Norman Brand, Esq.
Alternative Dispute Resolution Experience
Over 30 years’ experience as arbitrator and mediator in 3000 labor,
employment, pension, and other cases. Served on specialized panels
requiring scientific literacy in biochemistry, medicine, and psychiatry,
and an understanding of research and laboratory procedures. A 2006,
2007, and 2008 Northern California “Super Lawyer” in Alternative Dispute
Resolution.
Cases include: labor-management disputes over discipline, discharge, and
new contract terms; employment arbitrations and mediations involving
age, sex, race, national origin discrimination, and sexual harassment;
wrongful termination, executive contracts, statutory and employment
contract violations in diverse industries, including computer hardware,
pharmaceuticals, and biomedical products.
Other disputes involved trade secrets, intellectual property,
environmental contaminants, medical and scientific issues, and business
relationships. Special areas include MPPAA withdrawal liability
(including complex actuarial issues), trust fund collections, loans, and
trustee deadlocks; ERISA claims in health, retirement, and top hat
plans; salary setting for police and firefighters in cities over one
million; salary setting and other disputes for electricity generation,
transmission, and distribution employees.
Some arbitration decisions involved unique issues of law and have been
reviewed by federal courts. Cases arbitrated have been valued to $50
million; largest arbitration award issued was $40 million. Trained state
and federal judges in mediation, fact finders for California Public
Employment Relations Board, mediators for New York Public Employment
Relations Board, and held trainings for private organizations, the
California Bar, and AAA.
Work History
Arbitrator, Mediator: 1983 – Present, full time, 1978-83, part-time
Arbitrator, Private Judge, Referee: Individual employment and statutory
disputes, ERISA/MPPA disputes, private and public sector labor
management disputes (including interest arbitration), med-arb business
disputes, intellectual property, and scientific disputes.
Mediator: Private business disputes, individual employment disputes
(including statutory discrimination, executive compensation, wrongful
termination, and sexual harassment) labor-management disputes, and
public sector disputes.
Professor: Hastings College of Law (Adjunct) 1993-1997. Arbitration.
Albany Law School, Albany, New York, July 1978 to July 1983. Courses:
Labor Law; Arbitration; Labor Law in the Public Sector; Collective
Bargaining; Legal Writing, Reasoning, and Research
President: Impartial Enterprises, Inc., 1985-88
Labor Counsel: Executive Chamber, Albany, New York, September 1976 to
July 1978.
Advised and represented the Emergency Financial Control Board for the
City of New York on labor matters and administered statutory wage
freeze.
Executive Assistant to the Director: New York State Office of Employee
Relations, Albany, New York, September 1975 to August 1976. Administered
grievance procedures for 176,000 employees; negotiated with NY State
Police; special projects; press relations.
Professor: Department of English, University of California, Davis,
1970-1972. Part-time 1973-75. Taught American Literature, Black
Literature, Legal Writing.
Professor: Council on Legal Education Opportunity. Developed national
program for improving writing skills of minority pre-law students.
Taught summer programs in schools of law at ASU, UC Davis, University of
Washington, and Howard University.
Education
• J.D., University of California, Davis, June 1975
• Ph.D., Arizona State University, January 1971, English
• M.A., Arizona State University, January 1969, English
• B.A., Harpur College, State University of New York, Binghamton, June
1966 (Biology/English)
Publications
• Co-Editor in Chief, Discipline and Discharge in Arbitration,
(Washington: BNA: 2008).
• Labor Arbitration: The Strategy of Persuasion, Second Edition
(San Francisco: 2006).
• “Mediation in Public Sector Collective Bargaining,” 17 California
Labor & Employment Law Review 10 (May 2003).
• “Ethics in Employment Mediation and Arbitration,” 17 California Labor
and Employment Law Review 13 (May 2003).
• “Ethics in Employment Mediation and Arbitration,” 2 Institute of
Chartered Financial Analysts of India Journal of
Alternative Dispute Resolution 25 (January 2003).
• Editor, How ADR Works (Washington: BNA, 2002).
• “Ethics in Employment Mediation and Arbitration,” 2 Employee Rights
Quarterly 31, (Winter 2002).
• “ADR and Settlement,” in California Practice Guide-Employment Law
(Rutter Group:2001).
