by Michele Newbern Gillis
Staff Writer
In a time when tensions can run high, attorney Bert Rasmussen of Peacemaker Mediation Services offers an alternative to help solve a dispute before it goes to court.
His business focuses on mediations of real estate, property, short sales and divorce disputes.
“It’s a first step before the file a lawsuit,” said Rasmussen. “It’s a chance to try and negotiate a settlement of the dispute that they are having where they sit down in a professional, but confidential area and talk.
“We talk together and they can talk separately. We talk about it and try to resolve it. If they can resolve it, it can save them a lot of time and aggravation. If it can’t be resolved, they can always go and get attorneys.”
Rasmussen is an attorney. But, in his office, he is a mediator.
He is certified by the Florida Supreme Court in civil mediations that involve everything from automobile accidents and property disputes to big cases. He is also certified in family mediations, so he works with people getting divorced.
“I work with people before they go get attorneys to help them work out the issues they are facing,” he said.
As far as real estate, Rasmussen offers several different services to help everyone through the process before it escalates to something worse.
“In the real estate realm, we can work with Realtors who have a dispute with their own clients or with people that are having disputes over their contracts, or we can help them negotiate any real estate issue they are facing,” he said. “We also help people negotiate short sales with the mortgage company. We can help by getting involved with the mortgage company and the PMI company if there is one involved, and help them actually work through the process in a friendly manner without making threats to file a lawsuit.”
He does not represent them as an attorney or give them legal advice - he just helps them understand the legal issues they are involved in.
“They reach the agreement and then they go out and speak to an attorney if they need to,” he said. “We handle whatever paperwork they need. If it’s something they have to go to court with, we’ll help them fill out the paperwork to resolve that issue and they’ll file it with the courts.”
But, a lot of disputes never have to go to court. They can be settled right in his office via an agreement signed by both parties, which is a legal binding contract.
He came up with the name Peacemaker Mediation Services from a quote he found from Abraham Lincoln: “Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser in fees, costs, expenses and a waste of time. As a peacemaker, the lawyer has a superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be enough business for everyone.’”
Rasmussen said that mediation is such a great first step and, in this time of counting our pennies, a much more economical one.
“If you can go before a mediator and work it out, what have you lost?” he asked. “If it doesn’t work out, you haven’t lost anything. Any client that comes in my office signs a contract that everything that we do together is confidential and I can never be called as a witness. So, if things don’t work out, they can still go out and hire their attorneys and they haven’t lost anything except perhaps a couple of hours attempting to get a case resolved.”
Rasmussen has been an attorney in Jacksonville for 20-plus years. He did insurance defense work a private firm and was an in-house attorney for State Farm for 17 years. He then worked with a plaintiff’s law firm for two years and then he opened his mediation firm. He also did civil trial work at all of those firms.
He then decided he just wanted make peace and he opened his mediation practice.
“I had a desire to not fight so much, but to help people,” said Rasmussen. “There was a life event that occurred that made me think life is too short to be fighting all the time when I could be helping people resolve issues.”