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Kate Anthony is the author of The D Word: Making the Ultimate Decision About Your Marriage, host of the critically acclaimed and New York Times recommended podcast The Divorce Survival Guide Podcast and the creator of the groundbreaking online coaching program, Should I Stay or Should I Go? which helps women make the most difficult decision of their lives using coaching tools, relationship education, geeky neuroscience, community support, and deep self-work.
No stranger to the camera, Kate spent the first 30 years of her life as an actor, with a career that began with five years on Sesame Street and concluded with five years on Grey’s Anatomy.
Kate empowers women to find their strength, passion, and confidence even in the most disempowering of circumstances and helps them move forward with concrete plans, putting their children at the center (not in the middle) of all decisions.
Kate spent 3 years and over 500 hours training in various coaching modalities with two of the top coach training organizations in the world. Additionally, Kate is certified as a Domestic Violence Victim’s Advocate by the state of California, as a Co-Parenting Specialist by the Mosten Guthrie Academy, and as a High Conflict Divorce Coach by Tina Swithin’s High Conflict Divorce Coaching Certification Program, and is widely known as an expert in communication, co-parenting, divorce, and emotional intelligence.
In addition to her private practice, Kate spent three years coaching Fortune 500 executives in communication, presentation skills and emotional intelligence.
Kate lives in Los Angeles with her son, whom she lovingly co-parents with her ex-husband.
Attorney and Mediator, Terri Breer, has mediated hundreds of family law disputes, including divorce, custody, property division, pre-marital agreements, domestic partnerships, and surrogacy arrangements. Although she has been a licensed attorney since 1985 and has experience as a civil litigator conducting civil trials involving business, real estate and family law disputes, her practice for the past 30 years has been devoted to mediation of family law disputes.
She graduated from Pepperdine Law School in 1985 and in 1993 she returned to Pepperdine to attend the Domestic Dispute Resolution Training Program presented by the newly founded Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine School of Law. In 2003 she was a founding member of Collaborative Divorce Solutions, Orange County’s collaborative practice group. She has written several articles on alternative dispute resolution and the need for change in the current family law adversarial system. She was Chair of Orange County Bar Association – Alternative Dispute Resolution Section in 2014. She has served as Board Member of the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA) for two terms from 2015 to 2021. She has led SCMA’s Orange County Professional Development Group and has chaired the SCMA Family Mediation Institute (FMI) in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 2022, and is currently co-chair for this year’s FMI.
In 2001 she began offering her flat fee Divorce Mediation Programs that she designed to provide an affordable and innovative option for divorcing spouses to resolve their divorce disputes.
Ms. Breer provides family mediation training for California attorneys, therapists, financial professionals, and mediators through her company, New Day Divorce Centers, Inc. Her training program curriculum focuses on instructing family mediators on the legal issues in divorce, relevant California Statutes, characterization, and division of marital property, determining child and spousal support, preparing parenting plans, and document preparation required to process uncontested divorce throughout family law courts in California jurisdictions.
Ms. Breer is active in hosting various networking and educational opportunities for divorce professionals, including South Coast Collaborative Professionals Luncheons and Mixers that she hosted quarterly from 2006 to 2016, and The Attorney Therapist Breakfast Club that was founded in 2017 and meets monthly in Orange County. Both professional groups bring together professionals who share her commitment to helping families resolve divorce and family disputes cooperatively outside of the adversarial court system.
Jami Fosgate’s family law practice is devoted to helping parties save time and money by resolving their problems through Mediation and Collaborative Law without resorting to litigation. Jami Fosgate also provides Limited Scope Representation and Legal Document Preparation at a flat fee for parties who want to control the costs of their family law case. A free joint couple’s consultation is available to learn the benefits of not litigating a family law matter and appointments are available in the evenings and on weekends.
Following her own divorce, Jami decided to pursue a new career path and enrolled in Loyola Law School where she was on the Dean’s List each semester, was active in the Evening Women’s Law Association, was selected for membership in the St. Thomas More Law Honor Society and earned the award for “Best Oral Advocate” in the annual Scott Moot Court Competition. Jami graduated in the top 15% of her class and was licensed by the California State Bar in December 2004.
While attending law school, Jami served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Lawrence W. Crispo (Ret.) at Los Angeles Superior Court and she worked for two years as a law clerk at California’s premier appellate firm, Horvitz & Levy.
Upon graduation from Loyola Law School, Jami was selected to serve for two years as a Law Clerk for Los Angeles Superior Court in Civil Law and Motion. Since 2006, Jami has devoted her practice exclusively to Family Law. Jami is a member of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP), the Los Angeles Collaborative Family Law Association (LACFLA) and the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA) along with the Los Angeles County Bar Association, San Fernando Valley Bar Association and Pasadena Bar Association. Jami also volunteers as a mediation settlement officer and temporary Judge for Los Angeles Superior Court.
