Hon. Michael B. Orfield (Ret.)

Biography

Hon. Michael B. Orfield (Ret.) was a jurist for 20 years, mostly as a civil independent calendar judge. His experience and expertise as a civil judge spread widely across such diverse areas as catastrophic personal injury, medical and legal malpractice, product and construction defects, breach of warranties, easements, breach of contract, wrongful death and a variety of business disputes. His strength as a mediator "...comes from being able to call upon a broad plain of knowledge, coupled with an attention to detail, empathy for the participants, and a conviction that the resolution should be their own.”

Judge Orfield retired as a member of the statewide Continuing Judicial Education Committee, and still has a passion for teaching. He currently teaches "Trying the Complicated Case: From Trial Readiness to Verdict" as well as the LexisNexis Jury Instruction computer program for both civil and criminal jury instructions. He has also taught "Leading Organizational Change" as well as the week long "Civil Overview for Judges".

Judge Orfield was appointed by Chief Justice Ronald George to the original Task Force on Civil Jury Instructions and then to the Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions. Justice George also appointed him a member of the prestigious Judicial Council of the State of California. Judge Orfield has served as a member of the Judicial Council Presiding Judges and Court Executives Advisory Committee and the Judicial Needs Advisory Committee.

Judge Orfield has served on the Board of the San Diego Humane Society and chaired the North County "Bridging the Gap" program for new lawyers. Before transferring to the Vista Courthouse, he co-moderated the San Diego County Bar Association Bridging the Gap program.

In 1972, Judge Orfield earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from the University of California at San Diego, and obtained his law degree from California Western School of Law in 1977. Judge Orfield also completed one year of graduate study in Microbiology and Immunology at Duke University in 1974.

Primary Areas of Focus

• Personal Injury and Wrongful Death
• Medical and Legal Malpractice
• Construction Defect Litigation
• Business Disputes
• Land Disputes
• Breach of Contracts
• Breach of Warranties
• Insurance Disputes
• Employment Disputes
• Home Owner Association Disputes
• Discovery Disputes
• Arbitration

Fees

1. PER DIEM FEES.

   1. Per Day  Judge Orfield charges $4,500 for all matters within San Diego County, and up to $6,000 per day in Southern California, depending on mediation venue. Full day matters generally start at 9:30 am.  The amount charged includes pre-mediation consultation, all travel time and expenses, 2 hours of reading time and eight hours of conference time. Additionally, there is an administrative fee of $175 per party per day ($300 minimum). Judge Orfield charges for EXTRA TIME as provided in Paragraph 2.
   2. Per Half-day   Judge Orfield charges $2,250 for all matters within San Diego County, and up to $3,000 per half-day in Sothern California, depending on mediation venue. Half-day matters generally start at 9:30 am or 1:30 pm. The amount charged includes pre-mediation consultation, all travel time and expenses, one hour of reading time and four hours of conference time. Additionally, there is an administrative fee of $175 per party per day ($300 minimum). Judge Orfield charges for EXTRA TIME (usually limited to one hour for half-day matters) as provided in Paragraph 2.

2. EXTRA TIME.
   Judge Orfield charges for extra preparation, conference and follow-up time at $425 per hour. After the mediation has concluded, PMA will send a supplemental invoice which is due and payable upon receipt. Extra charges will be discussed with the parties before they are incurred.

3. THIRD-PARTY FACILITIES COSTS.
   PMA has conference facilities which will comfortably accommodate mediations in San Diego, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas. At times, PMA may need to rent conference facilities at a cost to the mediation participants. 

4. FEE AND COST ALLOCATION.
   PER DIEM FEES (Paragraph 1), EXTRA TIME (Paragraph 2) and THIRD-PARTY FACILITIES COSTS (Paragraph 3) will be billed to and are due from the mediation participants in equal, pro rata shares unless they agree to a different allocation and notify PMA at the time of billing.

5. DEPOSITS.
   Each participant's share of the total amount due must be deposited 14 days before the mediation in order to guarantee the reservation. Otherwise, PMA may offer the date to other potential mediation participants. 

6. CANCELLATION AND POSTPONEMENT.
   If the mediation is canceled or postponed within 14 days of the scheduled date, the party requesting the cancellation or postponement is responsible for the entire deposit (not just the canceling party's share of the deposit), unless Judge Orfield's time can be rescheduled for another matter.

7. PAYMENT RESPONSIBILITY. The attorney and his or her client are jointly and severally liable to PMA (Taxpayer I.D. No, 88-0432563), for payment of fees and costs. The contract to retain Mr. Markus's services is entered into at 402 West Broadway, Suite 900, San Diego, California.

8. EFFECTIVE DATE. This schedule is effective for matters scheduled by December 31, 2012.