• Co-Author, Designing Integrated Conflict Management Systems,
Cornell Studies in Conflict and Dispute Resolution,
2001.
• “How to Survive Your First Mediation,” 1 NY Employment Law & Practice
9, June 2000.
• “When Experts Testify: Exploiting the Advantages of Arbitration,” 4
ADR Currents 1 (Fall 1999).
• “The Misuse of Mediation,” Los Angeles Times, May 6, 1999.
• ADR Personalities and Practice Tips, Chapter 8, American Bar
Association - Section of Dispute Resolution (Washington:
1998).
• “Using Mediation Effectively.” 128 California Public Employee
Relations 7 (February 1998). Also appeared in XX
School Employers Association Reporter 5, October 1997.
• “Mandatory Mediation: Endangering the Process,” King Hall Counselor,
Winter 1997.
• “Choosing the ‘Expert’ Mediator,” 3 ADR Currents 2, Summer 1997.
• “Erasing the Lines Between Arbitration and Litigation,” Res Ipsa, June
14, 1995.
• "Due Process in Arbitration," in Bornstein and Gosline Labor and
Employment Arbitration, (New York: Matthew
Bender, 1994, 2000).
• "Learning to Use the Mediation Process - A Guide for Lawyers," 47
Arbitration Journal 6 (December, 1992), reprinted
in Craver & Brunet eds. Alternative Dispute Resolution, (MICHIE,
1997).
• Daily Journal 1992-1995: Bi-Monthly Column on Alternative Dispute
Resolution.
• "New Trust Impasse Rules: A Review of Major Changes," 25 Employee
Benefits Digest 3 (1988).
• Labor Arbitration: The Strategy of Persuasion, (New
York: Practising Law Institute, 1987).
• Legal Writing: The Strategy of Persuasion (with J.O. White),
New York: St. Martin's Press, 1976, 2nd ed. 1988, 3rd ed.
1993.
• "Technology Will Shape the Future of Legal Writing," 5 Lawyer Hiring
and Training Report 17 (1984).
• "PERB Finds Discipline and Discrimination Negotiable Under SEERA," 3
Labor & Employment Law News 6 (1984).
• "Agency Shop After Abood: The State of the States," 3 Public
Employment Research Service Bulletin 3 (1980).
• "Legal Writing, Reasoning, and Research: An Introduction," 44 Albany
Law Review 292 (1980).
• "N.Y. Taylor Law Amendments Potentially Far-Reaching," LMRS Newsletter
12 (1977).
• "Composition for the Pre-Professional: Focus on Legal Writing," 27
College Composition and Communication 41 (1976)
• "Minority Writing Problems and Law School Writing Programs," 26
Journal of Legal Education 331 (1974).
• "Minority Writing and Majority Reading: The Problems of CLEO
Students," AALS Committee on Minority Groups
Newsletter, September 1972. Reprinted in Minority Opportunities
in Law for Blacks, Puerto Ricans and Chicanos (New
York: New York Publishing, 1974).
• "Power in the Blood: The Polemics of the Fugitive Slave Narrative,”
Doctoral Dissertation (not separately published),
Arizona State University, 1971.
• "Skills Remediation in Minority Group Law Students," Arizona English
Bulletin, October, 1969.
Published Awards
• Interest Arbitration and Trustee Deadlock cases.
• City of Stockton - December 9, 1996, 108 Lab. Arb. (BNA) 1201.
• UAW Local 2350 and CSEA, SEIU Local 1000 Grievance: 401(k) Plan
Dispute July 8, 1996, 1996 WL 931806.
• Z and Lafayette Park Hotel April 25, 1996, 1996 WL 932598 (Arb.).
• Salt Lake Police Association and Salt Lake City Corporation, Salt Lake
City Police Department January 23, 1996, 1996
WL 932599 (Arb.).
• Paratransit, Inc. -- June 3, 1993, 100 Lab. Arb. (BNA) 981.
• Webster Central School District -- April 7, 1983, 80 Lab. Arb. (BNA)
1138.
• Greenwich Central School District (NY)) and Greenwich Teachers
Association November 22, 1996, 334 Arb in the
Schools, December 1997.
• DOD, Dependents Schools, Tokyo, Japan and NEA/OEA, 94. FLRR2-1265
LAIRS 21634; July 16, 1994.
