About Basta Resolutions
Building on over 30 years’ experience as a case evaluator in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb Counties while a trial lawyer, I was able to train and work extensively in civil, domestic relations, and elder care and probate mediation both as a volunteer for community dispute resolution programs and as a private mediator.
Personal Approach
Getting to know you is how I begin any first interview to assess your needs and the problem that requires immediate attention & resolution.
Knowledge
Becoming informed and intimately acquainted with all the facts regarding your case helps me apply all my experience and Knowledge.
Work Ethic
My role is to help you obtain the
best possible outcome, a resolution that lasts and puts the conflict behind you.
Who We Are
My Personal Profile
I began my legal career as a federal judicial law clerk in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, working for the Honorable
Charles W. Joiner. Having learned from the inside how a busy trial court works,
I joined Dykema Gossett PLLC. It was there, where, for over 34 years, I tried jury and non-jury cases and litigated disputes for Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, and individuals alike. The work spanned automotive, aircraft and industrial product liability, toxic torts, personal injury, business disputes, environmental cleanups, and intellectual property matters. During my tenure at Dykema, I tried and litigated cases in many state and federal courts at every level, including the United States Supreme Court.
Over the last decade I’ve concentrated increasingly on mediating the kinds of
civil cases that I typically litigated. Building on over 30 years’ experience as a
case evaluator in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb Counties while a trial lawyer, I was able to train and work extensively in civil, domestic relations, and elder care and probate mediation both as a volunteer for community dispute resolution programs and as a private mediator. I have taught negotiation as an adjunct professor at the Michigan State University College of Law since 2011.
I call Ann Arbor, Michigan home; my wife, Robin, and I have been married for over 50 years and have three adult children and four grandchildren.
When not mediating or teaching, you can find me enjoying cycling, spinning, downhill skiing, golf, reading biographies, and playing with my grandchildren.
Education
Sacred Heart Major Seminary, M.A. Theology, 2008
Georgetown University Law Center, J.D. 1974
Boston College, A.B. 1969, summa cum laude
Training
Michigan Supreme Court Approved Mediation Training for General Civil Cases,
2003; Domestic Relations, 2009; and Adult Guardianship, 2008
Michigan Department of Education Approved Mediation Training for
Special Education, 2010
Peacemaking Court Training Program, Washtenaw County Circuit Court, 2014
Michigan Supreme Court Approved Advanced Trainings in Alternative Dispute Resolution, 2004 – 2021
Professional Resolution Experts of Michigan, Mediation/Arbitration, 2012
Advanced Negotiation and Dispute Resolution Institute, 2003-2014
Basic Arbitration, 2015
Experience
Coach, ICLE 40 Hour Hands on Training, 2013-2019
Arbitrator, Ford DPS6 Powershift Transmission Litigation
Judge, ABA Regional Arbitration Competition, 2015, 2017
Former Chair, Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of the
State Bar of Michigan, 2015-2016
Former Co-chair, Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, Washtenaw
County Bar Association
Panel Member, Attorney Discipline Board, State Bar of Michigan
President/Owner, Basta Resolutions, PLLC, 2011 – present
Adjunct Professor, Michigan State University College of Law, 2011-present
Adjunct Instructor, Sacred Heart Major Seminary, 2011 – 2015
President, Dispute Resolution Center of Washtenaw and Livingston Counties, 2011 -13
Volunteer Mediator, The Dispute Resolution Center, 2008 – present
Volunteer Mediator, Wayne Mediation Center, 2004 – present
Case Evaluator, Wayne, Macomb and Washtenaw Counties, 1980 – present
Member, Dykema Gossett PLLC, 1976 – 2010
Law Clerk to Hon. Charles W. Joiner, United States District Court,
Eastern District of Michigan, 1974-76
Georgetown Law Journal, 1972 – 73; Editorial Board, 1973 – 74
Professional Associations
Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, State Bar of Michigan
Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, Washtenaw County Bar Association
Member, Professional Resolution Experts of Michigan, Inc.
