By Roberta M. Gubbins
Legal News
Retired Judge Paula Manderfield is now practicing lawyer Paula Manderfield. She has joined Fraser Trebilcock as a shareholder in the Lansing office.
''I am very excited about this opportunity to practice law and further serve the community,'' says Manderfield, who plans to focus on a mediation practice.
Mediation is controlled by Court Rule, she explained, and is used in both civil litigation and family law. Initially she will "do" civil. To be accepted on the court list of mediators, lawyers must complete a 40 hour civil training, observe a mediation and finally conduct one mediation supervised by the trained mediator.
Manderfield has completed the training, and "I observed my first mediation on a civil case. They resolved the case and didn't have to go to trial."
Case evaluation is another alternative to trial, she said, however, "studies show a higher percentage of cases are resolved through facilitative mediation than they are through case evaluation. So it is very popular and almost all cases are referred to mediation these days."
"It is not binding, however, often the parties feel they have had their day in court," she said. Although the parties are adversarial, it is not as contentious and if they are at mediation, they are of the mindset that they want to resolve the case."
Manderfield is enthused about ADR or alternative dispute resolution. She sees it as a way for litigants to resolve disputes quickly, efficiently and at less cost. It is totally different than being on the bench, she explained, where she made the decision and one or both of the parties are unhappy with the result.
Manderfield retired at the end of 2012 after 20 years on the bench. For the past twelve years, she served as a 30th Circuit Court Judge in Ingham County. She served in both the General Trial Division and in Family Division, with one year in each as Presiding Judge. Before her service with the 30th Circuit court, she was elected and served two terms as 54-A District Court Judge for the City of Lansing, where she served as Chief Judge for two years.
Manderfield has served on the Executive Committee of the Michigan Judges Association, has chaired the Judicial Response Committee and has been a board member of many community organizations.
Manderfield graduated from Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Michigan Technological University, and received her B.S. in Nursing from Michigan State University. Since 1975, she has also maintained her license as a Registered Nurse. She is an adjunct faculty member at MSU's College of Nursing and received the distinguished Alumni Award in September 2012. Manderfield is admitted to the State Bar of Michigan and is licensed to practice before all federal courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. She can be reached at 517.377.0847 or by e-mail at: pmanderfield@fraserlawfirm.com
Published: Thu, Feb 21, 2013
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