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Barbara Spector, Esq.
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Barbara Spector, Esq.

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General Biography
Practice Areas
Appellate
Aviation
Business & Commercial
Employment Law
Governmental/Public Agency
Higher Education & Title IX
Insurance
Personal Injury/Torts
Real Estate & Real Property
Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities
Background and Education

Barbara Spector, Esq. joins JAMS with over 40 years of experience as a lawyer, mediator and arbitrator. In addition to her extensive experience in business, real estate, employment and personal injury matters in both state and federal courts, she has successfully argued a case of first impression before the California Supreme Court.

ADR Qualifications

  • Harvard-certified negotiator and mediator who has received acclaim for her eminent career in alternative dispute resolution and litigation
  • Conducted hundreds of mediations, arbitrations, settlement conferences and early neutral evaluations for the United States District Court, the California Court of Appeal and the Santa Clara County Superior Court
  • Extensive experience in business, real estate, employment and personal injury matters
  • Lecturer on topics that include alternative dispute resolution, discovery, law and motion, pretrial litigation strategy, negotiation techniques and the elimination of bias in the legal profession

Representative Matters

  • Business & Commercial
      • Mediated breach of contract and common count claims brought by a Silicon Valley electronic equipment retailer against a major Internet corporation
      • Mediated contract and tort claims between two high-tech international corporations, one based in Silicon Valley and the other in Asia
      • Mediated a dispute between a multinational financial institution and a Silicon Valley startup
      • Resolved a dispute involving an international aircraft manufacturer and its subsidiaries for wrongful dealer termination
  • Employment Law
      • Successfully mediated a claim of racial bias brought by an employee of a publishing company
      • Negotiated a $500,000 settlement against an employer, hospital and product manufacturer on behalf of an individual injured in a mining accident
      • Resolved a wrongful termination claim against an employer for failure to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee’s disability
      • Mediated wage and hour claims brought against an employer by eight employees who alleged workplace violations relating to meal breaks, overtime and unreimbursed business and mileage expenses
  • Personal Injury/Torts
      • Resolved a high-profile case involving a municipality’s responsibility for the accidental death of a Silicon Valley CEO
  • Real Estate & Real Property
      • Successfully argued a case of first impression before the California Supreme Court, establishing the right of commercial tenants to sublease their facilities
      • Resolved numerous breach-of-contract and commercial landlord/tenant disputes

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

Completed Virtual ADR training conducted by the JAMS Institute, the training arm of JAMS.

  • Mediation and Negotiation Certifications, Harvard Law School, 1994–1995
  • Appellate Mediation Certification, Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, 2001
  • “AV Preeminent” Rating (the highest level of professional excellence awarded through peer review)
  • Three-Time Recipient, Northern California ADR Super Lawyer of the Year Award, 2004–2006
  • Member, ADR Administration Committee, Santa Clara County Superior Court, 1998–present
  • Early Neutral Evaluator, U.S. District Court, N.D. CA, 1994–present
  • Judge Pro Tem, Arbitrator and Mediator, Santa Clara County Superior Court, 1987–present
  • Special Master, Santa Clara County Superior Court, Judge Pro Tem and Arbitrator 1985 – present; Mediator 1995 - present
  • Member, Santa Clara County, 1978 – present, and West Valley Bar Associations, 2015-present.
  • Member, State Bar of California, 1978–present
  • Member, Board of Visitors, Santa Clara University School of Law, 1993–1998
  • Recipient, Santa Clara County Bar Association Salsman Award (for exemplary service to the legal community), 2004
  • Hearing Officer, City of Saratoga, California, 2001–2008
  • Member, plaintiff and defense lawyer Sexual Harassment Roundtable
  • Recipient, John J. George Lifetime Achievement Award, Santa Clara County Trial Lawyers Association, 2013
  • Recipient, Tribute to Women in Industry Award, YWCA, 2014
  • Member, Los Gatos Town Council, 2004–present (four terms)
  • Mayor, Town of Los Gatos, 2008, 2013, 2016 (three terms)
  • Planning Commissioner, Town of Los Gatos, 1980–1988 (two terms)

Selected Lectures and Publications

  • California Supreme Court, Kendall v. Pestana, Inc. (1985) 40 Cal.3d 488
  • The Rutter Group, 1988–1990
    • Discovery 1988
    • Discovery 1989
    • Law and Motion 1990
  • Santa Clara County Bar Association, 1994–2014
    • Government Entity Mediation
    • Civil Pre-Trial Litigation Strategy
    • Clueless About Negotiating?
    • Superior Court ADR Update
    • How to Represent a Client in Mediation
    • Personal Injury Mediation
    • Elimination of Bias
  • Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB), 1992–1993
    • Creating and Implementing a Successful Discovery Plan

Background and Education

  • Harvard-certified mediator and negotiator
  • Neutral in the United States District Court, California Court of Appeal and Santa Clara County Superior Court
  • Civil litigation attorney, 1978–2018
    • Hoge Fenton Jones & Appel, 2008–2018
    • Spector Law Firm, 1992–2008
    • Spector & Hackett, 1986–1992
    • Morgan, Morgan, Towery, Morgan & Spector, 1978–1986
  • J.D., magna cum laude, Santa Clara University School of Law, 1978
  • B.A., English, University of California, Berkeley, 1966
  • Three-term Mayor and four-term councilmember, Town of Los Gatos

Disclaimer

This page is for general information purposes.  JAMS makes no representations or warranties regarding its accuracy or completeness.  Interested persons should conduct their own research regarding information on this website before deciding to use JAMS, including investigation and research of JAMS neutrals. See More

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