Life Member, Sixth Circuit Judicial Conference
Association for Conflict Resolution
American Bar Association
State Bar of Michigan
Washtenaw County Bar Association
Admitted to Practice: U.S. Supreme Court; U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal for the Federal, Sixth, and Seventh Circuits; U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Michigan; the Eastern District of Wisconsin; State of Michigan
Publications and Presentations
“Football. Fairness–Lessons For ADR”, Detroit Legal News, October, 2020
“Talk Less, Listen More,” Ingham County Legal News, October, 2019
“Who’s Sorry Now,” Washtenaw County Legal News, July 2018
“Food for Thought…And For Negotiation,” Oakland County Legal News, July 2017
“The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: How We Create our Own Conflicts and How
We Might Stop Doing So,” Oakland County Legal News, August, 2015
“Volunteer vs. Private Mediator: Can’t We Just Get Along?”
Oakland County Legal News, vol. 87, No. 193, 2014
“The Right Mediator Can Be Vital To Your Success,” Michigan Lawyer’s Weekly,
vol. 24, Nov. 13, 2010
“Mediating Outside the Box,” Presentation with Brian Pappas to ADR Section of Washtenaw County and to DRC Volunteer Mediators, Spring 2011
“When Case Evaluation Just Gets in the Way,” PREMi Newsletter, January 2009
Presenter On Mediation Ethics, Dispute Resolution Center, 40-hour Civil Training,
2013, 2014
Speaker, Faith in Dispute Resolution Roundtable, MSU Law School, 2011
Speaker, Michigan Defense Trial Lawyers Association, Emerging Issues In Commercial Litigation, 2009
Speaker, Washtenaw County Dispute Resolution Center, Drafting Mediation
Agreements, 2015
Coach, 40-hour Hand’s On Mediation Training, ICLE, 2005, 2013, 2014-2017
Coach, Effective Legal Writing, ICLE, 2007
Awards
• Best Lawyers in America, Environmental Law, 2010-11
• Outstanding Service Award, The Dispute Resolution Center, 2011
• Volunteer Mediator of the Year, Wayne Mediation Center, 2010
• John W. Cummiskey Pro Bono Award, State Bar of Michigan, 2009
(nominated for death penalty representation and mediation)
Years as a Mediator and Trial Lawyer
Mediating Conflicts
Teaching Negotiation
My Story
My passion for peacemaking began in college and shortly afterward when I worked in and directed a program for boys in trouble with the police on the east side of Detroit. Active in the peace movement during the Vietnam War, I maintained a commitment to pro bono work when I began practicing law, representing clients incarcerated at Jackson State Prison. Later in my legal career, I began working with the American Bar Association’s Death Penalty Representation Project, representing inmates on death row.
Taking training in mediation was a natural outgrowth of these commitments to peacemaking, especially as I became more keenly aware of the limitations of litigation to bring finality, satisfaction, and peace of mind to the clients I represented even when they “won.” Mediating a wide variety of conflicts today enables me to help parties achieve results for themselves and their families that simply would not be possible fighting it out in court.
Working with Joe Basta
BROAD TRIAL AND LITIGATION EXPERIENCE
Beginning as federal judicial law clerk in 1974, and after that for over 34 years with a large, Detroit-based firm, I have tried and litigated hundreds of state and federal lawsuits before judges and juries in the trial and appellate courts of Michigan…
EXTENSIVE MEDIATION TRAINING
I took my first 40-hour mediation training for general civil disputes over two decades ago. Since then my training has included mediation in domestic relations, adult guardianship, special education, and Native American peacemaking.
UNIQUE MEDIATION EXPERIENCE
In addition to my private mediation practice I am a volunteer mediator for Community Dispute Resolution Program Centers in Washtenaw and Wayne Counties, winning awards for outstanding mediation work. As president of the board of the Dispute Resolution Center…
Endorsements
“The parties appreciated and responded to your down-to-earth style.”
“Several months and many dollars after an “unsuccessful” mediation with you, the parties settled at the figure you had advocated. Too bad we did not all take to heart the realities of the case you cautioned us about.”
Get Started
Don’t Let the Complexities of Your Dispute Burden You Any Longer…
Let Me Help You Find Resolution…
With the help of a trained third-party neutral. Most people prefer to solve their own problems, rather than have someone impose a solution upon them. And mediation is well-suited for even the most intractable and emotionally-charged conflicts.