Why Matt Wertheim
40+ Years of Solving Legal Challenges
Matt brings two decades of hands-on mediation experience supported by elite training and mentorship from leaders in the field.
Mediation Experience
San Francisco Superior Court, Early Settlement Program
Mediated hundreds of civil disputes as a panelist, helping parties reach resolution during the litigation process.
Mentorship with Hon. Daniel Weinstein (Ret.)
Continues to receive guidance and training from Judge Weinstein, co-founder of JAMS and one of the nation's most respected and sought-out mediators.
Advanced Mediation Training with Ron Kelly
Completed intensive skills training with Ron Kelly to further refine, adapt, and improve Matt's mediation techniques and neutral toolkit.
Marin County Superior Court, MSC Mediator/Panelist
Serves as a Mandatory Settlement Conference mediator, assisting litigants and counsel in resolving disputes efficiently and respectfully, often just weeks before trial when court-ordered mediation is required.
Bar Association of San Francisco, Mediation Panel
Mediates cases pursuant to BASF panel rules and procedures as a member of the BASF Mediation Panel.
Matt's Legal & Mediation Career
Matt has been guiding parties toward resolution with a depth of experience across a wide range of civil matters. From 2005 to 2014, Matt mediated hundreds of cases as a San Francisco Superior Court Early Settlement Program panelist mediator. These matters included personal injury, real estate and contract disputes, employment, professional negligence, and construction. Matt understands his role as the mediator, he is not the judge or jury, and his role is to be 100% neutral while guiding the parties towards a resolution. His 40 years of experience as a litigator and negotiator give him a keen ability to see the true issues and complexities that need resolution and to step back to help the participants reach their own resolution of the human, and often monetary, dimensions of conflict.
In 2006, Matt began a mediation mentorship with the Honorable Daniel Weinstein (Ret.), co-founder of JAMS and a widely respected leader in the field. Through observing and co-mediating numerous cases with Judge Weinstein, Matt refined his skills and deepened his understanding of what helps parties move from impasse to agreement. Committed to continual growth, Matt completed an intensive mediation skills training with Ron Kelly in 2024 to further strengthen and update his mediation toolbox. In 2025, he became a Mandatory Settlement Conference (MSC) mediator/panelist for the Marin County Superior Court, continuing his hands-on work helping parties resolve disputes efficiently, often held just weeks before a scheduled trial. Matt is also on the San Francisco Bar Association Mediation Panel.
Over the years, Matt has successfully mediated all types of cases, pre-litigation, with or without counsel, and many that initially appeared unlikely to settle, but through hard work eventually did, often as a result of post-mediation calls, emails, and further communications to get the parties to the finish line. He looks forward to resolving every case he takes on as a neutral. His long career as a lawyer, combined with decades of mediation experience, allows him to bring both practical insight and steady guidance to each case he handles.
With more than forty years of trial and litigation experience, Matt is well positioned to provide that perspective while ensuring each party is fully heard.
Over the course of more than forty years in civil practice, Matt handled virtually every type of claim and insurance-related dispute. His work has included insurance coverage and bad-faith matters, catastrophic injury cases, professional liability claims involving doctors and lawyers, construction and real estate disputes, employment matters, partnership conflicts, and a wide range of complex business disagreements. While many of his cases have resolved through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, Matt has also taken matters to trial when resolution was not possible despite everyone's best efforts. He also has extensive experience on both sides of significant motion practice, including summary judgment motions, directed verdicts, and post-trial motions. That perspective, having both won and lost important motions, gives him a balanced understanding of how cases are evaluated in the real world.
Matt brings together these 40-plus years of advocacy and negotiation experience and 20-plus years of work as a mediator to offer his guidance and complete neutrality in moving disputes from conflict to resolution. He understands how attorneys, insurers, and clients assess risk at each stage of a case, and uses that insight to help parties make informed, realistic decisions. His goal is always the same: to create a process where people feel heard, respected, and guided toward fair and workable outcomes, and he will not schedule a mediation unless he is confident that all of the ducks are in a row and the case is ripe for settlement.
Mediation Approach
I approach every mediation with care, preparation, and a deep respect for the people involved. Before the session begins, I connect with the parties (or counsel) to understand the key issues, surface potential obstacles, and clarify any assumptions that could slow progress. This early preparation helps ensure that when everyone comes to the table, the conversation can be focused, productive, and worthwhile.
During the mediation, Matt uses the first few hours to allow all parties and their counsel, if any, to be fully heard. He knows that disputes often carry strong emotions, and when advocacy begins to feel personal or reactive, he gently helps reframe the discussion. His goal is to resolve every matter that he mediates by keeping the process moving forward while maintaining respect and trust.
When helpful, Matt offers thoughtful evaluative guidance, particularly if unresolved legal questions or unrealistic expectations are getting in the way of meaningful negotiation. As the day progresses, he may suggest tools such as bracketing or a mediator's proposal to help bridge remaining gaps and move the parties to a resolution.
Matt's decades of legal experience also allow him, when requested, to assist counsel in shaping the final terms of a written settlement agreement. Whenever appropriate, he encourages signing before the day ends, helping preserve the momentum and sense of closure that a successful mediation can bring. Throughout the process, his skills and experience create a steady, constructive, respectful environment where resolution is accomplished.
What a Day at Mediation with Matt Looks Like
Whether in person or virtual, Matt structures each mediation day to create a calm, focused, and productive environment. Parties are welcomed, the process is clearly outlined, and each participant has private space, either a physical room or a virtual breakout room, to think, strategize, and speak candidly. The concept of confidentiality is explained and the participants all understand that whatever is said or written at mediation cannot be used for or against anyone at a later stage of the dispute. It is made clear that no resolution is reached unless and until everyone agrees upon the terms.
Throughout the day, Matt moves between parties with purpose, checking in frequently, clarifying issues, and helping refine goals as negotiations evolve. He listens closely, reads the dynamics, and adjusts his approach based on what the moment requires.
The pace is steady and intentional. Matt keeps the conversation moving without rushing, ensuring that participants feel heard, respected, and supported. By day's end, parties often remark that the process felt structured, fair, and grounded, and that they reached a resolution they can live with. Cases only settle at mediation when both parties agree to the terms and nobody feels coerced, forced, or that the terms are unfair. That is how resolution is accomplished.
Neutral Insight
Matt's experience mediating hundreds of cases, spanning a wide range of issues and often involving millions of dollars in dispute, gives him the insight to understand what will work best in each unique mediation. Every case presents its own dynamics, personalities, and pressure points. Matt draws not only on his extensive legal background but also on his ability to read the room, assess the emotional and strategic needs of the participants, and determine which mediation style will be most effective at each stage of the process.
He moves fluidly between facilitative, transformative, and evaluative approaches, knowing when to listen, when to challenge, and when to help parties reality-test their positions. For Matt, resolving cases is not simply about reaching terms, numbers, or solutions. It's about having the skill, patience, and judgment to recognize what will actually move this specific and unique mediation forward for these individuals.
Successful mediation requires more than technique. It requires intuition, timing, and the ability to create an environment where parties feel heard, respected, and empowered to make informed decisions. Matt brings all of that to the table, and when participants come to mediation ready to negotiate and compromise, that combination is a recipe for a mediated resolution.