Susan Guthrie has been a leading family law attorney and mediator for more than 32 years. With Forrest “Woody” Mosten she founded the Mosten Guthrie Academy, in 2021 to provide gold standard family law, collaborative and mediation training for professionals. Her award-winning podcast, The Divorce & Beyond Podcast®, is one of the top 1% of podcasts worldwide and one of the top 3 divorce podcasts available. Susan regularly presents at professional events and conferences around the world on topics related to family law, mediation, legal tech and practice development. Susan also works with select professional clients to support them in building and growing a successful practice and her new podcast, Make Money Mediating, debuted in Apple Podcasts Top 10 podcasts for entrepreneurs in 2023. She is honored to serve as the Chair Elect of the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution and looks forward to leading the Section as Chair in the 2024-2025 bar year commencing in August.
For close to a decade, Leslie has specialized in Reverse Mortgages, the great, safe senior-loan programs designed to help senior (55+) homeowners and their families navigate retirement and the costs of aging in place. She can assist with Reverses on higher valued homes with loans up to 4 million dollars. Both refinances and purchases are available. Great referrals for in-home care and senior facility placements are also part of her total ‘Helping Seniors’ philosophy. www.facebook.com/HelpingSeniors.
Laurie Itkin is a financial advisor, wealth manager, and certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA). She serves on the national board of directors for the Association of Divorce Financial Planners and is a member of the Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts. She is also the author of the Amazon best-seller, Every Woman Should Know Her Options: Invest Your Way to Financial Empowerment.
As a wealth manager at Coastwise Capital Group, which has received the annual Five Star award for “Best in Client Satisfaction” for 12 years, Ms. Itkin manages the investments of clients’ brokerage, trust and retirement accounts. Through her financial consulting company, The Options Lady, she provides divorce-related financial planning and analysis to individuals and couples throughout all stages of the divorce process and has worked on over 400 divorce cases either as a financial neutral or advocate to one spouse in mediated and litigated cases.
Ms. Itkin has appeared as a guest expert on investing and financial aspects of divorce on television, radio and podcasts. She has been quoted in numerous publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, San Diego Union Tribune, Chicago Tribune, Christian Science Monitor, U.S. News and World Reports, Parade, Redbook, and Forbes.
Ms. Itkin volunteers as a pro-bono financial planner for the Savvy Ladies Helpline. She earned her B.S. in economics with a concentration in finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Brian Jarrett, Professor and NCRP Department Chair, is a lawyer and professional mediator and arbitrator in both the United States and Canada. He also holds a Ph.D. in Sociology. His interests include Family Mediation, Arbitration Dispute Systems Design (DSD), Restorative Practices and Therapeutic Jurisprudence (TJ). In recent years he has originated work in Integral Mediation, which promotes interdisciplinary practices in mediation. His practice ranges from work with local communities to international organizations. In both his written work and classroom teaching, Professor Jarrett works to bridge theory and practice in the field of Dispute Resolution.
Lucia Galante Johson is an Associate Professor at California State University, Dominguez Hills for the Master of Arts program in Negotiation, Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding program. She is the lead faculty member for the Family, Probate, and Education section. Loyola Law School Center for Conflict Resolution is where she obtained her professional mediation education as a Conflict Resolution Specialist and Mediator and hired as a member of the staff.
With a Master of Science degree in Human Dynamics and Development, Professor Johnson has taken her knowledge of family systems theory into the court room as a family and probate mediator. She is a former board member of the Southern California Mediation Association and currently active in SCMA activities and conferences.
Israeli Mediator and Collaborative Attorney Galit Sneh Lurie has expansive mediation experience in family and civil cases.
Serves on the Mediation Advisory Committee to the courts appointed by the minister of justice. Serves as co-chairperson of the Mediation & Arbitration Committee of the National Israeli Bar and is a member of its legislation and accreditation team. Co chairs the family section of the Israeli Mediators Association.
Teaches and develops mediation trainings at the Israeli Bar, Haifa University and at diverse professional communities, consecutively since 1997. Presenter at leading conferences and trainings. Developed the Multi Dimensional Mediation perception.
Coordinated innovative projects for the promotion of mediation and collaborative practice in Israel. Served as member of the parliamentary committee, suggesting legislation for structuring post-divorce parenting. Appointed as the Bar delegate to the parliament advising legislation for accreditation of mediators.
Forrest (Woody) Mosten has spent his entire career as a tireless peacemaker working for increased legal access and dispute resolution for the underserved and diverse members of our society.
He is the co-founder of Mosten Guthrie Mediation Academy for online Mediation Training which offers courses throughout the world MostenGuthrie – Mediation Training, Online Training.
