Sasha Morgan (left), Self-Help Center manager, and Bonnie Primbsch, mediator, look forward to transferring some small-claims cases out of the courtroom and into mediation at the new Santa Cruz County Superior Court in Watsonville.

A tenant’s dispute with a landlord. Family members sparring over property. Neighbors quarreling over trespassing pets.

The list of disputes that can clog up the courts is nearly endless, and the Santa Cruz County Superior Court in the Civic Plaza wants to steer some of these cases into mediation.

Mediation services are now available in Watsonville to people without an attorney in small-claims cases under $7,500. Mediation, defined as “facilitated dialogue between individuals or groups facing conflict,” tries to achieve “respectful communication and cooperative problem solving,” according to the Conflict Resolution Center, the nonprofit organization providing new mediation services at the local court.

“People walk out of there, no one’s a loser, they have something that’s workable that’s going to last. I think that’s a big difference,” said Patti Bond, publicist for the center.

Mediation services were launched Friday at the court complex, located on the third floor of the Civic Plaza. They are available in English and Spanish.

Until now, mediation services have only been available at the Santa Cruz County Courthouse in Santa Cruz. Even there, the accommodations haven’t been ideal. Members seeking mediation in Santa Cruz meet in the courthouse law library, in view of the public and in a place where people are trying to do legal research.

“This feels very luxurious to us,” said mediator Bonnie Primbsch, peering at a row of private conference rooms set up for mediation at the Watsonville court complex.

“We would be drowning in small-claims cases without the Conflict Resolution Center,” said Commissioner Kim Baskett, who hears small-claims cases at the Watsonville and Santa Cruz courthouses. “CRC plays a very important role defusing conflicts and promoting harmony in our communities.”

Mediation services will be available on the Watsonville small-claims calendar that is scheduled three Friday afternoons per month.

Since 1994, CRC-trained volunteer mediators have mediated more than 2,500 cases, with a success rate of 85 percent, according to court officials.

“By the time people file for court, they have lost their ability to communicate with each other, and they are frustrated and angry,” said Sasha Morgan, Santa Cruz County Superior Court Self-Help Center manager. Morgan works at the Watsonville courthouse and oversees all services for people without an attorney, making sure they’re represented.

“Many people are simply looking for recognition of their feelings or an apology,” she said. “The mediators facilitate a dialogue whereby each party feels heard and gets their emotional needs met.”

Bond agreed, “You feel heard; you understand a lot better what the other side is all about.”

“Mediation has several advantages over going to court, which can be time consuming, disappointing and expensive if collections are involved,” said Nancy Heischman, CRC’s executive director. “Surveys have shown that most people are more satisfied with a mediated resolution and that is in large part because they develop a workable solution themselves.”

“People have very unrealistic expectations about what happens in small-claims court from watching TV,” said Commissioner Kim Baskett, who hears small-claims cases. “Litigants don’t realize that they have to leave their emotions outside the courtroom, and that they can’t argue or present opinions. They must give me just the facts.”

Another constraint of small-claims court is that the court cannot enforce payment if there is a collection involved, Baskett said.

“Mediation shows people that problems can be resolved best through communication,” she said. “I often refer litigants to the CRC after a ruling in traffic court to help them work out the resolution they need so they won’t have to return to court.”

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Community members interested in mediation may call the Self-Help Center at the Watsonville Courthouse at 786-7200 or the CRC at 475-6117, or e-mail info@crcsantacruz.org.

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*Photos by Tarmo Hannula*

(Published in 6/28/08 edition)

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