Brian James is an experienced Divorce and Family Mediator with offices throughout Chicagoland and Southeastern Wisconsin. He started his mediation practice, C.E.L. and Associates, in late 2005.

Brian earned his B.S. in Sociology from Northern Illinois University in 1994 and completed training in mediation and conflict resolution at Northwestern University.

The first 10 years of his professional career, Brian worked in the criminal justice system helping domestic violence and divorcing families resolve family conflicts. He assisted with the healing process that took place after these life-changing events had occurred. His approach to mediation is client driven. By aiding his clients with the resolution of their divorce issues outside of the courtroom, Mr. James creates a win/win situation for all parties in a divorce.

He is able to help people work through their problems, and at the same time, give them skills to use in future conflicts. With mediation, he helps people work through their conflicts while teaching them problem solving, empathy, self-determination and giving them the ability to make informed decisions for themselves. 

Memberships and Affiliations:

• Association for Conflict Resolution (National and Chicago Chapter)
• Wisconsin Association of Mediators
• Children's Rights Council of Illinois
• National Parents Leadership Counsel Network
• Frequent speaker at Chicago area Domestic Violence Shelters
• Featured regularly in many online articles and ezines

Brian is happily married to Cindy. They have two boys, Connor and Evan. Connor and Evan are the C. and E. in C.E.L. & Associates.

Testimonials:

"Brian provided expert mediation while maintaining neutral ground for a very difficult situation, divorce. His past experience provided him the ability to diffuse tense situations and manage a workable outcome. Brian also provided expert advice on how to maintain a strong sense of family even in a divorce and kept our children in mind at all times. He is a very detail oriented person which is critical in his field. I would strongly recommend the use of Brian as a divorce mediator prior to or in replace of an attorney." -Alan - 1/24/2010

"Brian has been able to work magic when getting divorcing couples to resolve difficult situations. He has the skills and experience necessary to achieve results, even for the most challenging scenarios." David Kerpel - Divorce Attorney - 2/1/2010

You can follow Brian James on LinkedIn

Here is an article on mediation.