Ladera Ranch Arbitration & Mediation Lawyers

I have extensive experience in legal, finance, management and company-building.

As an attorney, my focus has been on transactional drafting and negotiation and providing ongoing legal counsel and contract interpretation to numerous private individuals as well as companies in varied fields such as media and entertainment, oil and gas, mining and exploration, virtual reality technologies, private health care, cannabis, and mortgage lending and real estate.

As an entertainment professional, I have acquired, or produced, and distributed dozens of feature films, while usually being active in managing the business and legal affairs of most the companies I have worked for or founded. My...

With over a decade of legal experience, Dominic M. Carucci, Esq. is a sought after business and real estate attorney practicing in California and Washington states. Formerly a Partner at a mid-sized California law firm, Dominic brings his unique approach, outstanding professionalism, and varied expertise to every matter. Whether he is drafting complex contracts or representing his clients through mediation or litigation, Dominic values his client relationships as much as he cares about obtaining favorable outcomes for them. Dominic was born and raised in San Diego, California. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of San Diego where he graduated...

Jeanann Khalife, attorney-mediator is the Managing Partner at Alternative Divorce Solutions, Inc. (“ADS”). Ms. Khalife commenced her legal career in 2012 as a litigation attorney, with a primary focus in Business and Employment Law. She enjoyed the challenging nature of the litigation realm and excelled in case management and legal argumentative construction. As time passed, Jeanann noticed that she had an inclination to do more with her legal career. She desired to utilize her legal training to positively impact her community. The question was how? Divorce Mediation, was an unexpected path in Ms. Khalife's career. However, it proved to be the path...

Clients want lawyers who know what they're doing, who can explain what and why they're doing it and how it benefits the client, and who can do it all for a reasonable fee with a strong likelihood of a favorable outcome. This is especially true of intellectual property attorneys whose clients understand that their most valuable assets, their copyrights, trademarks, and patents, are largely intangible and oftentimes hard to quantify. I understand these challenges and that understanding underlies my approach to every client and to every legal situation. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I've been doing this for more than...

I am passionate about helping individuals, families, and business owners achieve peace of mind by developing and implementing creative cost effective plans tailored for each client. I have been a practicing attorney since May of 2011. Prior to attending law school, I was a family law and estate planning paralegal for approximately 20 years. In that time I acted as a Paralegal for several attorneys. After establishing my own practice, I used all of my skills and knowledge to develop my family law practice. I raised my three children as a single mother while working and attending...

Thomas A. Fasel is a California licensed Attorney, a Solicitor (Attorney) in England & Wales and is the founding partner of Fasel Law. Mr. Fasel assists businesses and individuals facilitate cross-border transactions, foreign transactions and domestic transactions relating to international trade and finance as well as helping clients enforce international contracts, collect damages and obtain justice in international litigation. Mr. Fasel graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Notre Dame, Law School, obtaining his highly specialized Master of Law (LL.M.) degree in International and Comparative Law. Mr. Fasel earned his Juris Doctor Degree from Chapman University...

Attorney Davis founded the Law Offices of Terry K. Davis in June 1993 Bar Admissions: Admitted to California Supreme Court U.S. District Court (Central and Eastern Districts), U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit U.S. Supreme Court Reported cases: Carter v. California Dept. of Veterans Affairs (2006) 38 Cal.4th 914 Professional Affiliations: American Inns of Court, Robert A. Banyard Chapter, Orange County Orange County Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section Orange County Trial Lawyers Association, Board of Directors and Past Vice-President, 2010 California Employment Lawyers Association Consumer Attorneys of Los Angeles Education: Juris...

For over 40 years, attorney Daniel C. Carlton has devoted his professional life to protecting the rights of people in Orange County and throughout Southern California. Attorney Carlton is a licensed Real Estate Broker and has extensive experience in real estate law, including but not limited to real estate disputes, purchase and sales litigation, commercial transactions and leases, constructions disputes, DRE licensing and matters involving homeowners associations (HOA). He also has decades of experience representing people injured in slip and fall accidents, motor vehicle accidents and other personal injury cases.

Attorney Carlton is known for his personalized approach, getting to know...

Edwin V. Woodsome, a Phillips ADR neutral, was managing partner of Dechert LLP’s Los Angeles office and head of Global Litigation at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. With over 35 years of trial experience, he has handled consumer fraud, False Claims Act, securities, product liability, trade secrets, employment, antitrust, and intellectual property cases in state and federal courts. He has extensive appellate, mediation, and arbitration experience, including the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California’s mediation panel. Woodsome represented major firms in transportation, banking, technology, aerospace, and entertainment, serving as U.S. national litigation counsel for a global logistics company and...

Michelle Yoshida, a full-time mediator, arbitrator, and special master since 2007, joined Phillips ADR in 2014. Previously with Judge Daniel Weinstein’s team, she has mediated over 500 disputes with billions in settlements, excelling in complex cases involving securities, insurance, professional liability, ERISA, and trustee issues. Known for quickly grasping legal and factual complexities, she manages large ADR cases with objectivity and determination, finding practical solutions for disputes ranging from personal contracts to major corporate matters. Michelle builds trust and productive relationships with mediation participants. Before becoming a neutral, she was a trial attorney handling complex business litigation, including contracts, insurance, intellectual...

More than twenty years of diverse experience as a trial attorney representing and counseling domestic and international clients in a vast array of matters. More than ten years of experience providing arbitration, mediation and other ADR services involving many domestic and international issues. Representation and ADR services have included: REAL ESTATE (purchase/sale, title, easements, financing, mortgage lending:underwriting - securitization, leases, fraud, environmental, receivership, foreclosure, appraisal/valuation); BUSINESS & CORPORATE (purchase and sale, formation: corporation - partnership - joint venture - LLC - LLP, capitalization, equity adjustment, fiduciary duties, D&O liability, executive compensation, internal investigations, fraud, business torts, unfair...

Chuck Stevens joined Phillips ADR after a 40-year career as a litigation partner at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, U.S. Attorney, and neutral in ADR matters. At Gibson Dunn’s San Francisco office, he served as managing partner for six years and was recognized by Lawdragon (2023 Leading Global Litigators), Benchmark Litigation (2024 Litigation Star), and Chambers (Band 1, California Litigation). He was named San Francisco’s Lawyer of the Year for Bet-the-Company Litigation (2019) by Best Lawyers. Chuck founded a boutique litigation firm, handling complex civil cases and qui tam matters. As a neutral, he mediated for the Eastern District of California’s Voluntary...

Elliot Brown, a Phillips ADR neutral, is the former managing partner of Irell & Manella LLP. He spent nearly 30 years in IP litigation, counseling, and licensing at a top IP practice. Elliot graduated cum laude from Harvard College (1985), earning Phi Beta Kappa and a John Harvard Scholar award. He studied philosophy of science at Princeton, receiving an MA (1987) and a Mellon Fellowship, where game theory and Daniel Kahneman’s work on bargaining and cognitive bias shaped his approach to dispute resolution. He earned his J.D. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School (1990), serving as a Harvard Law Review...

A native of Southern California, Paul graduated cum laude from Chapman University where he pitched for Chapman’s World Series baseball team. Paul then attended Chapman University, Dale E. Fowler School of Law, where he was extremely active in Mock Trial and ADR competitions, winning numerous top advocate awards. He gained valuable courtroom experience while externing with the United States Attorney’s Office and the Orange County and Riverside County District Attorney’s offices. After receiving his law degree, Paul moved to Chicago, IL and gained significant trial experience representing clients in all phases of litigation, from inception of the case through post-trial motions...

Layn R. Phillips, founder of Phillips ADR Enterprises (PADRE), is a former U.S. Attorney and U.S. District Judge. Appointed at age 35 by President Reagan, he presided over 140+ trials in Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas, and sat by designation on the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Earlier, Judge Phillips served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles, and at age 31, was nominated as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. After leaving the bench, he spent 23 years at Irell & Manella, focusing on complex civil litigation, internal investigations, and alternative dispute resolution. He later founded PADRE, specializing...

Margaret B. Seymour, a retired U.S. District Judge (District of South Carolina, 1998–2022), was the first African American woman federal judge and chief federal judge in South Carolina. She served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge (1996–1998) before her district court appointment. Over 26 years, Judge Seymour presided over complex securities, contract, class action, commercial, banking, bankruptcy, employment, discrimination, and environmental cases, as well as criminal matters like drug conspiracies, white-collar crime, and Ponzi schemes. She sat by designation on the Fourth Circuit and participated in two three-judge-panel redistricting cases. She served twice on the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of...

Seth Aronson joined Phillips ADR in 2023, mediating disputes up to ten figures in securities, consumer class actions, privacy, false claims, shareholder derivative, antitrust, RMBS fraud, and complex litigation. He serves on the ADR panel for the U.S. District Court, Central District of California. Retiring from O’Melveny & Myers LLP in 2022 after 40 years as a trial and appellate lawyer, Seth was managing partner of O’Melveny’s Los Angeles office and chaired its Securities Litigation practice. Ranked by Chambers USA for 20 years, he was named California Securities Litigation Attorney of the Year twice by Benchmark Litigation, a “Top 100 Lawyer”...

Clay joined Judge Phillips’ ADR practice in 2011. He graduated cum laude from Pepperdine University (B.A., History, 2006) and earned his J.D. from Fordham Law School (2011). He is admitted to the New York and California State Bars. Clay began mediating small claims in Bronx County Civil Court during law school. With over a decade at Phillips ADR, he now mediates complex disputes involving major companies in areas like antitrust, class actions, intellectual property, environmental, mass tort, insurance, securities, and contract disputes. He has worked on over 500 mediations, assisting Judge Phillips before, during, and after sessions, and directly engaging parties...

Andra Greene, a Phillips ADR neutral, has mediated OR COMEDIATED disputes from seven to 11 figures in NUMEROUS AREAS INCLUDING mass torts, class actions, EMPLOYMENT, securities, sexual misconduct, insurance, and intellectual property. She spent 35 years at Irell & Manella LLP, leading the Class Action Defense practice and serving as managing partner of the Newport Beach office and on the Executive Committee. A seasoned trial lawyer, Andra handled complex litigation in class actions, professional liability, employment, business torts, securities, and intellectual property in state and federal courts. She often represented lawyers and law firms. Recognized as a “Top Woman Lawyer in...

Gregory P. Lindstrom, a Phillips ADR neutral since 2014, brings extensive litigation and business experience from his roles as a Latham & Watkins litigation partner and General Counsel of The Irvine Company. A full-time mediator and arbitrator since 2012, he specializes in complex disputes, including antitrust, securities, intellectual property, and commercial matters. Born in California, Greg graduated summa cum laude from UCLA (Economics, 1975) and earned his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School (1978), working with Professor Richard Posner. At Latham & Watkins (1978–2008), he became a partner in 1986, managed the San Francisco office, and served on the...

Niki, a Phillips ADR neutral for six years, brings 25 years of experience in complex litigation, claims administration, mediation, arbitration, and special master roles. A protégé of Judge Layn Phillips, she has co-mediated hundreds of cases, applying his innovative practices in mediations she leads and in court-appointed special master roles nationwide. Before Phillips ADR, Niki was Vice President of Client Strategy & Development at a national class action claims administrator. For nearly 15 years, she litigated securities fraud and complex commercial cases at a national class action law firm, securing court-approved settlements in high-profile matters. She also represented defendants in insurance...

Bill Ohlemeyer brings 40 years of experience to Phillips ADR, representing plaintiffs, defendants, and working at Altria Group. He has litigated, arbitrated, mediated, and tried cases in state and federal courts, advising on legal and regulatory challenges. A Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, Bill graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri Law School and clerked for Chief Judge Scott O. Wright. He joined Shook, Hardy & Bacon, becoming partner in 1991, then served as Vice President and Associate General Counsel at Altria (1999–2008), managing litigation for Philip Morris...

Barry R. Ostrager, a retired New York State Supreme Court Justice (Commercial Division, 2015–2023), presided over numerous trials and resolved hundreds of commercial cases. Before his judicial role, he was a litigation partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, leading its 300+ attorney Litigation Department and serving on the management committee. As lead trial counsel, Ostrager handled high-profile securities, antitrust, and insurance cases, including Swiss Re’s World Trade Center dispute and Travelers’ environmental coverage case against Shell Oil, both resulting in jury verdicts. He tried five cases involving $1 billion+ disputes and led major arbitrations, such as Andersen Consulting’s $14 billion...

Sean Coffey, a Phillips ADR neutral, served as the 24th General Counsel of the Navy (2022–2025), leading over 1,100 attorneys worldwide. Previously a renowned trial lawyer, he handled plaintiff and defense cases in securities, class actions, and complex litigation. At Latham & Watkins, he secured a directed verdict in a bet-the-company case. At Bernstein Litowitz, he led the $6.2 billion WorldCom Securities Litigation recovery. As Chair of Complex Litigation at Kramer Levin, he advised corporate clients. As Navy General Counsel, Sean founded the Taxpayer Advocacy Project and led the exoneration of 256 African American Sailors from the 1944 Port Chicago courts-martial,...

Zev J. Eigen is a labor/employment and entertainment litigator with more than a decade of substantial experience handling complex negotiations, alternative dispute resolution and general contract law. Eigen has developed a particular background in representing clients in the entertainment industry and the restaurant and hospitality industry. He previously served as Senior Counsel to Twentieth Century Fox, where he represented Fox in all facets of its relationships with the entertainment industry labor organizations such as the Screen Actors Guild, the Writers Guild and the Directors Guild. Prior to joining Fox, Eigen worked as an associate with the law firm, Littler Mendelson,...

Danielle Menitove is an independent arbitrator and mediator specializing in commercial and sports-related disputes, including antitrust, employment, intellectual property, gambling, anti-doping, and player-agent issues. Danielle serves as an arbitrator on the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, and on the American Arbitration Association’s commercial, consumer, and national sports panels. Before starting her ADR practice, Danielle was a litigator at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in New York for over ten years, handling complex litigation in federal and state courts, government investigations, and advisory matters. Her cases involved antitrust, contract breaches, fiduciary duty, and unfair competition. ...

Caroline brings extensive mediation and problem-solving expertise to Phillips ADR, drawing from her roles as General Counsel at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Principal Deputy White House Counsel. Known for her communication, judgment, and legal acumen, she excels in advising Boards and senior leaders on dispute resolution. At PwC, Caroline managed all legal, regulatory, compliance, and governance matters, handling lawsuits and regulatory issues with potential damages in the billions. She led settlement negotiations and mediations with opposing counsel, clients, and regulators like the SEC and FDIC, while resolving internal conflicts within PwC’s global network. As Principal Deputy White House Counsel under President Obama, she...

Ann Cook brings a business-focused approach to Phillips ADR, leveraging a decade at Ernst & Young LLP, including two years as General Counsel. Experienced as both plaintiff and defendant, she understands dispute dynamics and has litigated, arbitrated, and mediated cases in accounting, securities, contracts, and employment. A creative problem solver, Ann advised on complex corporate initiatives, balancing risk and business goals, earning recognition as a tenacious leader. At EY, Ann managed legal strategy for a $20B firm with 50,000 employees, overseeing litigation and regulatory matters during high regulatory activity. She advised on public disclosure and bankruptcy issues for over 1,000 public...

Kimberly Huebner serves as the Insurance Liaison for Phillips ADR, specializing in Directors’ and Officers’ Management Liability and Employment Practices Liability Insurance for companies and public entities. She facilitates communication between insurance carriers and Phillips ADR, reporting to panelists and coordinating further interactions. Before joining Phillips ADR, Kimberly was Vice President of Technical Claims for D&O Claims at AIG Claims, Inc. She tracked litigation trends, analyzed potential exposures, and reported divisional loads. Kimberly evaluated complex claims for strategic resolution and trained colleagues on claims handling, coverage evaluation, and negotiation. Kimberly earned a B.S. in Psychology from Roanoke College and a J.D. from...