Woody is in constant demand worldwide as a conference keynote speaker and expert witness on mediation. He is on the faculty at the UCLA School of Law (Mediation and Lawyer as Peacemaker) and he previously taught at Cal Western School of Law (Innovative Law Practice) and University of San Diego School of Law (Legal Ethics)
Woody is a founding member of the Southern California Mediation Association and was named by SCMA as Peacemaker of the Year and has twice served as keynote speaker at the SCMA Annual Conference. Woody is the recipient of the 2017 SCMA President’s Award. In 2020, SCMA presented Woody with its Inaugural Forrest S. Mosten Star Award for Innovation and Achievement in Mediation.
In 2019, Woody received a Life Career Achievement Award from the Academy of Professional Family Mediators. In 2020, APFM established the Forrest (Woody) Mosten Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion Training Scholarship Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (apfmnet.org)
Woody was awarded the Lifetime Career Award by the New York State Mediation Association and has been recipient of the ABA Lawyer as Problem Solver Award, ABA Lifetime Legal Access Award, and the Los Angeles County Bar Louis M. Brown Conflict Prevention Award.
Woody is the author of six books (two more to be published in 2022 and 2023) and numerous articles on mediation and other dispute resolution topics. In 2020, he was named Chair of the Mediate.com Task Force on Online Mediation Training, and is the co-author of the Task Force’s Final Report OnlineTaskForceReportAug6c.pdf (mediate.com).
Since 1989, Woody has served as Chair of the International Client Consultation Competition involving 25 countries including India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Nigeria, and countries from Western and Eastern Europe www.BrownMosten.com.
Woody can be reached at www.mostenmediation.com for mediation services and at www.mostenguthrie.com for mediation training. Woody’s bio is also at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forrest_S._Mosten
Bero Porter is a Certified Divorce Real Estate Expert (CDRE®) through The Ilumni Institute, equipped to effectively serve divorcing clients of all conflict levels and assist family law and divorce professionals as cases move forward. Bero has also been trained in family and divorce mediation, collaborative divorce, and is a Certified Negotiation Expert. These qualifications position Bero to best represent divorcing clients as an unbiased neutral third-party and serve as a 730 expert witness, if needed.
As a CDRE, Bero has committed to providing education regarding issues that affect family law attorneys, mediators, and their clients. She has presented CLEs on divorce real estate to San Diego Family Law Bar Association. She has also been a speaker for Second Saturday divorce workshops since 2021 and has served as a resource for families experiencing this challenging stage in their lives.
Judge Elizabeth Scully sits on the Los Angeles Superior Court in a family law assignment. In her current dedicated trial department, she primarily handles long cause trials, Domestic Violence Restraining Orders, and Mandatory Settlement Conferences. Prior to being appointed to the bench in December 2020 by Governor Gavin Newsom, she was a Certified Family Law Specialist in private practice providing mediation, collaborative, and minor’s counsel services in addition to traditional litigation representation. Judge Scully has taught experiential courses in mediation as well as negotiation theory and practice at UCLA School of Law. She has co-authored numerous books and articles with Woody Mosten and others on topics relating to consensual dispute resolution in the family law context. She received the 2016 Meyer Elkin Essay Award from the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts.
FRI Co-Founder & Lead Trainer
Robin Duboe Seigle, J.D., is currently a civil mediator, mediation consultant, a coach for individuals contemplating or beginning the divorce process. She worked for National Conflict Resolution Center (NCRC) from July 1989 through July 2014 as a Public Relations Coordinator, Mediation Trainer, Court Program Coordinator, and Director of NCRC’s Divorce Mediation Group. Prior to working for NCRC, she became a volunteer mediator in 1984, a mediation trainer in 1985, a large group facilitator in 1987. She has been a member of the California Bar since 1977 and is currently inactive. She has a J.D. degree from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and a B.A. in Psychology from UCLA.
Robin learned at the beginning of her law career that mediation was a preferred approach for resolving disputes. Litigation is focused on a win/lose approach whereas mediation focuses on finding a way for all parties to gain something through a negotiated process. It is cost effective, and efficient and, from Robin’s perspective, beneficial in divorce as families are involved.
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Zachary Taylor is a mortgage lender with 30 years of experience. Over 50% of his business involves people in some phase of the divorce process.
Zach knows the divorce guidelines and required paperwork, and is able to access programs from his company CrossCountry Mortgage as well as programs from dozens of other banks, lenders, and Wall Street investment firms. This allows him to achieve his main goals for his clients: Get them the best rate, and one that fits their situation, that can be approved and that can be closed within the required time-frames.
The division of real estate property in divorce can be challenging to navigate. Contacting Zach as early in the process as possible helps people to have a more seamless experience. He will determine if you can do a buyout or will have to sell. He will also determine if you can buy a new property based on your “post-divorce” situation using the buyout or sale proceeds. This can save time and prevent unexpected difficulties during the settlement process.
