By Kathleen Gregus
As many know, the Osgoode Mediation Clinic (OMC) allows Osgoode students the opportunity to provide free mediations, conflict resolution training, and personal conflict coaching to the community within and surrounding York University. Over the past year, members of the OMC Campus Clinic Division have committed to developing skills as mediators and negotiators with the focus of increasing access to justice for folks experiencing a wide range of conflict.
Speaking on behalf of myself and fellow Campus Clinic Division members, OMC has provided us with the opportunity to learn about the importance of taking a holistic, culturally sensitive, and practical approach to mediation through both hands-on and theoretical learning. As student mediators, we are always eager to learn more about mediation from practicing mediators so that we may contextualize our clinical work to serve those struggling with conflict in our communities.
To bring greater awareness about mediation and alternative dispute resolution to the Osgoode community, we have launched the Mediator Spotlight initiative. Through this initiative, members of the Campus Clinic Division have conducted interviews with experienced practitioners which have been recorded and shared on our social media accounts more broadly.
A brief synopsis of the first two Mediator Spotlight interviews is included below:
Interview 1: Interview with Jon Fidler conducted by Stefania Mariani and Arielle Masur
On January 26, 2022, Stefania Mariani and Arielle Masur had the pleasure of interviewing Osgoode alumni and accomplished mediator, Jon Fidler. As a lawyer, Mr. Fidler has extensive experience practicing personal injury, negligence, and insurance litigation. Mr. Fidler has practised full-time as a mediator and arbitrator with M + F Mediation and Arbitration Services since 1995 and specializes in mediating insurance-related disputes.
Topics covered in this discussion include particular challenges which arise in the context of mediation; the benefits of mediation; creative resolutions and how to overcome barriers in mediation; the use of the caucus method throughout mediation; and the increased prevalence of mediation in recent years.
Interview 2: Interview with Frank Gomberg conducted by Stefania Mariani and Josiah Schaafsma
On February 2nd, 2022, Stefania Mariani and Josiah Schaafsma had the pleasure of interviewing Osgoode alumni and accomplished mediator, Frank Gomberg. Mr. Gomberg has mediated over 4,500 civil disputes in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice including personal injury claims, medical and hospital malpractice cases, insurance disputes, lawyers’ negligence cases, wrongful dismissal cases and professional liability claims.
Topics covered in this discussion include: how law students can develop their skills to become effective mediators; main practice areas where mediation is an effective dispute resolution tool; mediation style and structure; common misconceptions about mediation, and; particular challenges which arise during the process.
We happily invite all who are interested to access these interviews by heading to the OMC YouTube page.
We will continue to upload more video interviews in the coming weeks, so stay tuned on our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages for updates. As always, we encourage folks to reach out to our division through the OMC email (OMC@osgoode.yorku.ca) to provide feedback, engage in further discussion, or inquire about accessing clinic services.