approach he developed during the pandemic, he now mediates early (sometimes before a lawsuit is filed), often, online, in-person, and world-wide to secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of nearly every action. And everyone now leaves happy.

Anthony Khoury has more than 20 years in the legal industry, culminating most recently, with a position as a Court Commissioner in Kern County where he presided over very diverse calendars, including, preliminary hearings in criminal felony matters, family law, domestic violence restraining orders, civil harassment restraining orders, small claims, limited civil, unlawful detainer, traffic and juvenile traffic, child support/AB1058, and misdemeanor jury trials. During his time on the bench in Kern County, Anthony also created a civil mediation program for limited civil, small claims, unlawful detainer, and civil harassment matters, and he created a voluntary settlement program for family law matters, as well as served as a mandatory settlement conference judge for unlimited civil matters.

Prior to taking the bench, Anthony ran a successful law practice for over a decade, specializing in civil, business, and employment law litigation. During that time, he represented both plaintiffs and defendants, and participated in dozens of mediations. Despite his extensive experience as a trial attorney, Anthony’s reputation was that of a staunch, but pragmatic, advocate--often receiving praise from colleagues, opposing attorneys, and judicial officers alike, for his exemplary ethical conduct, courteous and affable demeanor, and his ability to get cases settled.

PRACTICE AREAS

• Mr. Khoury’s practice areas include: employment, business/contractual, family law/divorce mediation, personal injury, bad faith/insurance coverage, class actions, and construction defect.
  

Conflict Resolution

• During Mr. Khoury’s time on the bench in Kern County, he created a civil mediation program for limited civil, small claims, unlawful detainer, and civil harassment matters. He also created a voluntary settlement program for family law matters, as well as served as a mandatory settlement conference judge for unlimited civil matters.
  
• Pepperdine University, Caruso School of Law, Straus Institute LL.M. Candidate in Dispute Resolution
  

EDUCATION & TRAINING

• Washington University in St. Louis, School of Law: J.D. (May 2004); Honors and Activities: Scholar-in-Law Award, NAPIL Pro Bono and Public Service Award, and Criminal Law Society Founder and President
  
• University of California, Los Angeles: B.A. with College Honors (June 2001) in the Individual Field of Concentration of Social Deviance and Criminal Justice, with Minors in Afro-American Studies and Political Science
  

Matthew Khorsandi is the go-to SEO expert and the visionary founder behind GLP Marketing. He has a proven track record of helping law firms, businesses, and digital agencies achieve significant growth. Many law firms struggle with SEO because they either waste resources or are hesitant to invest due to unclear benefits.

Matthew has demonstrated his prowess in the field with remarkable results. For instance, in just the first 12 months of working with Onyx Law Group, he helped boost their organic traffic from 3,299 to 15,835 visitors per month. His approach combines the power of social media, SEO, and content marketing to build a robust online presence that not only attracts leads but also drives conversions.

He is passionate about scaling companies from seven to eight figures, transforming their digital strategies, and ensuring they achieve peak performance online.

Chip Rose, as a practicing attorney and Certified Specialist in Family Law, Chip became aware of the mediation model for dispute resolution and incorporated it into his professional practice. In the years that followed, he became committed to offering clients an alternative to the damage inflicted by the traditional approach of litigation and the use of the court system. Chip now brings his experience and skills to Bend, Oregon while still helping CA clients through video-conferencing, text, and email consultations.

In the early 90's, Chip phased out the litigation part of his practice and Chip's professional work is now limited to providing client-empowered dispute resolution services through the mediation and collaborative practice processes.

Chip developed his mediation skills over the last forty years by focusing on the needs of clients and developing process structures that facilitate their discovery of pathways that lead to agreement and resolution. He is a nationally recognized expert in the field. The goals of his process are:

• To create a safe environment in which each party can get his/her needs met without interference from the other;
  
• To assist the parties to gather all necessary information and to analyze that information for choices and options;
  
• To explore all options to determine the consequences of each of the potential choices; and
  
• To assist the parties in developing settlement proposals and negotiating their perspectives to an agreement.
  