Zach has experience helping people who are going through divorce to better understand and determine the issues involving property and mortgages. Zach shares a common mission with the other top divorce professionals: to provide information and support so that people can feel confident and have peace of mind with the decisions they make in the divorce process. Zach wants to be a valued resource, whether or not a new mortgage is needed, and can also help address issues about credit as well.
Included in Zach’s 30 year of lending experience, is a 98% close ratio since 2008 to present, which happens to be the tightest lending environment ever! He has closed over 2,000 transactions. His background includes underwriting and approving loans. For 16 years he was Managing Broker and Partner is a successful local mortgage company. He is a licensed California Real Estate Broker and passed the Federal and State Mortgage tests with all background checks required for the NMLS license. He is a graduate of U.C. San Diego with a B.A. in Economics.
Renata Valree is an Associate Professor in the Negotiations Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding Program at the College of Arts and Humanities Department, California State University Dominguez Hills. With an impressive educational background, she holds an undergraduate degree in Health Care Management, as well as advanced graduate degrees in Public Administration and Negotiations and Conflict Resolution.
In addition to her academic role, Renata Valree holds the esteemed position of CEO and Executive Director at Peace in Education. In this capacity, she provides invaluable consultation, conflict training, and mediation services to state, public, and community-based organizations. Renata’s expertise lies in conflict facilitation, concept design development, and other related services.
Renata Valree has an illustrious professional history, having dedicated 25 years to the Los Angeles City Attorney’s office before retiring. During her tenure, she served as the Director of the award-winning Dispute Resolution Program, showcasing her exceptional leadership skills and passion for resolving conflicts. Renata is renowned as a highly skilled practitioner in community and family mediation.
In her commitment to the field, Renata Valree has held key positions of influence. She has served as Chair of the National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM), former Co-Chair of the Community Mediation and Restorative Practices Section for the Association for Conflict Resolution, and Vice Chair of the Society of Emotional Intelligence, Los Angeles Chapter. Additionally, Renata is the Director of Mediation for the South Bureau Ministerial Alliance and the Director of Collaboration and Strategic Partnership for Pluribus University. Her certifications include conflict coaching, racial equity, healing and justice facilitation, and community mediation.
Throughout her remarkable career, Renata Valree has been the recipient of numerous prestigious awards in recognition of her exceptional work and advocacy for community mediation processes. Recently, she was honored as the Volunteer of the Quarter by the National Association for Community Mediation. Renata’s outstanding contributions to supporting community, state, and federal organizations were further acknowledged through the receipt of the prestigious David Brandon Community Mediation Movement Catalyst Award. This award signifies her unwavering commitment to strengthening peace, justice, and community connections by striving to resolve local conflicts.
Outside her professional endeavors, Renata takes great pride in being a loving mother to her three children and a devoted grandmother to her granddaughter, Gianna. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
FRI Co-Founder & Lead Trainer
Shawn Weber has a long history with Consensual Dispute Resolution and is an expert in Mediation and Collaborative Practice throughout California. Known as a “dolphin” and not a “shark”, Shawn brings a peacemaking philosophy to his more than 20-year career in family law and divorce work. Shawn understands that divorce is more than just a legal process; it’s a human experience.
He has a profound ability to get into the world his clients are experiencing and feeling to uncover the necessary clarity in each divorce relationship dynamic. From there, he uses his gifts to bring a rare sense of calm, resolve and hope.
Shawn has a private practice with Weber Dispute Resolution and has served as the President of Collaborative Practice California, an organization promoting Collaborative Practice throughout the State of California. A father of five, Shawn understands the human side of family law and brings his real life experience to the table for his clients.
Guy Witherspoon is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH). Since 1995, Professor Witherspoon has taught such courses at CSUDH as — Managing Race and Ethnic Conflicts, Computer Applications in Behavioral Science, Communication and Conflict, Family Mediation, Managing Race and Ethnic Conflicts, and various other Independent Study Courses.
He holds three Certificates from the University of Southern California Institute for Violence Prevention Advanced Program, a Master in Business Administration and a Master in Behavioral Science (Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Option), and a Bachelor of Science Business Administration (emphasis in Computer Information Systems), all through California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Professor Witherspoon has worked in higher education for over 25 years in various roles but specifically in nonprofit management, leadership development, student programs, student advocacy and student affairs.
He is also Pastor of an inner city Los Angeles church that has volunteered with local communities to resolve conflicts, and become involved in gang prevention/intervention for over 25 years. He continues to work with the USC Cecil L. Murray Center for Community Engagement in a variety of programs to promote community advocacy, gang prevention/intervention, Social Justice, and Clergy development. Current research interest includes using technology and the study of communication and culture to empower individuals to transform conflict.