The mediator’s goal is to effectively and creatively help you resolve your legal dispute. In doing so, I draw from my experiences over the course of my 25-year legal career. However, looking back at my life, no matter how small the job, I have always strived to learn at least one lesson. Click on the button bellow to view some highlights of the lessons I learned and their impact on my mediation style.
University of Michigan Law School, JD, cum laude, 1994.
University of Illinois, B.A. in Russian and East European Studies (highest distinction) and History, summa cum laude, Bronze Tablet (top 3%), 1991.
Illinois State Bar Association 40-hour Mediation/Arbitration Training.
Conflict Rescue: Four Hour Texas- Specific Mediation Training in accordance with the requirements of the Texas Mediator Credentialing Association (“TMCA”).
Austin Dispute Resolution Center: 30-Hour Advanced Family Mediation Training per the Texas Mediation Trainers Roundtable (“TMTR”).
• Illinois Supreme Court (1994)
• State Bar of Texas (2019)
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
• U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
Highlights for Defendants: Successfully obtained summary judgment in favor of client and handled arguments in front of trial and appellate court judges in Cinergy, City of Evansville v. USF&G and Degroate. Successfully urged federal court to dismiss key claims in Hillshire v. Travelers.
Highlights for Plaintiffs: Week long confidential AAA Commercial arbitration: Lead and sole attorney for plaintiff presenting argument and evidence in business dispute to three member panel who issued a seven-figure award for the full amount of damages sought.
Schulwolf, S. (1999). NATO and the Balkans: An International Lawyer’s Viewpoint. Loyola Forum of International Law, VII(1), 1- 17.
Schulwolf, S. Steve & A’Hearn, K. (2012, Spring). Global Warming Claims: Will Things Heat Up for General Liability Insurers? The Brief, American Bar Association, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, 41(3), 14-25. Featured and Cover Article.
“Steve has served as counsel in several complex mediations I’ve conducted, and his smart, tenacious, problem-solving nature as an advocate makes him a ‘natural’ in the role of mediator.”
In business disputes, parties often set up models to calculate their risks in deriving a value for their case (or their opponent’s case). A good mediator understands the limits and potential problems with such probabilistic calculations. Most lawyers hate math. In fact, there is a small niche in academia that debates the use of mathematics in the court room because it is frequently misused. See e.g. “Trial by Mathematics: Precision and Ritual in the Legal Process” (84 Harvard Law Review 1329 [1970-71]). Probability problems often appear to be simple, but can be more complex than people understand, which can adversely impact their settlement expectations. Want to play an interactive game that illustrates the problem and possibly win a discount on your next mediation?
