“Jeff Merrick and I co-mediated an employment law matter pending before the U.S. District Court. Counsel for both sides expressed their appreciation for Jeff’s skills and hard work helping move this case to resolution; I can’t praise his work enough.”
– Honorable Susan Leeson.
I love the law, and I love helping people.
A litigation attorney since 1984, I’ve handled just about all types of civil litigation (except family law.) My work included some of the most complex cases involving thousands of people and hundreds of millions of dollars to helping a teenager fired because she was pregnant. My law practice informs my mediation practice both because of my legal knowledge and because I understand the non-law pressures of attorneys and their clients.
A mediator since 2012, my mediation practice provides me insight and skills that help me as a lawyer representing clients. 98% of lawsuits never go to trial. So, mediation skills are critical.
Below are sections summarizing my mediation practice, attorney practice, education, and my mediation publications and presentations.
Mediation Practice
Merrick Mediation (2012 to date).
I serve on the following mediator panels:
I mediate disputes in the following subject matters, among others:
- Employment Law
- Personal Injury
- Professional Malpractice: Dental, Medical, Legal and other
- Contract disputes
- Construction Law disputes
- Landlord-Tenant, both residential and commercial
- Creditor-Debtor
- Premises Liability
- Toxic Torts
- Civil Litigation
- Product Liability
- Homeowners Association vs. Owners vs. Management
- Crime victim claims
- Injuries to children
- Pre-lawsuit negotiations
Attorney Practice
1984-85: Oregon Department of Justice, Honors Attorney in the Trial Division. Defended the State of Oregon from lawsuits in Personal Injury, Civil Rights / Employment Law and other civil litigation.
1985-1992: Defense practice in Employment Law, Personal Injury, Product Liability, Challenging Governmental Actions and other civil litigation. (Miller-Nash; Allen, Kilmer, Schrader, Yazbeck & Chenoweth)
1992- 2015 and 2018 to date: Plaintiff practice in complex civil litigation, including Personal Injury, Employment Law, Product Liability, Legal Malpractice, Civil Rights, and other civil litigation. (Williams & Troutwine; Williams, Merrick, Dailey, O’Leary; Jeff Merrick, P.C.)
Education
Stanford University, BA, Economics & Political Science in 1980
University of Minnesota School of Law, JD with honors in 1984
Northwestern School of Law, Lewis & Clark College, LLM with honors in 2004
My articles related to Mediation
– Jeff Merrick, A Conversation with Jacqueline Abel on Small Claims Mediation, Oregon State Bar Bulletin (Aug. / Sept., 2015)
– Jeff Merrick, Deception in Negotiation and Mediation: Where’s the line?, Trial Lawyer (Winter, 2015)
– Jeff Merrick, Judge Acosta Discusses Mediation, Multnomah Lawyer, June 2012.
– Letter from Jeff Merrick, Article Was “Spot On,” Oregon State Bar Bulletin, April 2012 (re Elden Rosenthal’s “Second Thoughts on Mediation”)
My presentations related to mediation
Mock Online Mediation for Multnomah Co. Court Mediators May 18, 2020 (2 hours)
Trial Attorney to Mediator: What I wish I knew Then
November 7, 2016 to OTLA Employment Law Section (1 hour).
Pre-Mediation Checklist and Mediation Tactics
April 24, 2014 to Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Motor Vehicles Section (1 hour).
Deception in Mediation & Negotiation
March 23, 2017 to 23rd Annual NW Dispute Resolution Conference, U of Washington Law School (1 hour)
December 14, 2012 to Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt (1 hour)
December 7, 2012 to Oregon Trial Lawyers Association (1 hour)
September 19, 2012 to Multnomah Bar Association (2 hours)
Mediation Courses / Training
Zoom Mediations from A-Z, May 19, 2020 (2 hours)
Do-it-Yourself Reframing for Mediators, May 7, 2020 (0.5 hours)
Mediating in a Virtual Environment, April 17, 2020 (1.5 hours)
Nuts and Bolts of Mediating Online, viewed 3/31/2020 (1.75 hours)
Federal Arbitration Act Issues, November 5, 2018 (1 hour)
Professionalism in Discovery, September 13, 2018 (1.5 hours)
October 28, 2017, Conscious Communication by Tsipora Dimant and sponsored by Hillsboro, OR Mediation Program (6.5 hours)
June 23, 2017: Five Star Facilitation presented by Kon Damas and sponsored by Oregon Mediation Association (6 hours)
August 19, 2016: “Trauma Informed Mediation,” presented by Rebecca Bloomfield and sponsored by Multnomah County Court (3 hours) Topic summarized here.
March 10, 2016: “Clean Language” for Mediators, sponsored by Multnomah County Court (1.5 hours). Topic summarized here.
September 23, 2015: Bias and Impartial Regard, sponsored by Clackamas County Resolution Services (2 hours, ethics)
December 4, 2014: “It’s the Principle of the Thing” by Molly Keating, sponsored by Multnomah County Court (2 hours)
November 7, 2014: Oregon Mediation Association Fall Conference
June 23 – 24, 2014: Adverse Healthcare Incident Mediation Training, sponsored by Oregon Patient Safety Commission and Oregon Mediation Association (16 hours)
June 5 and 12, 2014: Eight-hour training for Court-Certified Mediators in Multnomah County
February 11 and 25, 2013: Community Mediation Training, sponsored by Clackamas County Resolution Services (6 hours)
February 13, 2013: Working with Interpreters, sponsored by Clackamas County Resolution Services (1.5 hours)
November 2-3 , 2012: Oregon Mediation Association Annual Conference, 6.5 hours of seminars in several topics.
March 28 through April 1, 2012: Mediation Intensive Training Program (40-hour course), The Center for Understanding in Conflict/ Center for Mediation in Law, Marin County, California.
March 9, 2012 : Impasse-Breaking & Ethics; Tips, Tricks, Traps & Tools, sponsored by Oregon Mediation Association and Oregon State Bar ADR Section (6 hours)
February 15, 2012: Oregon Judicial Department Court-Connected Mediation Training, sponsored by Clackamas County Resolution Services (8 hours.
2011: Continuing Education: An Attorney / Mediator’s Perspective on ADR, sponsored by Oregon Trial Lawyers Association (1 hour)
2003: Law School Course: Environmental Mediation and Negotiation (full semester), Northwestern School of Law, Lewis & Clark College