Following my call to the Ontario bar in 1994, I began my career on Bay Street at a large national firm where I practiced civil litigation and class actions for several years. Embracing my parents’ entrepreneurial spirit, I later founded two leading litigation boutiques, the most recent being Podrebarac Barristers Professional Corporation, which is recognized by LEXPERT as “repeatedly recommended” for corporate commercial litigation in Toronto. My passion for resolving disputes led me to pursue extensive mediator training with top mediators and, eventually, a career as a mediator.   In April 2017, I established Podrebarac Mediation*. I now devote my practice to acting as a mediator and completing my work on two class actions.

In over 30 years of practice, I have always acted for both plaintiffs and defendants. I have been privileged to act for some of Canada’s largest public companies in litigation involving billions of dollars, small family-run businesses in bet-the-company litigation, as well as a wide array of individuals, from top corporate directors to sick people on social assistance. While the types of cases and clients have been quite diverse, common to each was the need to build trust, rapport and connection. I use these essential skills as a mediator.

Settling complex disputes through well-honed negotiation skills for more than three decades has given me tremendous insight into how to facilitate the parties’ negotiation in mediation. I have also devoted myself to learning the craft of great mediators by undertaking extensive training with leading mediators at Harvard Law School and the top-ranked Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law in California. In addition, I have learned and practised the latest techniques for breaking deadlocks in negotiations, dealing with difficult people, and facilitating multi-party negotiations at specialized courses I have taken through the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. I have also completed Advanced Commercial Mediation Training.

I have served as a director of The Advocates’ Society and on the executive of the Civil Litigation and the Class Actions Sections of the Ontario Bar Association. I was a founding director of the Canadian Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, an international centre for excellence for alternative dispute resolution based in London, England.

For many years I have chaired conferences and spoken extensively at continuing legal education programs for The Advocatesʼ Society, the Ontario Bar Association, Osgoode Professional Development and others. The Law Society of Upper Canada has invited me to speak on legal ethics and professionalism issues at several of its programs. A list of my more than 70 speaking, teaching and mentoring engagements can be found on my website www.PodrebaracMediation.com

• LL.B, Osgoode Hall Law School
• Certificate in Mediating Disputes, Harvard Law School Executive Education
• Certificate in Advanced Mediation of Complex Disputes, Harvard Law School Executive Education
• Certificate in Mediating the Litigated Case, Pepperdine University School of Law, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution
• Certificate in Negotiation and Leadership: Dealing with Difficult People and Problems, Harvard Law School, Program on Negotiation
• Certificate in Negotiating the Impossible, Harvard Law School, Program on Negotiation
• Certificate in Advanced Commercial Mediation Training, New York State Bar Association
• Certificate in Adjudication for Administrative Agencies, Boards & Tribunals, Society of Ontario Adjudicators and Regulators (SOAR) and Osgoode Professional Development
• Certificate in Entertainment Law, Osgoode Hall Law School Professional Development

• The Law Society of Upper Canada
• The Advocates’ Society
• Canadian Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Canadian Academy of Distinguished Neutrals

Effective January 1, 2024, my fees for a 2 party mediation are as follows:

• Full day — 6 hours (includes up to 4 hours of preparation) – $10,000 (plus HST)

I only conduct mediations virtually, using the ZOOM video-conferencing platform.  I do not conduct half-day mediations.

I charge $900 per hour if the mediation extends beyond the allotted time. Due to other commitments, I cannot always continue a mediation past the allotted time, so please consult all parties about the length of the mediation prior to booking.

Please call me if your proposed mediation involves more than 2 parties or will take more than 1 full day so that we may discuss adjustments to my fees for these circumstances.

Cancellation Fees — If a mediation is cancelled 10 days or less prior to the scheduled mediation date, 50% of my fees are payable, jointly and severally, by all parties and their lawyers, unless they agree otherwise in writing. I will waive this cancellation fee if the mediation is rebooked and held with me in the next 3 months. A mediation may only be rescheduled once.

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