I have been representing plaintiffs in litigation for forty-three years.  During this period of time, I have been involved in a number of mediations.  On two occasions, defense counsel has suggested Richard Strauss as an appropriate mediator.

I have found Richard Strauss to be very hard working, competent and a fair mediator.  He seemed to be very well prepared and knowledgeable about the subject matter of the litigation.  The manner in which he handled the mediation created a conciliatory environment necessary for compromise and resolution.  He was very helpful by offering suggestions and options throughout the settlement conference.  My clients always seemed to be comfortable with Richard Strauss.  Although he is from Georgia, he seemed to be very comfortable in mediating my cases in Oklahoma.  I certainly recommend Richard Strauss and would be happy to use him in cases in the future.

Richard, I must admit that I was hesitant to agree to you serving as a mediator in this case, since you were recommended by Defense counsel, however, I am glad that I did not act on my hesitancy.  Your knowledge and expertise in the field of Nursing Home litigation was most impressive.  You were obviously prepared and had an understanding of the key issues involved in the case.

The format as well as your opening comments created an environment conducive for reaching a compromise and resolution of the case.  I thought your analysis of the issues were thorough and fair to both sides.  Your willingness to offer opinions and suggestions throughout the mediation was important to all of the parties.

I want to thank you for serving as a mediator in the…case, and look forward to having you mediate cases in the future.

I represented a claimant whose father had been injured in a skilled nursing facility in Oklahoma City.  The issues of the claim centered around the facility's failure to adequately assess and monitor this high fall risk patient, as well as the facility's failure to provide timely treatment to the resident after he was injured as a result of a fall.

After some preliminary discussion between the parties, it was agreed to mediate the claim pre-suit.  Defense counsel suggested Richard Strauss as a potential mediator, stressing his experience and background in skilled nursing home negligence cases.  I was not familiar with Mr. Strauss at that time.  Accordingly, I contacted several colleagues from the Oklahoma City plaintiff's bar regarding their respective experiences with Mr. Strauss.  Each colleague reported positive experiences.

After reviewing Mr. Strauss' credentials and fee schedule, the parties agreed on Mr. Strauss as a mediator.  Both parties provided thorough mediation statements outlining their respective positions on the issues.  At the time of the mediation, Mr. Strauss was punctual, well-prepared and had a firm understanding of the key issues in the case.  His opening comments were informative and productive and provided solid ground work for getting the matter resolved.

Throughout the mediation, Mr. Strauss listened to both the lawyers and the client, and offered suggestions and input that proved to be valuable in ultimately getting the case settled.  Overall, I was very happy with his services and would recommend them to my colleagues.

In May, 2009, Richard Strauss served as a mediator in a case involving 15 claimants asserting claims against a single limited policy.  I was the lead plaintiff's attorney having five of the cases.

Mr. Strauss was recommended by the defense counsel.  However, I felt that he was very compassionate toward my clients.  His patience and diligence were beyond what I expected.  We worked for three days until 10:00 p.m. each night.  His understanding of such a large volume of medical issues was excellent.

I would highly recommend Mr. Strauss to others who need a mediator in a complex mediation.

I might also add that considering the volume of material, Mr. Strauss' charges were quite reasonable.

I have practiced medical negligence law, initially as a defense lawyer and eventually as a patient plaintiff's lawyer, for approximately 25 years.  I have seen many mediators.  In May, 2009, a three-day mediation involving 14 patient plaintiffs and one defendant physician (there were also hospital defendants) was conducted in Oklahoma City.  It was my first experience with Mr. Richard Strauss, mediator.  Candidly, I thought there was little chance of the cases resolving.  Fortunately, all cases were resolved.

Most of the patient plaintiffs suffered from significant injuries and there was a limit to the amount of liability insurance coverage.  During our necessarily lengthy introductory session, Mr. Strauss performed admirably in providing an empathetic but clear discussion of the process to the patient plaintiffs and their families.  Mr. Strauss prepared and demonstrated substantial experience and expertise in multi-party mediation.  He was well received by the various lawyers and all of their clients.  His expertise, experience and thoughtfulness allowed settlement when many of us thought there was little hope.

I would not hesitate to recommend Mr. Strauss especially in complex multi-party mediations.

I recently participated in my second mediation with Richard M. Strauss as mediator.  Both cases involved claims of wrongful death against nursing homes.  Both resulted in settlement.

Mr. Strauss clearly demonstrated he had thoroughly reviewed materials provided by counsel before mediation.  Because of his thorough review and his background in nursing home litigation, he showed exceptional knowledge of both the legal and factual issues involved in the cases.