Professional Memberships
• Fellow, The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers
• Fellow, The American College of Employee Benefit Counsel
• Fellow, The American College of Civil Trial Mediators
• President, California Dispute Resolution Council (1998)
• Board of Directors, California Dispute Resolution Council
• Board of Directors, California Dispute Resolution Institute
• American Arbitration Association National Employment Advisory Council
• Member, Mediation Society
• President, Industrial Relations Association of Northern California
(1994-95)
• Member, National Academy of Arbitrators, Chair, Northern California
Region (1990-2)
• Chair, International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, American
Arbitration Committee, 1990, Member, 1988-
1989
• Chair, Association of American Law Schools, Section on Labor Law, 1983
• Secretary, Executive Committee, Labor and Employment Law Section,
California Bar Association, 1988, Member,
1985-1988, Advisor, 1989-91, Chair, Editorial Board, Labor and Employment
Law Quarterly, 1990-1992
• Chair, Association of American Law Schools, Section on Legal Writing,
Reasoning, and Research, 1980-81, 1981-82
• California Bar and New York Bar
Panels
• AAA Agency Fee Panel
• AAA Commercial Arbitration Panel
• AAA ERISA/MPPAA and Employee Benefits Panels
• AAA Large Complex Case Panel
• AAA Mediator Panel
• AAA National Employment Disputes Panel
• AAA National Panel of Labor Arbitrators
• AAA Tribal Labor Panel
• Action Dispute Resolution Services
• California Academy of Distinguished Neutrals
• California PERB
• California State Mediation/Conciliation Service
• City of Fort Collins
• Clark County School District and Clark County Education Association
• Contra Costa Superior Court ADR Program
• County of Santa Clara/CCPOA
Court of Appeal, First Appellate District Mediation Panel
• Department of Labor Mediation Program
• Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
• Los Angeles City Employee Relations Board
• NASD Dispute Resolution, Inc. Mediation Program
• Oregon Employment Relations Board
• San Francisco Civil Service Commission
Contract Arbitrator
• AC Transit Retirement Board
• Affiliated Hospitals of San Francisco/CAN
• AT&T/CWA/TIU
• AT&T Mobility LLC and CWA District 9
• California State University and CSUEU
• California State University and California Faculty Association
• City of Oakland/Oakland Police Officers Association/IAFF
• City of Sacramento Sump 2 Improvements Project
• City & County of San Francisco Municipal Attorneys Association
• City & County of San Francisco/SEIU
• Department of Personnel Administration and California State Employees
Association
• Federal Aviation Administration/PASS (AVN)
• Health & Welfare Trust Fund/SEIU Local 22
• Internal Revenue Service and National Treasury Employees Union
• Metropolitan Water District of Southern California/AFSCME Local 1902
• National Association of Air Traffic Specialists
• National Master United Parcel Service Agreement, the Western
Conference of Teamsters Supplemental Agreement and
Northern California Package Rider and Northern California Sort Agreement
• Sacramento Independent Hotel, Restaurant and Tavern Employees, Welfare
and Pension Trusts
• Safeway, Inc. and Teamsters Local 439
• San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District and BART Police Officers
Association
• San Benito Foods/Teamsters Local 890
• Screen Actor’s Guild/Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers
• Seton Medical Center/CNA
• Southern California Edison/IBEW Local 47
• State of California/CCPOA
• Teamsters Local 150 Fluid Milk and Ice Cream Agreement
• Teamsters Local 533 and Disposal Services
• United States Postal Service/National Association of Letter Carriers
• University of the Pacific/IBT Local 439
• Valley Clerks & Drug Employers/Health & Welfare Trust Fund
• Writer’s Guild of America/Alliance of Motion Picture & Television
Producers
• Yolo County Office of Education/CSEA
Recent Speeches
• “Using Mediation to Resolve Organizational Conflicts and Potential
Litigation: It’s All Politics,” League of California Cities
Annual Conference, Sacramento, California,
• September 5, 2007
• “Gaining Acceptance for Mediation,” at conference “The Private Factor
in the Judiciary System,” Warsaw University,
Warsaw, Poland, June 19, 2007.
