Building and Sustaining a Mediation Practice
Join us for an engaging and practical webinar on building, managing, and sustaining a successful mediation practice, led by experienced professionals Dr. Patrice B. F. Garver and Steven M. Garver, Esq. This session offers a comprehensive roadmap for mediators at all stages, focusing on the essential elements of long-term success—from defining your niche and value proposition to developing strong referral networks and a trusted professional brand.
Participants will explore strategies for client acquisition, effective marketing, and creating consistent, high-quality client experiences. The webinar also covers key operational and business practices, including pricing, financial tracking, and the use of technology to streamline processes. With an emphasis on ethics, neutrality, and continuous professional development, this session provides actionable guidance to help mediators grow sustainably, avoid burnout, and adapt to an evolving field.
**This webinar is pending approval for 1.0 hour of CME credit (0.0 ethics) by the Supreme Court of Virginia** A recording of the webinar will be available to registrants for 30 days following the session.
VMN Members $10
Non-members $35
VMN Student Member $5
Non-member Students $15
Presenter Bios:
Dr. Patrice B. F. Garver
Dr. Patrice Garver is a licensed mental health professional in Virginia. Her professional and psychological services focus on family systems and child development. Patrice has worked with children, families, and other specialists within a team structure for more than 30 years, providing services for families in need, feedback as a child specialist, providing services for at risk families and helping families, parents and children navigate the stresses of separation and divorce. Her training in mediation and collaborative divorce have allowed her to offer couples and families healthy ways of addressing the emotional, and parenting aspects of separation and divorce. Patrice also serves as a parent coordinator and can provide divorce counseling and parenting counseling. Patrice is a longstanding member of Collaborative Professionals of Northern Virginia and serves on the Board of Directors of that organization. Patrice is also a member of the Academy of Professional Family Mediators and the Virginia Mediation Network.
Dr. Garver has a long-standing educational and experiential background regarding psychosocial issues and the impact of the divorce process, providing special insights in navigating the separation and legal issues faced by families going through a divorce with. a PH.D. in Developmental Psychology, an MA in clinical psychology and an MA in counseling applying family. Systems and Narrative Therapy foci for families facing lifechanging trauma. Her training in mediation and the collaborative divorce process has allowed her to provide a healthier way of addressing the legal and psychological aspects of divorce, offering a venue in which both parties can communicate personal interests and goals for themselves and their children as they separate and divorce while continuing to co-parent with productive dialogue for the best interest of their children.
She is an adjunct professor at George Mason University Law School, where she teaches a course in negotiation.
Steven M. Garver, Esq.
Steven M. Garver is an accomplished trial attorney and divorce mediator. He moved to Reston, VA, in 1974 with his family and developed a diverse legal practice, with litigation experience in personal injury, medical malpractice, civil rights actions, domestic relations, and criminal cases. He started practicing as an associate of Kaletah N. Carroll who was one of the first female attorney’s in Northern Virginia and the firm specialized in divorce. Though he left Kaletah after a year he then set up his own practice in Reston, Virginia, and the first several years of his practice were devoted mostly to Divorce and Family Law. He also has significant experience in corporate, business, and transactional work which aided him in understanding the needs of clients in divorce cases. He has been a substitute judge in the 19th Judicial District since 1980 and was one of the few substitute judges trained to hear divorce cases in the experimental family court (which existed for 2 years). In that capacity and as a Commissioner in the 19th Circuit he has heard numerous divorce cases. He has also tried numerous domestic relations matters.
In 1979, Mr. Garver became one of the first attorney mediators handling divorce cases. He was self-taught and driven to the field by what he saw as an unnecessary expense, emotionally and financially, in the divorce process. He has more recently studied at the Harvard Mediation and Negotiation Project including its advanced programs and Northwestern University to expand his skills as a mediator and is now doing divorce mediation through Divorce Mediation Associates, Ltd. His diverse legal background gives him a special advantage in understanding many of the legal issues faced by families in this complex world. He co-mediates with his wife, Dr. Patrice Garver, who is a psychologist.
He is an adjunct professor at George Mason University Law School, where he taught Virginia Practice and for the past 8 years has taught Negotiation with his wife. Mr. Garver is a certified mediator by the Supreme Court of Virginia. He is a member of the Association of Attorney Mediators, Association of Professional Family Mediators, VMN and the Association of Conflict Resolution and participates in their seminars and training sessions.
