Hilary Linton, LL.M. (ADR), Acc.FM, lawyer, arbitrator, accredited family mediator and recipient of the first James G. Macleod Professorship in Family Law at the University of Western Ontario Law School, is an experienced family mediator and teacher. She established Riverdale Mediation in 2001 after 14 years as a litigator. She mediates and arbitrates family law disputes including parenting plans, child and spousal support, property division, mobility cases, and marriage contracts, as well as a wide range of non-family law cases. Ms. Linton has taught mediation and negotiation to at Osgoode Hall Law School and UWO Faculty of Law, including teaching Family Law Dispute Resolution in January 2009.
Dr. Barbara Fidler
Dr. Barbara Jo Fidler,Ph.D., C.Psych., Acc.FM, a registered psychologist and accredited mediator, is a founding member of Family Solutions. She provides mediation, arbitration, parenting coordination, consultation, expert court testimony and custody/access assessment critiques, as well as marital, individual and family therapy, including reunification therapy. Dr. Fidler provides training and supervision for parenting plan assessments (custody/access), parenting coordination, mediation, and parent-child contact problems, including alienation. Her expertise in the development of parenting coordination services resulted in her appointment to the AFCC Task Force developing guidelines and standards of practice. Dr. Fidler has published and present often in
the areas of custody/access assessments, high conflict families, child alienation, and parenting coordination. She is co-author of two books, published by Thomson Carswell: Child Custody Assessments: A Resource Guide for Legal and Mental Health Professionals (2008) and Challenging Issues in Child Custody Disputes: A Guide For Legal and Mental Health Professionals (2008).
Tom Bastedo
Tom Bastedo, Q.C. Ph.D., Cert.F. Arb., a certified specialist in family law and certified family arbitrator, has taught at the University of Toronto, Osgoode Hall Law School and Atkinson College, on a full time and part-time basis, and lectured extensively on the subjects of mediation, mediation/arbitration and arbitration in Ontario family law both nationally and internationally. He carries on an active family law practice and was the first Chair of the Family Law Specialty Certification Committee for the Province of Ontario. In 2004 he received the Kroll Linquist Avey Award For Excellence in Family Law given by the Ontario Bar Association.He has written numerous articles in the field of family law and in the legal and practical aspects of mediation and arbitration in this province.
Dr. Barbara Benoliel
Dr. Barbara Benoliel, Ph.D. is a mediator and President of Preferred Solutions, a dispute resolution company. She holds degrees in psychology, business and criminal justice, and combines practice with research and expanding knowledge in the field. She is a course leader in ADR at York University in the Atkinson ADR Certificate Program, and is on faculty at the Schulich School of Business and at Walden University in Minneapolis Minnesota.
She is a specialist in Restorative Practices, and applications in civil and criminal procedures. She has consulted for businesses, governments, institutions and non-profit organizations. Her current research areas are in the use of Restorative Process in family and domestic disputes and in cases of Human Rights violations.
Heather Swartz
Heather Swartz, M.S.W., C. Med., Acc.FM, Cert. F. Med., is a Partner with Agree Incorporated in Dundas, Ontario. She specializes in providing family, civil, and workplace Mediation. She is a Mediation Supervisor at the Peel Family Mediation Services, Ontario Court of Justice (Family), Brampton. She also provides customized conflict management and interest-based negotiation Training. She has mediated civil cases in the areas of wrongful dismissal, insurance (personal injury, A/B and tort, L.T.D.), contract disputes, medical malpractice, negligence, collection, franchise agreements and estates. Heather was a school trustee for the Town of Dundas for nine years, and is a Roster Mediator for the Ontario Mandatory Mediation Program in Toronto; a Roster Family Mediator for the Toronto Family Mediation Program and is a Child Protection Roster Mediator, Ontario Child Protection Mediation Roster. She is the current President of the ADR Institute of Ontario.
Claudette Reimer
Claudette Reimer is passionate about her work as a family relations mediator. She has completed over 1000 court onsite and offsite mediations and has helped families lower conflict levels through mediated discussions. Some of Claudette’s mediations occur with separated parents on their court day (onsite) but she also helps parents develop parenting plans in offsite mediation.
Credentials/Experience: Bilingual, Board of Directors – Secretary, Former Manager of the Centre, Accredited by Ontario Association for Family Mediation (OAFM), Social Work background, Developed and continues to coordinate the Centre’s internship program, Involved in peer mediation and family mediation training, Past Director at OAFM, Conflict and parenting coaching
Teaching Team
Basic and Advanced Family Mediation Courses
Hilary Linton, LL.M. (ADR), Acc.FM, lawyer, arbitrator, accredited family mediator and recipient of the first James G. Macleod Professorship in Family Law at the University of Western Ontario Law School, is an experienced family mediator and teacher. She established Riverdale Mediation in 2001 after 14 years as a litigator. She mediates and arbitrates family law disputes including parenting plans, child and spousal support, property division, mobility cases, and marriage contracts, as well as a wide range of non-family law cases. Ms. Linton has taught mediation and negotiation to at Osgoode Hall Law School and UWO Faculty of Law, including teaching Family Law Dispute Resolution in January 2009.
Dr. Barbara Fidler
the areas of custody/access assessments, high conflict families, child alienation, and parenting coordination. She is co-author of two books, published by Thomson Carswell: Child Custody Assessments: A Resource Guide for Legal and Mental Health Professionals (2008) and Challenging Issues in Child Custody Disputes: A Guide For Legal and Mental Health Professionals (2008).
Tom Bastedo
Tom Bastedo, Q.C. Ph.D., Cert.F. Arb., a certified specialist in family law and certified family arbitrator, has taught at the University of Toronto, Osgoode Hall Law School and Atkinson College, on a full time and part-time basis, and lectured extensively on the subjects of mediation, mediation/arbitration and arbitration in Ontario family law both nationally and internationally. He carries on an active family law practice and was the first Chair of the Family Law Specialty Certification Committee for the Province of Ontario. In 2004 he received the Kroll Linquist Avey Award For Excellence in Family Law given by the Ontario Bar Association.He has written numerous articles in the field of family law and in the legal and practical aspects of mediation and arbitration in this province.
Dr. Barbara Benoliel
She is a specialist in Restorative Practices, and applications in civil and criminal procedures. She has consulted for businesses, governments, institutions and non-profit organizations. Her current research areas are in the use of Restorative Process in family and domestic disputes and in cases of Human Rights violations.
Heather Swartz
Claudette Reimer
Claudette Reimer is passionate about her work as a family relations mediator. She has completed over 1000 court onsite and offsite mediations and has helped families lower conflict levels through mediated discussions. Some of Claudette’s mediations occur with separated parents on their court day (onsite) but she also helps parents develop parenting plans in offsite mediation.
Credentials/Experience: Bilingual, Board of Directors – Secretary, Former Manager of the Centre, Accredited by Ontario Association for Family Mediation (OAFM), Social Work background, Developed and continues to coordinate the Centre’s internship program, Involved in peer mediation and family mediation training, Past Director at OAFM, Conflict and parenting coaching