I have been in private practice my entire career. For some 38 years, before becoming a full-time mediator, I practiced primarily in the field of insurance defense; defending (and resolving!) lawsuits filed across North Carolina, from Murphy in the west to Jacksonville in the east. I also defended workers’ compensation claims filed with the North Carolina Industrial Commission. I have significant first-chair experience trying personal injury cases to a resolution in Superior Court, involving every kind of claim imaginable; including serious spine injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and wrongful death. I am well-versed in the application of uninsured motorist coverage and underinsured motorist coverage to injury and death claims. I understand factors that can affect the resolution of claims; including coverage disputes, and the application of various types of liens. Before I became a full-time mediator, I represented clients in countless Superior Court mediations. (In fact, I voluntarily utilized mediation as a form of alternative dispute resolution, before Court-Ordered mediation existed in North Carolina.)

My appellate experience includes arguing cases before the Full Commission, the North Carolina Court of Appeals, and the North Carolina Supreme Court

• JD, Wake Forest University 1982
• BS, Appalachian State University 1979

• Licensed to practice in NC
• Admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina in 1983
• Admitted to practice in the Fourth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals in 1984
• NCDRC Certified Superior Court Mediator.

My rates for mediations conducted wholly remotely are a one-time administrative fee of $125 per party (two or more parties represented by the same attorney will be treated as one party); and $290 per hour.

I do not charge for travel if an in-person mediation is held in Mecklenburg County, Cabarrus County, or Gaston County.

If an in-person mediation is held outside of Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, or Gaston I charge the rates noted above (an administrative fee  of $125 per party, and $290 per hour); and add a $100.00 per hour fee for my travel time to and from the mediation. 

I do not charge postponement fees. However, if a matter that I have been asked to mediate resolves prior to being mediated, I charge the administrative fee to defray the overhead associated with being selected.