Studies have shown that ten times as many legal disputes are settled through creative dispute resolution rather than by trial. Strategic dispute resolution can resolve conflicts effectively and creatively using processes selected specifically to resolve a particular dispute.
My promise is to use my twenty-six years of judicial experience and my extensive professional training as a mediator to work with the parties and fairly resolve their dispute.
After twenty-six years as a trial court judge and after conducting over 2,300 mediations, I have a strong belief that in most cases, parties are best served by entering into reasonable settlements of disputes. I will work with the parties, treating everyone with fairness and respect, and aid the parties in reaching a fair and creative agreement.
I have conducted hundreds of civil trials and aribitrations. In each of those cases, I have carefully listened to the litigants, researched any disputed points of law, and done my absolute best to reach a just conclusion.
You may expect me to use all of my experience and training while conducting your arbitration hearing, and you may expect that any decision will be thoughtful, with a clear written explanation of my reasoning.
Judge Patrick J. O’Hara (Ret.) is a twenty-six year veteran of the Tulare County courts. He was a sought-after settlement judge who developed a reputation for fair and efficient resolution of civil cases.
Judge O’Hara was elected Presiding Judge by his peers on multiple occasions, including consecutive terms during the consolidation of the Superior and Municipal courts.
Judge O’Hara has mediated over 2,300 broad-ranging matters and possesses extensive experience in hearing and settling cases in all phases of civil litigation, including:
Contracts/Breach of Contract: specific performance, construction, agricultural /marketing contracts, real estate sales, agents and brokers, partnership agreements and disputes.
Corporations: general and limited partnership relationships and agreements.
Construction: contracts and subcontracts, construction project disputes, breach, express and implied warranties, public/private works.
Agriculture: agricultural packing/marketing contracts, crop loss, water rights.
Real Property: quiet title, warranty, partition, agents and brokers, rights of first refusal, agents and brokers, real estate transactions, property ownership matters.
Employment: employment controversies, class actions, dual and multi-party cases involving breach of contract, wages and hours, discrimination, harassment, wrongful actual/constructive discharge, violations of pubic policy, failure to interact or accommodate, retaliation, hostile work environment, privacy FEHA, Title VII, ADA.
Insurance: comprehensive general liability, insurance coverage issues, excess insurance, extended coverages, endorsements, uninsured and underinsured motorists, agency/broker agreements, professional liability insurance.
Professional Negligence: legal malpractice, accounting malpractice, medical malpractice.
Probate and Trust: contest, accountings/objections to accountings, breach of fiduciary duties, creation and termination.
Personal Injury: industrial accidents, automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles, wrongful death, health care elder abuse.
Damages: tort, contract, general, special, bodily injury, intentional and negligent infliction of emotion distress, attorney fees and costs.
Judge O’Hara has a strong belief in the value of mediation and will work diligently with the parties to reach a fair resolution of legal disputes.
His broad knowledge of the court system will serve as an invaluable aid in assisting parties in resolving disputes.
In addition to his extensive experience in helping parties reach amicable resolutions in court, Judge O’Hara has completed mediation training through the Strauss Institute at Pepperdine University, Fresno Pacific University, and California Judicial Research and Education.
Judge O’Hara began his career with the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office, where he was soon promoted to Chief Trial Attorney and later to the position of the Assistant District Attorney. He has participated in hundreds of trials, both as an attorney and as a judge.
2012-present Retired Judge, Mediator, Arbitrator, Discovery Referee
1992-2011 Judge of the Tulare County Superior Court
1985-1992 Judge of the Visalia Municipal Court
1982-1985 Assistant District Attorney; Office of the Tulare County District Attorney
1979-1982 Chief Trial Deputy; Office of the Tulare County District Attorney
1977-1979 Deputy District Attorney; Office of the Tulare County District Attorney
1976-1977 Hearing Officer with State of California, Board of Parole Hearings
1976 Graduated University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law; Member of the California State Bar Association; State Bar Number 72138
Rates
One-half day: $3,000.00
Full day: $6,000.00
Over nine hours: Additional hourly fee.
$750.00 non-refundable set up fee for arbitrations, payable prior to preparation of California Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.9 disclosure.
Travel Fee
No travel fee to Fresno or Bakersfield.
Travel fee $200.00 per hour round trip beyond Fresno and Bakersfield.
Cancellation Policy
$1,000.00 for one-half day
$2,000.00 for full day
For mediations and one-half day arbitrations, notice of cancellation must be received at least seven full calendar days in advance of the start of the hearing date.
For arbitrations scheduled for two or more days, notice of cancellation must be received at least forty-five days in advance of the start of the hearing date. For arbitrations scheduled for less than two days, notice of cancellation must be received at least fourteen days in advance of the start of the hearing date. Reasonable effort will be made to reschedule the cancelled dates.