About Rick Mades
Mediation is all about listening and working with two sides to come up with a mutually acceptable resolution. Listening, framing and re-framing the issues, all while helping both sides to understand the perspective of everyone in a dispute, takes a skill set that is not necessarily developed in specific jobs or industries.
Rick Mades came into mediation with a different background than most people. He is the owner and director of Maine Arts Camp, a sleepaway camp that he started in 2004. In running a camp, his experience includes hiring and managing staff, relating to camper parents, handling business relationships with the schools or colleges that host the camp, and working with vendors. Hiring the right staff involves asking open-ended questions that reveal who an applicant truly is in terms of character, thought process, values and more. Working with camper parents takes listening skills that are necessary for resolving issues and alleviating concerns. These skills help in mediating disputes, either in pre-suit or pre-trial mediations.
Rick has extensive experience in county court, with over 400 cases mediated since 2014. Those cases have included landlord-tenant (residential and commercial) issues, HOA/Condo association cases, small claims that are often contractual issues and more. In terms of HOA cases, Rick has mediated issues involving homeowners as the plaintiff or defendant, issues between an HOA and contractors, and issues between an HOA and management companies.
Additionally, Rick was on his HOA board in Delray Beach for approximately 8 years, serving as president for some time, and therefore understands the perspective of being a board member. While on the board, Rick worked closely with the association’s attorneys and became familiar with much of the HOA in Florida (Chapter 720).
Through the DFS, Rick has mediated property insurance claims (homeowner’s), as well as automobile claims. Rick works with attorneys, public adjusters, insurance company representatives and of course, the policyholders.
Elder mediation is a newer field in Florida. Besides being certified as a circuit civil and county mediator, Rick has also done training in Elder mediation. There is no certification yet in this field. Having mediated so many cases over the years, Rick's skill set of listening to different perspectives translates well into working with families (siblings and parents), along with care managers. He can even work with families before they need to contact attorneys. After all, mediation is all about helping people work together. What is more important than the care of our parents?
In terms of education, Rick has an undergraduate degree in Economics from Tufts University (1983) and a Master’s degree in teaching mathematics (1990), also from Tufts University.
If you are looking for a mediator for HOA/Condo cases, landlord-tenant, insurance claims, elder mediation or any other issues that can be mediated pre-suit or pre-trial, give Rick a call. His rates are reasonable at $275/hour, with a minimum of two hours. Rick is comfortable mediating on the Zoom platform as well as in person.