With this approach, Chip has assisted over 3000 couples to reach their most mutually beneficial settlements in a process in which:

• The clients control the process while it unfolds,
  
• The clients control the cost of the divorce proceeding, and
  
• The clients control the agreement that settles all their issues, disposes of their assets and liabilities, provides for their children, and establishes constructive parenting relationships.
  

Chip is the author of Collaborative Family Law Practice and authored The Creative Solution column in the quarterly publication of the Academy of Professional Family Mediators. Chip authored the chapter on Mediating Financial Issues in the 2004 publication Divorce and Family Mediation. Chip is currently President and Founding Board Member of the Academy of Professional Mediators (APFM) and a former Board Member of the Academy of Family Mediators and the International Association of Collaborative Professionals (IACP). He is the first recipient of the Eureka Award from the state organization CP Cal for his pioneering contributions to the development of the Collaborative Practice movement and he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York Council on Divorce Mediation in 2013. He has been teaching legal, mental health and financial professionals dispute resolution theory and technique since 1993 across the United States, in Canada and Europe.

Jack Schaeldel has devoted his 27-year career to practicing employment law and mediating employment law disputes across Los Angeles, during which he has mastered the knowledge and mediation skills needed to create the most satisfying employment law solutions.

From 1995 - 2004, Jack worked for leading employment law firms, learning the ins and outs of advising and representing employers. In 2004, Jack founded his own firm to represent and advise both employees and employers in high-stakes litigation, while also mediating cases through the LA Superior Court. In 2012, Jack founded, chaired, and evolved the Labor & Employment Section of the Pasadena Bar Association. From 2015 to 2022, Jack advised employers on compliance and represented them in litigation and arbitration, which often ended in mediated resolution. Today, Jack is focused exclusively on mediation and arbitration.

Jack’s extensive experience on both sides of “the v.”, his training and experience as a neutral, and his history as a small business owner ideally situate him to understand and empathize with every participant in mediation and to be a genuinely fair and impartial arbitrator.

ORGANIZATIONS & ACHIEVEMENTS

• Pasadena Bar Association
  

o Founder and Original Chairman, Labor & Employment Section

• Los Angeles County Bar Association
  

o Executive Committee, Labor & Employment Section; MCLE Dinner Committee

• City of La Canada Flintridge
  

o Commissioner, Public Works & Traffic Commissioner

• LA Metro Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
  

o Former Board Member and Counsel

• LA Canada Flintridge Educational Foundation
  

o Former Board Member and President

PRACTICE AREAS

Employment matters including individual wrongful termination claims, sexual harassment of former or current employees, RIF’s, class or PAGA representative actions, or workforce mergers.

CONFLICT RESOLUTION EXPERIENCE

Jack’s lifelong passion for conflict resolution began as a teenager when he volunteered at a community mediation center in New York. Secondly, he received firsthand training from his father, a prominent negotiator for a teachers union on Long Island. From his passion grew a need for more sustainable and tangible training, which led him to receive a certificate from Pepperdine University’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. Jack is now fully committed to mediation and arbitration. He understands that in order for a case to be resolved, mutual endurance, discipline, focus, and perseverance are necessary to lead parties in the right direction.

EDUCATION & TRAINING

University of California, Los Angeles School of Law J.D., 1995

Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations B.S., 1992 Dean’s List (4 years)

Certificate of Mediating the Litigated Case, Pepperdine University, Straus Institute

Honors and Recognitions

Los Angeles Metro Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, “Business Attorney of the Year” (2013)

Pasadena Magazine, “Top Lawyers” (2010-2020)

Registration Cost:

$2,195.00

Early Bird Pricing:

$1,895.00

Ends May 31

SCMA/APFM Members

$1,895.00