Thomas Oesterreich

Thomas Oesterreich has built his full-time mediation practice around an active, highly engaged approach that keeps parties talking and negotiations moving. Since dedicating his practice exclusively to neutral work in 2021, Tom has become known for bringing considerable energy to the room while maintaining control of the process, particularly when communication has broken down or the parties have become entrenched in competing views of the case.

Tom does not take a passive approach to mediation. He comes prepared to discuss the facts and law in detail, asks questions that get beneath stated positions, and works directly with parties and counsel to identify where movement may still be possible. His naturally outgoing style helps him establish rapport quickly, but he is equally comfortable having difficult conversations when a party needs a more realistic assessment of risk. He can be persistent without becoming adversarial, giving parties room to make decisions while keeping the negotiation focused and productive.

That approach has been shaped by experience in approximately 4,000 mediations and arbitrations as both an advocate and neutral, as well as more than three decades representing plaintiffs and defendants. Before becoming a full-time mediator, Tom spent 21 years as a partner at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith. His practice crossed personal injury, wrongful death, premises liability, product liability, transportation, professional negligence, business disputes, employment, trade secrets, and partnership dissolutions. He represented everyone from individuals and small businesses to executives and Fortune 100 companies, giving him a practical understanding of how differently parties can evaluate the same set of facts.

Tom also spent more than 20 years volunteering as a mediator and arbitrator for courts throughout Southern California before making dispute resolution his exclusive practice. He later served as a settlement officer for the Orange County Superior Court and completed Mediating the Litigated Case through the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution.

Across subject matters, Tom’s strength is his ability to create productive movement. He reads how people are responding, recognizes when communication needs to be reframed, and knows when a negotiation needs greater patience or a more direct push. He brings the same level of involvement to the process from beginning to end, working to bridge gaps in both position and understanding so parties can make informed decisions about resolution.