Today, we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Zabel.
Hi Sarah, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
My journey in my practice began nearly 31 years ago. I was in private practice as a lawyer, but I was also a certified circuit civil and certified family mediator. Then, for nearly 16 years, I was a Circuit Court judge in Miami-Dade County.
After retiring from the Bench my journey as a mediator came full circle by my opening my dispute resolution practice. Fast forward to almost six years in practice, I have grown my business to a team of four neutrals.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Since starting my practice over five years ago, it has been a roller coaster ride. In the beginning, as in any business, establishing myself was a mountain to climb. It was a journey navigating what worked and what did not. Certainly, for me, for the Miami-Dade area, the fact I was a retired Circuit Court Judge helped because the trial lawyers knew me.
The challenge was to expand my network so that I could operate a statewide full-service dispute resolution practice. The right marketing and networking are critical to the growth of any business. It was important for me to not only network with lawyers but also with business groups. Social media was another vehicle to help expand my practice. This was a learning curve because there are so many different social media sites used for business growth. I definitely have learned through the ups and downs that sustaining your practice takes patience and perseverance.
When COVID pretty much shut down the world, the concern was what would happen to my business. Before COVID, all mediations were done in person. Then there was Zoom. Fortunately for my practice, Zoom was a game changer. The reason was that I accomplished what I wanted to do when I first started, which was to have a statewide practice. Virtual mediation gave me the opportunity to expand my base and mediate disputes throughout Florida. There are still hiccups, especially when the internet does not cooperate.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My business is a statewide full-service dispute resolution practice. We are a team of four neutrals. All the neutrals are women. Two of us are retired Circuit Court Judges. The objective of the practice is to mediate disputes in all areas of law. Also, the other retired judges arbitrate and act as a special magistrate. Some of the disputes we mediate are first-party insurance, personal injury, commercial, real estate, employment, and family.
As someone who has served as a judge in both the civil and family divisions, I know the extraordinary impact that traveling through the rabbit hole of the court system has on anyone. For family cases, I will meditate on a Sunday to help a family. Hopefully, what sets me apart is that I will go above and beyond to settle a dispute. My philosophy of mediation and this is true in life, is that the more communication we have with each other, the more likely the barriers of conflict will be broken. There is no guarantee a dispute will settle.
However, after the mediation, I will offer to stay involved as a courtesy to everyone to get closure. When I first was creating my practice I intentionally did not use my last name. It was important to me to build an ADR business beyond my name. I created the acronym MAZE. M is mediation. A is for arbitration. Z is for my last name, Zabel. Finally, E is for the end. The reason for the play on words is when a person, business, and family are in a dispute, that means they are trapped in an endless, exhausting, and expensive maze. My objective with the other neutrals is to help navigate those stuck in the maze.
What does success mean to you?
When I speak to law students or children of all ages, my words to them are the measure of success is not necessarily the grades you receive but who you become as a person. Of course, success is seeing my business sustain itself and continue to grow. My goal is to bring on more neutrals.
However, for me, success is settling a dispute. Especially when the lawyers tell me ahead of the mediation that this dispute will probably not be settled. I love a challenge, and when that dispute resolves, to me, this is the definition of success. On a personal note, seeing my children succeed also defines my success.
Pricing:
- $400 hourly
- two-hour minimum
- 48-hour cancellation fee
Contact Info:
- Website: mazeresolutions.com
- Facebook: @mazeresolutions
- Linkedin: @mazeresolutions