Mr. Strauss' opening remarks were very organized and succinct.  More importantly, his opening remarks helped my clients have a good understanding of the mediation process and what they should expect throughout mediation.

Although mediation inevitably creates a stressful environment for plaintiffs, Mr. Strauss was able to minimize the stress by recognizing the emotions of my clients and by being empathetic.

As a plaintiff's attorney who has had the opportunity to work with many mediators, I would place Mr. Strauss at the top of my list in professionalism, fairness, and commitment to get the job done.  I have no hesitancy in recommending Mr. Strauss to my colleagues.

Richard M. Strauss was recently suggested by defense counsel as a mediator in a pending nursing home wrongful death case.  Although that case settled without the need for mediation, our review of Mr. Strauss' background and information which we obtained from his website prompted us to utilize his services in a subsequent case.  Through Mr. Strauss' efforts, the matter was successfully and equitably resolved.

Mr. Strauss arrived at the mediation with a textbook knowledge of the facts of the case.  This knowledge, coupled with his immense real world experience in the healthcare and insurance industry, resulted in one of the most efficient and professional mediation sessions our firm has had the pleasure of being involved in.

We were so impressed with Mr. Strauss that we immediately retained him, with the prompt consent of defendant's counsel, for another pending mediation.  We would therefore recommend him without qualification for any cases involving issues alleging health care provider negligence.

Please feel free to contact me personally should you have questions concerning our experience with Richard Strauss and MediateOne, Inc.

My law partner, David L. Thomas, and I had the pleasure of meeting and using Richard M. Strauss, Esq. as a mediator in a recent medical malpractice case.  While he was recommended by defense counsel, we found him to be an excellent mediator.  His expertise of the subject matter was equaled only by his level of preparation and an in depth understanding of the case.  His opening comments were expressly designed to create a conciliatory environment and an atmosphere conducive to compromise and final resolution.  This was underscored by his thorough discussion and analysis of the issues in the case and a complete willingness to offer options and suggestions throughout the negotiations.  Most impressive of all, however, was the fact that our clients felt a high level of comfort with Mr. Strauss as the mediator.  His ability to empathize and understand the case from their perspective was key to getting this case resolved.

You can bet we will certainly use Richard again, regardless the venue or jurisdiction which we find ourselves.  Simply stated, since we can't get him to come to Oklahoma to practice with us, we're satisfied knowing that he is available to mediate resolutions to difficult cases.  I would recommend that you contact Richard to learn more of the expertise and genuine skill available to you with him as your mediator.

Richard Strauss has mediated several of my cases which includes nursing home neglect and medical malpractice.  He is well adept at learning the pertinent facts of each case to better accommodate the needs of my clients and probably the needs of the opposition.  More recently, he orchestrated a mass settlement involving fourteen different claimants all against the same medical doctor and six different entities that involved credentialing issues above and beyond the underlying medical malpractice.  This was a most difficult mediation at best to undertake, but Mr. Strauss was able to accommodate the needs of all the parties involved.  Without the efforts of Mr. Strauss it is unlikely that these claims would have resolved.  I had two of the claimants out of the fourteen and can attest to the extreme difficulty in coordinating all of the defendants and assisting all of the parties to focus on the issues as well as the settlement values.

Mr. Strauss' knowledge of the medical field in general and his direct experience with claims and insurance companies from a working basis lend to his overall capabilities to address the various issues in these types of cases.  Further, his willingness to travel to Oklahoma to mediate these difficult claims makes it convenient for all parties concerned.  It is not only his demeanor that assists in resolving claims by helping the parties to feel more comfortable, but his willingness to see these claims through to the end while engaging creative techniques and suggestions throughout the entire settlement negotiation provides the right environment to assist in the resolution of the claims.  I applaud Mr. Strauss.

I have mediated several nursing home cases in the past and have found some mediators to be unknowledgeable as to the particular nuances of nursing home issues in litigation, particularly as it applies to specialty statutes and regulations.  Therefore, initially I was very hesitant to accept Richard M. Strauss to mediate a nursing home case of mine, being aware of his insurance background and having reviewed his resume.  I was wrong.  I found Richard to be knowledgeable and focused as he plotted both sides towards settlement.  I would definitely use him again and look forward to mediating future nursing home cases.

In December, 2008, Mr. Strauss mediated our Plaintiff's ER malpractice case.  In addition to his communication skills, what was really impressive was his in-depth analysis of our Mediation Statement.

No time was lost trying to explain our case, and in fact, he summarized it better than we could have.

In summary, Mr. Strauss, with his defense medical background and his individual preparedness, has much to offer to Plaintiff's counsel in a malpractice case.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.