How to Use Experts Effectively in Mediation

John Hanover is a Mediator and Arbitrator with ADR Services, Inc. With over 37 years of experience in construction litigation and dispute resolution, John D. Hanover, Esq. is a seasoned construction law expert. His litigation practice focused exclusively on counseling clients in all roles of the building process for private and public works. His experience includes representing clients in complex, high-value disputes in hundreds of jury and nonjury trials, arbitrations, and mediations in matters involving contract disputes, schedule claims, unforeseen site conditions, and payment remedies to claims of defective work.

Mr. Hanover is known for his pragmatic and solutions-driven approach, with clients often describing him as “brilliant,” “reasonable,” and “practical.” His deep understanding of construction law, combined with his strong negotiation skills and calm demeanor under pressure, make him an ideal neutral for construction law disputes.

Mr. Hanover’s prior experience includes serving as Leader of the Construction & Government Contracts practice group at Alston & Bird and as Managing Partner of Peckar & Abramson’s three West Coast offices. He also held the role of outside general counsel for an international engineering, project management, and construction services firm, where he managed high-profile U.S. litigation matters.

Robert S. Mann, Esq. is a Mediator and Arbitrator with ADR Services, Inc. He is widely respected as one of California’s pre-eminent dispute resolution professionals. Selected for five consecutive years as one of the Top 50 Neutrals in California by the Daily Journal, and a multi-year Super Lawyer in Dispute Resolution, he has successfully mediated thousands of complex real estate, business and construction disputes and issued thoughtful, fair and impartial arbitration awards in a variety of challenging disputes.

Mr. Mann’s technical expertise in real estate and construction is unmatched. This experience allows him to help parties and their counsel understand and manage the risk in these expert-driven and factually complex matters. His experience as a trial lawyer (he has tried over 70 cases to verdict and was lead counsel in the longest construction arbitration in the history of the California operations of the AAA—261 hearing days) and his experience in managing construction projects as an owner’s representative, gives him a unique perspective and ability to settle even the most difficult and hotly contested matters. He is the author of more than 50 published articles on mediation and arbitration and he is the published author of a major technical book on construction, Defect-Free Buildings, published in 2007 by McGraw-Hill.