On August 24, 2023, the Honorable Philip M. Halpern administered the judicial oath of office to employment lawyer Matthew Weinick, marking Weinick’s appointment to the panel of mediators serving the United States District Court, Southern District of New York. As a panel mediator, Weinick will be randomly selected to serve as a mediator for cases designated for court ordered mediation.
Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution. Rather than the formal, rigid structure of court proceedings, mediation is an informal and confidential way for plaintiffs and defendants to meet to try to reach a settlement of their dispute. Mediators are trained in techniques which can help the parties reach a settlement. More information about mediation in general, is available here.
The Southern District of New York (SDNY) is one of New York’s federal courts. It has jurisdiction over federal cases from counties in New York State such as New York, Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, Sullivan, Orange, and Dutchess. Because of the area it covers, the Southern District of New York has handled many famous court cases, including most recently, the sentencing of President Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen, the “deflategate” litigation relating to the NFL, and the prosecution of Bernie Madoff.