Los Angeles – JAMS, the largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services worldwide, is pleased to announce the addition of Hon. Christine Byrd (Ret.) to its panel. Judge Byrd joined JAMS after serving 13 years as a judge on the Los Angeles Superior Court, where she was assigned to the Family Law Division and developed expertise in family law issues. In recognition of her capabilities, in 2017, she was assigned to hear long-cause matters in family law, where she remained until her retirement earlier this year.
Prior to her appointment, Judge Byrd practiced law for 35 years, during which time she focused on complex business litigation and took over 20 cases to trial. At Irell & Manella LLP, where she was a partner for 14 years, she focused on damages in high-profile patent litigation. Before that, she spent nine years as a partner at Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue, where she handled complex business litigation, and five years as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, where she tried a variety of cases, including one of the earliest money laundering cases in the country. In recognition of her trial experience and skills, in 2004 she was selected as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Based in the Los Angeles Resolution Center, Judge Byrd will serve as a mediator, arbitrator, special master/referee and neutral evaluator, handling family law, business/commercial, antitrust, energy, entertainment, environmental, health care and intellectual property disputes. She is available to conduct sessions in person, as well as virtually, for attorneys and their clients across the country.
Judge Byrd is well respected and known for her extensive background and knowledge of family law and business litigation. She is also able to find common ground with parties, which is an essential skill when working with parties to find a resolution.
- Chris Poole, JAMS CEO
Judge Byrd has already acquired significant ADR experience in business disputes. During her years of law practice, she served as a neutral arbitrator in dozens of complex business disputes, both domestic and international, involving entertainment, manufacturing, construction, waste management, power purchase and power exchange agreements, wind park development, oil field rights and natural gas distribution. She helped develop the American Arbitration Association’s (AAA) mediation and arbitration Procedures for Large, Complex Commercial Disputes. In 2004, she was selected as a Fellow in the College of Commercial Arbitrators.
Judge Byrd has served on several nonprofit boards of directors, augmenting her complex business and financial litigation background with practical business experience. She also has practical experience in the automobile sector, including restoring, repairing, auctioning, showing and shipping, and she serves as a director of a national automobile club.
My style is to work with the lawyers early on to define the process. The ADR process is very lawyer-driven. But the management of the process after that is up to me—and I run a tight ship. While I may be retiring from the bench, I’m certainly not slowing down and am looking forward to applying my experience and knowledge in this next chapter as a JAMS neutral.
- Hon. Christine Byrd (Ret.)
Judge Byrd received her B.A., with honors, from Stanford University and her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.
About JAMS – Local Solutions. Global Reach.
Founded in 1979, JAMS is the largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution services worldwide. JAMS successfully resolves and manages business and legal disputes by providing efficient, cost-effective and impartial ways to overcome barriers at any stage of conflict. JAMS offers customized in-person, virtual and hybrid resolution services locally and globally through a combination of industry-specific experience, first-class client service, the latest technology and highly trained mediators and arbitrators.
With a roster of over 400 neutrals and 30 locations, JAMS resolves thousands of the world’s important cases every year. JAMS neutrals are adept at managing the resolution process whether they are conducting in-person, virtual or hybrid hearings.
More information is available at www.jamsadr.com, and you can connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and our JAMS ADR blog. To learn about diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at JAMS, visit www.jamsadr.com/diversity/.
