Credentials at a glance
- Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator (2006)
- Florida Supreme Court Certified Civil Mediator (2009)
- Florida Supreme Court Certified Appellate Mediator (2010)
- Diplomate, Florida Academy of Professional Mediators (FAPM)
- Licensed Clinical Therapist, Florida (since 2004; more than 30 years of clinical therapy practice in total)
- Founder, ADR Mediation Center (2006)
- More than 2,500 Florida mediations
The American Bar Association’s Family Advocate magazine titled its Fall 2023 feature “Mediation as the Default Approach for Family Dispute Resolution.” Charles’s practice is built around that conviction.
How does Charles approach mediation?
Divorce is a legal process layered on top of an emotional one. Most mediators are trained for the first part. Charles is trained for both.
His clinical therapy practice, which he has run for more than three decades, gives him a working understanding of how people in conflict actually communicate, where the conversation tends to break down, and what to do when one spouse goes quiet or the other goes hot. That training shows up in mediation: he keeps the conversation on what needs to be decided, surfaces the trade-offs without pressing for an outcome, and protects both spouses from the kind of escalation that runs most divorces into court.
Charles’s job as the mediator is not to decide for you. Mediation is built on self-determination, which is one of the foundational principles of the ABA / AFCC Model Standards of Practice for Family and Divorce Mediation. You and your spouse make the calls; Charles makes sure each call gets made with full information and without one party steamrolling the other.
The process itself is unhurried but efficient. Most couples reach a court-ready agreement in a single 2-4 hour session. Some need a second session. A few need more. The pacing is driven by the case, not by a billing clock.
Charles also writes the Agreement following the end of the session. That matters. Many mediations end with a memorandum of understanding that a separate attorney later turns into a Marital Settlement Agreement, which introduces delay, cost, and the possibility that the rewritten language no longer reflects what both spouses actually agreed to. Charles drafts the court-ready agreement and the Parenting Plan directly, in language aligned with Florida statutes § 61.075 (equitable distribution) and § 61.13 (parenting plans). Both spouses see the language before they sign.
When mediation is not the right path, Charles will say so. Florida law (§ 44.102) excludes cases with a documented history of domestic violence from court-ordered mediation, and research has shown that mediators sometimes fail to detect intimate-partner violence at intake (Beck, Walsh & Weston, 2005). Charles screens carefully in every consultation and refers out when mediation would put either spouse at risk.
Confidentiality is built into the process. Florida’s Mediation Confidentiality and Privilege Act (§§ 44.401–44.406) makes mediation communications privileged. What is said in mediation cannot be used against either spouse in a later court proceeding. That protection lets people speak honestly about what they need, which is one of the reasons mediation works at all.
Certifications and professional memberships
Florida Supreme Court Certified Mediator (Family, Civil, Appellate)
The Florida Supreme Court certifies mediators in five categories through the Dispute Resolution Center. Charles holds three of the five:
- Family (since 2006). divorce, parenting plans, time-sharing, child support, equitable distribution, post-judgment modifications.
- Civil (since 2009). disputes filed in Florida circuit court, including contract disputes, partnership dissolution, and other civil matters.
- Appellate (since ~2010). disputes referred from a Florida District Court of Appeal.
Family-certified mediators in Florida must complete 16 hours of continuing mediator education every two years, including 4 ethics hours, 4 domestic-violence hours, and 1 diversity / cultural-awareness hour. Charles has maintained good standing in all three categories continuously since certification.
→ Search the official Florida Courts mediator directory
Diplomate, Florida Academy of Professional Mediators (FAPM)
FAPM is the statewide professional association for Florida mediators. Diplomate is FAPM’s top credential, awarded to mediators with substantial practice experience and ongoing continuing-education compliance. Charles has held Diplomate status since 2018.
→ Search the Florida Academy of Professional Mediators directory
Licensed clinical therapist (Florida)
Charles has practiced as a clinical therapist for more than 30 years, with Florida licensure since 2004. The clinical training is part of what shapes his mediation practice. Recent research in the Journal of Mental Health found that recently divorced individuals show substantially elevated rates of anxiety and depression, and that process factors during divorce explain a meaningful share of those symptoms (Sander et al., 2020). How a divorce is conducted affects mental health outcomes. Charles’s training accounts for that.
Professional directories
Education and training
Charles has been a licensed clinical therapist for more than 30 years. His Florida therapist license was issued in 2004. He completed Florida Supreme Court mediator training and certification in Family Mediation in 2006, Civil Mediation in 2009, and Appellate Mediation around 2010. He maintains all three certifications in good standing through continuing-education requirements set by the Florida Supreme Court.
Family-certified Florida mediators must complete 16 hours of continuing mediator education every two years, including 4 ethics hours, 4 domestic-violence hours, and 1 diversity / cultural-awareness hour. The continuing-education framework is set by the Florida Supreme Court and supported by the Florida Academy of Professional Mediators. Charles has maintained that compliance continuously since his original family-mediator certification in 2006.
Office and service area
Most clients meet with Charles by Zoom from home, from work, or from anywhere with a stable internet connection. Florida’s Supreme Court supports virtual mediation under current state guidelines, and Charles serves couples in all 67 Florida counties. In-person sessions are available at the Lee Road office in Orlando for couples who prefer that format. The office is in the Lee Road professional corridor, with parking and easy access from I-4.
ADR Mediation Center 933 Lee Road, Suite 406 Orlando, FL 32810
- Phone: (407) 834-5800
- Email: info@adrmediationcenter.com
- Hours: Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM–5:00 PM Eastern
Ready to talk? Request a free 30-minute consultation with Charles. The consultation is by phone or Zoom and takes about 30 minutes. Charles will answer your questions, walk through how mediation would apply to your situation, and let you know honestly if mediation is the right path. No cost, no obligation.