Dispute Resolution Services
Complex and Commercial Litigation
Difficult cases in which the issues are complex and the emotions and stakes are high can be most successfully resolved through a process in which the parties and their counsel place their trust and can expect, in return, insight, perseverance, and guidance to maintain the focus on advancing their interests and eliminating the intractable barriers to resolution. My approach, as reflected in the testimonials of my clients in cases over many years, provides just that. Mediation can be hard - tough cases usually are. Yet, the result through a well-managed process can be far superior to virtually any outcome in litigation, reducing cost and risk and reaching a resolution that accomplishes key objectives.
Payer/Provider Arbitration and Mediation
I am a member of the America Arbitration, The National Healthcare Panel and the American Health Law Association Dispute Resolution Panel and have handle many cases with each. Both of these organizations are providing leadership in advancing best practices to reduce cost and eliminate waste in reaching fair resolution of reimbursement disputes.
Payer/Provider Disputes Have Distinct Characteristics
Characteristics of Payer-Provider Arbitration
Effective resolution in terms of cost and outcome requires considerable knowledge of reimbursement practices and underlying clinical issues, as well as strong process management skills for both arbitration and mediation.
Healthcare Disputes
Healthcare disputes are growing in number and scope as the healthcare system becomes increasingly complex. Time and efficiency constraints challenge participants in the system to avoid the drain of time and expense of resolving inevitable conflicts which detract from the central focus of patient care. Continuing, interdependent relationships require both greater conflict competence and the speedy, cost-effective, and fair resolution of disputes. My broad background in the healthcare field and depth of experience in resolving a wide range of such conflicts enables me to help you find a way through your dispute - as a trainer, consultant, or third party neutral-with a minimum of expense and distraction, while allowing for a positive, sensible result. Types of disputes in healthcare include:
Mediation offers a process that gets right to the heart of the issues and the needs of the parties to move forward with their businesses, their practices, and in the case of individuals and families, their lives.
Bankruptcy and Debt Restructuring
Complex bankruptcy and restructuring matters require particular knowledge and expertise in devising and executing the most effective processes for both debtors and creditors. While mediation is not unknown to these kinds of disputes, the process is not pursued nearly enough considering the time saved and value created, with no risk to the participating parties of forsaking any litigation options. As well, EARLY use of mediation between two parties or among several offers tremendous advantages as well as cost saving and is surely preferable to protracted, expensive and uncertain proceeding either in bankruptcy court or for collection. Developing creative options and approaches not available through court orders makes mediation of such disputes a far preferable alternative, particularly in difficult, intractable cases.
Business and Finance
Mediation has become commonplace in business and commercial disputes. Yet, too many business mediations involve purely “positional bargaining” without any emphasis on interests and business objectives. In the hands of a mediator for who focuses on interests and elicits party engagement around business opportunity, the resolution of disputes can be transformed from positional power plays seeking to avoid the “worst case” into productive discussions of value creation for all parties in the context of what makes sense, and even creates opportunity, for the businesses and the individuals at the table. This may sound fanciful to those who have not been exposed to this kind of process. The simple fact is that, done well, business mediation can shift from a burden to an opportunity.
Physician Partnerships: Potential Conflicts
It's well understood that the healthcare industry is in the midst of substantial and dynamic change. One impact of that change is on the practice of individual physicians, who are entering into larger partnership groups or becoming employees of provider organizations.
Larger partnerships mean more potential for disagreement, and doctors leaving groups to become employees means that partnerships are breaking up. Thus, more need for efficient and effective means of resolving disputes arising from these trends, without litigation. And pre-existing agreements may not adequately address dispute resolution, because: