Adam J. Berner

At a time when mediation was a hobby and an occasional gig for lawyers, I decided over 30 years ago that I wanted to be a different kind of lawyer. There was something about mediation and helping people in conflict find a better and more productive way of resolving their differences that attracted me to Mediation and Collaborative law.

Through my initial years of working at a prominent Fifth Avenue matrimonial litigation firm (while volunteering as a court mediator on the side), it became even clearer to me that there had to be a better way. The courtroom was no place for a family to work out their differences, and I made the decision to develop my skills and expertise helping families — not destroying them.

For this reason, I might actually be one of the first professional mediators in the country who considers mediation and collaborative law as my first profession of origin.

This is my calling and the mission of our firm, founded almost three decades ago, to help people resolve their conflicts together in a problem-solving way instead of against each other in a destructive way.

Over these past 30 years, I have devoted myself and my firm to these professional and personal goals. From East Coast to West Coast, I have studied under the leading mediation trainers in the country, learning from each unique style and finding the best out there. With degrees in law and accounting and post-graduate studies at NYU School of Social Work, my practice strives to integrate the sophistication necessary for complex legal and financial analysis on the one hand, with a deep understanding of human nature, emotions, and underlying motivations that drive most conflict on the other hand. At the end of the day, my firm’s mission is to help people work through conflict to find the best possible solutions while preserving the best possible relationships.

My years of study and practice as a never-ending student of mediation and conflict resolution have positioned me not only to be a leading mediator and collaborative practitioner but also a sought-after trainer. In addition to the past 20 plus years of teaching as an Adjunct Professor at Cardozo School of Law, I also provide private trainings to other attorneys, judges, and other professionals, as well as training and workshop presentations offered by the various bar associations in the NY and NJ area.

My leadership role in this field has included serving as the Past President of the Family & Divorce Mediation Council of Greater New York, Founding President of the Collaborative Divorce Association of North Jersey, and Founding Member of both the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals and the New Jersey Council of Collaborative Practice Groups. I am an instructor for various panels, bar associations, and private trainings, including NJ Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s 40-hour divorce mediation training. I also served as the Director of Training at the New York Center for Interpersonal Developments’ (NYCID) Mediation & Conflict Resolution Training Institute.

Most importantly, my wife and I realize, as parents of 4, that our conflict-resolution skills remain a work in progress.

Organizational Affiliations

Additional organizational affiliations include:

• Association of the Bar of the City of New York, ADR Committee

• Association of Conflict Resolution (formerly Academy of Family Mediators), Advanced Practitioner Member

• NYS Council on Divorce Mediation, Accredited Member

• New Jersey Association of Professional Mediators, Accredited Mediator

• International Association of Collaborative Practitioners (IACP)

• Family & Divorce Mediation Council of Greater New York, Past President, and former Chair of the Continuing Education Committee; Regular contributor to the council’s newsletter and Continuing Education Presenter

• Collaborative Divorce Association of North Jersey, Founding President

• New Jersey State Council of Collaborative Practice Groups, Founder and former Vice President

• New Jersey State Bar Association, Family Section

• New York Association of Collaborative Professionals, Founding Member

• Association of the Bar of the City of New York, ADR Committee

• Center for Mediation in the Law (East Coast Division)

Presentations

Adam frequently serves as a presenter and trainer for other mediators and collaborative attorneys. Recent presentations include:

• NJ Institute of Continuing Legal Education—presentations on mediation, advance mediation and collaborative law

• Association of the Bar of the City of New York—presentations on mediation and collaborative law and representing clients in divorce mediation

• Family and Divorce Mediation Council of Greater New York—presentations on mediation practice, process, substantive law and mediation ethics

• New York State Council on Divorce Mediation—advanced mediation workshop

• New Jersey Association of Professional Mediators—mediation skills workshops

• North Jersey Collaborative Law Group—advanced collaborative skill training

• New York Association of Collaborative Professionals—basic collaborative practice trainer

• Collaborative Divorce Association of North Jersey – Collaborative Trainer

• Family Focused Divorce Association – Advance Collaborative skill training

• South Jersey Collaborative Divorce Professionals – Collaborative Law Presentation

• Israel Bar Association—presentation on collaborative law.

• Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) Day – speaker

Contact Adam Berner today.