Floyd J. Siegal, Esq.

Constr. Defect/Real Property

• Mediated a case involving plaintiffs who sued multiple parties involved in the remodel and sale of a family residence. The plaintiffs sued these parties for fraudulently concealing known water intrusion and mold problems, resulting in serious health-related issues for all four members of the family, including two minor children. The claim raised significant statute of limitation and insurance coverage issues. The parties — who had been ordered to mediation by the trial court — came to mediation reluctantly and with very low expectations, assuming it would take multiple sessions for there to be even a glimmer of hope that they might settle. Despite their pessimism, a global resolution was reached after one session.

Discrimination

• Mediated a case in which claims where brought against a lender for racial discrimination against the plaintiff borrower.
• Mediated a case wherein the defendant was sued for violations of FEHA, Unruh Act, and retaliatory eviction for failing to accommodate the asthmatic condition of a minor plaintiff.

Hostile Environment

• Mediated a case involving claims of sexual harassment against apartment manager.

Wage and Hour

• Mediated a wage and hour claim against a private business entity.

Wrongful Termination

• Mediated a wrongful termination lawsuit on brought on behalf of multiple plaintiffs against a national restaurant chain, alleging racial discrimination and sexual harassment.
• Mediated a wrongful termination lawsuit against a law firm alleging age discrimination.
• Mediated a wrongful termination claim brought by a teenage employee asserting their employer failed to accommodate them following a medical leave. The dispute was resolved pre-litigation.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a wrongful termination claim based on gender & pregnancy discrimination.

Bad Faith

• Mediated a bad faith claim arising from denial of coverage for property damage.

Coverage

• Mediated a bad faith claim arising from a refusal to pay policy limits in an automobile v. pedestrian accident.
• Mediated a case involving claims against an insurance broker for failure to procure proper insurance.

Property Damage

• Mediated and successfully resolved a substantial property damage claim that arose from cleanup efforts following a fire. The claim, which was asserted against multiple defendants, was resolved in a virtual mediation attended by many participants.

Medical

• Mediated a wrongful death/medical malpractice claim against the hospital and attending physician.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a wrongful death/product liability action involving an allegedly defective resuscitator.

Legal

• Mediated a legal malpractice claim arising from failure to file suit within the applicable statute of limitations.

Breach Of Contract

• Mediated and resolved a real estate non-disclosure case involving 5 parties (buyers, sellers, both real estate agents, and a roofing contractor) with 14 total participants completely over Zoom.

Buy/Sell

• Mediated a case involving claims against a real estate broker/agent for failure to disclose known soil defects.

Home Owners Association

• Mediated a case regarding claims of mold infestation brought against a HOA.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a dispute between HOA and homeowners who had moved the fence installed by the original developer.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a dispute between the owners of a condominium unit and their HOA concerning damage allegedly caused by a fire that originated in the common area.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a dispute between HOA and the owners of a condominium unit whose tenants were allegedly violating the CC&Rs.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a dispute between the owner of a condominium unit and the HOA regarding personal injuries arising from exposure to mold.

Real Property

• Mediated a case involving claims between insurance companies for unauthorized issuance of insurance policies.
• Mediated a case wherein an action was brought forth by family members against other family members for accounting and partition of three parcels of real property.

Warranty of Habitability

• Mediated a case regarding claims by multiple tenants that the apartment building was uninhabitable.
• Mediated and successfully resolved claims asserted by a tenant against a landlord arising from bed bug infestation.
• Mediated a case wherein multiple plaintiffs sued their landlord for habitability-related claims, demanding a substantial sum for their attorney fees, which were excluded from coverage under the landlord's liability insurance policy. The landlord, represented by separate counsel, contended the insurance carrier was stopped from asserting the coverage exclusion because it had acted in bad faith. The parties reached a global resolution of plaintiffs' damage claims after one session.
• Mediated a case that reached an impasse with the parties contesting a habitability matter, leaving a gap of more than six figures. Despite this impasse, this case ultimately settled in post-mediation communications.

