Winning at Mediation: Reading Both Sides, Using the Mediator, and Closing Hard Cases

Mary Ellen Coster Williams, Mediator and arbitrator | Resolute Systems, LLC

Mary Ellen Coster Williams is a full-time mediator and arbitrator with Resolute Systems, drawing on two decades on the federal bench. She left the United States Court of Federal Claims in July 2023 after a distinguished judicial career to devote herself to alternative dispute resolution. At the court, she handled many mediations in complex civil cases for her colleagues and earned a reputation as a go-to mediator, known for resolving disputes that appear intractable.

• Education & Credentials

Mary Ellen Williams received her J.D. from Duke University School of Law, where she served on the Editorial Board of the Duke Law Journal. She earned a combined degree from Catholic University, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Greek and Latin and a Master’s degree in Latin. She was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and received the President’s Award to the Outstanding Undergraduate Woman, the university’s highest honor for leadership and scholarship.

• Recognition & Leadership

Mary Ellen Williams has been recognized repeatedly for her service. The United States Court of Federal Claims honored her with an Award for Outstanding Service to the Court and the Champion of Justice Award in 2018. Duke Law School presented its Charles S. Murphy Award for Achievement in Public Service in 2017. She was elected a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation in 1985, served on the ABA Board of Governors, and chaired the ABA’s Section of Public Contract Law.

• Professional Involvement

Mary Ellen Williams remains deeply engaged in professional organizations. She serves in the ABA House of Delegates, on the Council of the Section of Public Contract Law, and on the Content Advisory Board for the Intellectual Property Law Section’s publications. She has served the Bar Association of the District of Columbia as Foundation president, Trustee, and board member. As an educator, she has taught at Catholic University and Johns Hopkins University and lectured extensively on civil trial practice, mediation, and discovery.

• Experience

Appointed to the United States Court of Federal Claims in July 2003, Mary Ellen Williams presided over high-dollar matters involving government contracts, intellectual property, bid protests, Fifth Amendment takings, tax, and class actions, and handled extensive bench trials and discovery disputes. She previously served 14 years as an administrative judge on the General Services Administration Board of Contract Appeals. Earlier, she was a partner at Janis, Schuelke and Wechsler and an Assistant United States Attorney in the Department of Justice.

Reuben A. Guttman, Mediator and arbitrator | Resolute Systems, LLC

Reuben A. Guttman is a founding member of Guttman Buschner LLP in Washington, D.C. His practice centers on complex litigation, class actions, fraud, antitrust, and False Claims Act cases. Over his career, he has litigated and tried cases resulting in significant whistleblower recoveries. He is widely recognized as one of the country’s foremost False Claims Act and whistleblower attorneys. In addition to his practice, Mr. Guttman teaches trial advocacy and contributes scholarship on legal and public policy issues.

• Education & Credentials

Reuben A. Guttman earned his Juris Doctor from Emory University School of Law in 1985 and received a Bachelor of Arts in American History from the University of Rochester in 1981. In addition to practicing law, he serves in academic roles including as a Senior Fellow and Adjunct Professor at the Emory University School of Law Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution, where he teaches and participates in trial advocacy training programs.

• Recognition & Leadership

Mr. Guttman has been recognized within the legal profession for his work in whistleblower and complex litigation matters. Media coverage and legal publications have described him as a leading attorney in whistleblower litigation, and he has been named a “Top Lawyer” by Washingtonian Magazine. He has also served in leadership roles in legal and policy organizations, including election to the Board of Directors of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, and has participated in national and international programs focused on advocacy and legal training.

• Professional Involvement

Beyond his litigation practice, Mr. Guttman is actively engaged in legal education and scholarship. He has lectured domestically and internationally, including at universities in China and through U.S. State Department programs training judges and practitioners in trial advocacy. He has also contributed commentary and articles on law, governance, and public policy.

• Experience

Mr. Guttman’s practice spans complex commercial disputes, class actions, and whistleblower cases involving government fraud and regulatory violations. He has served as lead counsel in major False Claims Act matters, securing significant recoveries in pharmaceutical and financial fraud settlements. His work has addressed unlawful drug marketing, fraudulent mortgage assignments, and government contracting misconduct. He has also litigated employment and labor matters, including federal labor standards, workplace safety, and cases affecting workers in the U.S. nuclear weapons complex.

SESSION 1 – Changing Gears from Trial Advocacy to Mediation | 1:00pm – 1:15pm

This session examines how attorneys shift from courtroom persuasion to collaborative problem solving, explaining why mediation rewards diplomacy and listening over rigid application of facts and law, and how counsel recalibrates once settlement, not victory, becomes the objective.

SESSION 2 – Advocacy Skills for the Unresolvable Dispute | 1:15pm – 1:30pm

This session identifies the advocacy skills required to resolve disputes that appear hopeless, showing how counsel reads the concerns of both clients and opposing parties to locate openings that move far-apart positions toward a workable resolution.

SESSION 3 – Working with the Mediator | 1:30pm – 1:45pm

This session explains how counsel can best use the mediator as a strategic resource, framing positions, communicating through a neutral party, and leveraging the mediator’s role to break impasse and move the parties toward a workable resolution.

SESSION 4 – Preparing the Client and the Process | 1:45pm – 2:00pm

This session addresses how attorneys prepare clients for the mediation setting and distinguishes voluntary mediation from court-ordered proceedings, clarifying how posture and expectations differ and how counsel adjusts preparation and strategy for each.