• “Extraordinary Advocacy,” Labor Arbitration Institute, Los Angeles,
January 24, Oakland January 26, 2007.
• “Making Arbitration Work: From Clause Drafting Through Award
Enforcement – State Bar Annual Meeting – Monterey,
California, October 5, 2006.
• “Managing the Hearing – The Arbitrator’s View,” 2005 Oregon Employment
Relations Board, November 3, 2005.
“External Law,” Labor Arbitration Institute Conference, Oakland,
California,
January 20, 2005
• “Effective Advocacy in Mediation and Arbitration,” The Bar Association
of San Francisco, Yosemite, California,
February 20, 2004.
• “Arbitration: Theory v. Reality,” ABA Dispute Resolution Section
Training Committee and Arbitration Committee, May
16, 2003.
• “Interest Arbitration” CALPERA Annual Training Conference, Monterey,
California, November 14, 2002.
• “External Law,” Labor Arbitration Institute Conference, San Francisco,
September 5, 2002.
• “Interest Arbitration,” International Personnel Management Association
Annual Meeting, San Leandro, California March
28, 2002.
• “Judicial Council Rules for Arbitrators,” The Masters’ Forum,
Pepperdine University School of Law, Straus Institute for
Dispute Resolution, Malibu, California March 15-16, 2002.
• “Moving Parties to Resolution,” ABA Judicial Mediator Training,
February 19, 2001.
• “What the Supreme Court Will Do With Foxgate,” Beverly Hills Bar
Association, February 7, 2001.
• “ADR and the Problem High Tech Employee,” ABA Section of Dispute
Resolution, San Francisco, April 7, 2000.
• “Mandatory Arbitration of Employment Disputes, A Survey of Recent
Developments in the Law,” Barristers Club,
December 7, 1999; State Bar Labor and Employment Law Section 17th Annual
Meeting, San Diego, November 6,
1999.
• “Discipline and Discharge,” ABA Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA, August
10, 1999.
• “Employment Law Litigation: ADR Update,” The National Employment Law
Institute, San Francisco, May 6, 1999.
• 27th Annual Employer-Employee Labor Relations Conference, U. C. Davis
February 3, 1999, Program Moderator.
• “External Law,” Labor Arbitration Institute Conference, San Francisco
January 8, 1999.
• “Making Sense of Birbrower: Fee Agreements, Misdemeanors & Ethics,”
June 16, 1998, San Francisco.
• 26th Annual Employer-Employee Labor Relations Conference, U. C. Davis
February 4, 1998, Program Moderator.
• Asia Foundation: Presentations for visiting Indonesian Neutrals,
September 23 and October 10, 1997, San Francisco.
• “Strategies for Successful Mediation of Employment Claims,” National
Employment Lawyers Association, Toronto, June
26, 1997.
• Discipline and Discharge in the Unionized Workplace, San Francisco,
April 4, 1997.
• “Arbitration Here and Now: What You Need to Know about Arbitration of
Grievances in Public Education,” 22nd
Annual Conference of the School Employers Association, Costa Mesa, March
14, 1997.
• Asia Foundation: Presentations for visiting Indonesian Neutrals,
September 23 and October 10, 1997, San Francisco.
• “Strategies for Successful Mediation of Employment Claims,” National
Employment Lawyers Association, Toronto, June
26, 1997.
• Discipline and Discharge in the Unionized Workplace, San Francisco,
April 4, 1997.
• “Arbitration Here and Now: What You Need to Know about Arbitration of
Grievances in Public Education,” 22nd
Annual Conference of the School Employers Association, Costa Mesa, March
14, 1997.
• “Using Mediation Effectively,” League of California Cities Employee
Relations Institute February, 20, 1997.
• “The Implications of Lapine Technology Corp. v. Kyocera,” Barristers
Club ADR Committee, February 18, 1997.
• 25th Annual Employer-Employee Labor Relations Conference, U.C. Davis
February 13, 1997, Program Moderator.
• “External Law,” Labor Arbitration Institute Conference, San Francisco,
January 24, 1997.
• “Successful Strategies in Arbitrating Employment Claims,” National
Employment Lawyers Association, Minneapolis,
October 18, 1996.
• 24th Annual Employer-Employee Labor Relations Conference, U.C. Davis
February 20, 1996, Program Moderator.
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