Business Torts

• Mediated a case involving claims against a mortuary for the removal of remains.

Catastrophic Injury

• Mediated a case with a claim against a nightclub for inadequate security, resulting in serious personal injuries to a patron.
• Mediated and successfully resolved claims brought by plaintiffs against the owner of real property and the Homeowner's Association after plaintiffs were shot and injured by a tenant. The plaintiffs alleged that the owner and the HOA had previously noticed that the tenant posed a serious danger to the safety of other tenants.

Elder Abuse

• Mediated and successfully resolved an elder abuse/wrongful death claim against an assisted living facility, where the decedent developed a urinary tract infection that led to sepsis and her eventual death.

Food Safety

• Mediated a case involving claims of food poisoning against a restaurant chain.

General Negligence

• Mediated a claim against a business entity for negligence resulting in an amputated toe.
• Mediated a case involving claims against multiple carriers arising from boating accident.

Personal Injury

• Mediated a case stemming from a construction-site accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a seven-figure premises liability claim where the plaintiff, a guest at a wedding, fell on uneven gravel and fractured her hip.

PI Auto

• Mediated an admitted liability automobile case, with shoulder surgery and subsequent shoulder surgery due to physician error, complicated by evidentiary issues concerning the admissibility of the plaintiff's prior felony conviction for voluntary manslaughter.
• Mediated and settled an auto vs. pedestrian claim against a ride-share company involving complicated economic injury claims based upon the inability of the artist to continue working on a project, as well as an issue regarding independent contractor vs. employee status.
• Mediated and settled a claim involving a husband and wife who suffered serious injuries that required surgery following a trick vs automobile accident with the defendant.
• Mediated a case wherein the parties made only nominal progress during the mediation of a bad-faith action. The parties later agreed to a Mediator's Proposed bracket which closed the gap. Thereafter, the parties privately and confidentially revealed their next respective demands and offers, without disclosure of those numbers to one another, resulting in further reduction of the gap. At that point, the parties agreed to consider a Mediator's Proposal, which both sides accepted.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a claim involving the distribution of multi-million in insurance proceeds tendered following a multi-vehicle trucking accident that resulted in one fatality, multiple bodily injury claims, and a significant property damage claim.

PI Sexual Assault

• Mediated a case regarding claims against a health spa for inappropriate conduct of an employee.

PI Sexual Molestation

• Mediated claims arising from sexual molestation of a young girl by fellow students.

Premises Liability

• Mediated a garden variety slip & fall case, accompanied by a personal apology by the defendant's VP and an offer of a gift card to encourage the plaintiff to return as a customer.
• Mediated a garden variety trip and fall in a furniture store, with a twist. The plaintiff suffered a fractured hip.
• Mediated a premises liability claim involving five defendants, each with indemnity claims (either express or equitable) against one another.
• Mediated and resolved a case involving claims asserted by the plaintiff and her minor son against the landlord for injuries that included a months-long coma resulting from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Product Liability

• Mediated a case regarding claims of product liability against healthcare company.
• Mediated a product liability case alleging a defective hand cart/failure to warn, which resulted in a refrigerator falling on the plaintiff, causing serious injuries. The case was resolved with a last-minute weekend mediation five days before the trial was scheduled to commence.
• Mediated a case wherein the plaintiff sustained injuries when a water heater exploded. According to the plaintiff, he called the manufacturer's service center for instructions because the water heater was not working, but the operator failed to instruct him to turn off the gas before telling him to inspect the water heater to see whether a particular part was working.

Wrongful Death

• Mediated a wrongful death claim against a commercial property owner arising from a trip and fall in a parking lot.
• Mediated a wrongful death claim against a law enforcement agency as a result of a police shooting.
• Mediated a wrongful death claim arising from the negligence of an assisted living facility.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a wrongful death action stemming from a fall through a skylight.
• Mediated and successfully resolved a contested wrongful death action where plaintiffs had consistently refused to reduce their mid-7 figure policy-limits demand.