Oct. 17, 2013
William Sheffield
See more on William SheffieldJudicate West Los Angeles and Santa Ana Specialties: personal injury and intellectual property
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They're more emotional, more intense, he said. With high legal fees and congestion in the courts, many are opting to take their tough disputes to mediation.
The former Orange County Superior Court judge, who also served as general counsel for the Asian branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, recently dealt with a vehicular manslaughter case where emotions ran high among the parties. Two intoxicated young women hit a 18-wheeler while driving, killing the car's passenger and injuring its driver. Anger flared between the parents of both families, he said, but after defusing some of the emotions, they were able to settle the case.
Sheffield said he tries to maintain peace in the personal injury, contract, insurance claim and intellectual property disputes that come his way. Like in a marriage, parties in mediation can choose to fight or stay amicable, he said.
"If you're married and you're committed to winning the argument, you're going to lose the peace."
For Sheffield, however, emotion in cases is what sets mediation apart from the bench. He recalled downtime in a dispute over memorabilia rights of one of the "most famous movie stars," where the deceased celebrity's children went around the table and said a line from one of his films in his voice.
"You're doing your best to bring the parties together, and you do that by getting to know them," Sheffield said. "When you're a mediator, you don't have a black robe on."
-Kylie Reynolds
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