Debbie Blanton Was Guest Speaker at August Family Law Breakfast
by M. Debra Gold
Deborah “Debbie” Blanton, director of the DeKalb County Courts Multi-Door Courthouse Dispute Resolution Center (ADR Center), spoke at the Family Law Section’s monthly breakfast in August. Ms. Blanton is a familiar face around the county. She has served in various capacities in both the public and the private sector, including DeKalb Juvenile Court and the Ninth District Alternative Dispute Resolution Office, since the mid-1980s. In 2003, she returned to the DeKalb County ADR Center and has served as the director since January 2008.
Ms. Blanton received her first mediation training in 1984. She remarked that things have substantially changed since then, as there were not so many rules and regulations when mediation was first introduced. Ms. Blanton, however, has been a big part of the many changes, as she has a passion for ensuring that all litigants’ needs are met.
She explained that the ADR Center was originally set up as a “multi-door courthouse” to provide alternative methods of resolving cases. She pointed out that the many options available include mediation, case evaluations and non-arbitration. Historically, approximately 80 percent of all cases handled by the ADR Center were domestic relations cases. However, Ms. Blanton noted that as the ADR Center is growing, the percentage is changing because they are handling more landlord/tenant, foreclosure, and other types of cases.
Ms. Blanton is proud of the fact that the DeKalb County ADR Center is the only self-contained ADR program in Georgia. She explained that rather than being funded by DeKalb County, the program is entirely funded by a portion of the filing fees in every civil case filed. The method for funding this program is one of the reasons that the DeKalb County ADR Center is unique since most of the other county programs are supplemented by the county governments.
While most DeKalb County judges prefer that their cases go to mediation, she said, it is not generally a requirement. Instead, mediation is by choice of the parties and the “orders” for mediation are simply referrals to the ADR Center if the parties elect to mediate, she said. About one-half of the cases mediated through the ADR Center actually take place at the courthouse, usually following a calendar call. This is often done to avoid trial. However, Ms. Blanton recommends that the best possible scenario for domestic cases is to mediate at the ADR Center in advance of trial so that cases can be properly screened and special arrangements can be made when needed, such as in cases where there have been issues with family violence. She said that she would rather see the mediations at the courthouse be merely a matter of “clean up,” and resolution of any last-minute issues, rather than a mediation from start to finish. She noted that every mediator who does in-court mediation has specific family violence training.
Many domestic relations cases have a history of family violence, Ms. Blanton said. Although some programs limit ADR options in cases with such a history, the DeKalb County ADR Center does not do so. Instead, she said, these cases are “just a greater challenge.” The important step in the process, she explained, is proper screening of the case before scheduling the mediation. The ADR Center can make special arrangements for “shuttle mediation” or separate rooms, for special security and/or to have family members or friends serve as an “advocate” to ease the process for an abused party. She recognized that not all family violence cases are amenable to mediation because there are times when the level of fear and intimidation may not be overcome by special accommodations. In those cases, Ms. Blanton agreed that mediation may not be appropriate.
Ms. Blanton recognized that many attorneys want to ensure that their mediators have sufficient knowledge of the law, cultural differences, or other matters that may impact a case. She said that if both parties agree, the ADR Center will try to accommodate any special requests for a mediator. However, she said that in most cases involving a pro se litigant, she does not allow such special requests because she wants to make sure that she avoids the appearance of any bias by the ADR Center or the mediator. She noted that some mediators with the best settlement rates in her program are not attorneys, so she does not believe that it is always necessary that the mediator has special knowledge of legal concepts such as the Thomas v. Thomas calculations. It is Ms. Blanton’s position that it is not the mediator’s job to be the expert on the law, financial, or psychological matters. Instead, it is her hope that the parties and their attorneys come prepared with their own expertise and hire their own experts, if necessary. She noted, however, that the screening process is one of the most important steps to matching the right mediator with the case. Accordingly, she asked that we attorneys be the “first line” of the screening process by checking with the client and clearly communicating to the ADR Center when specific needs exist.
Many of the breakfast participants were surprised to learn that the ADR Center offers case evaluations. Ms. Blanton explained that case evaluations are only offered if the attorneys on both sides agree to participate. She encourages case evaluations and said that she has many DeKalb County practitioners on her list who are able to give opinions of the strengths and weaknesses of a party’s case, as well as how they think a jury would decide the case given the specific facts. She noted that “the best part” of case evaluations is that once the evaluator has given his or her opinion, the evaluator can easily move the case forward into mediation. It is Ms. Blanton’s opinion that case evaluations work best when the attorneys involved do not do a significant amount of domestic relations work.
Ms. Blanton believes that it is important for the ADR Center to have an “open door” policy. She invites members of the Bar to come to her office to discuss the program and any suggestions or complaints they may have. She points out that to best serve the public and the Bar, she has to know if there are any questions, problems, or concerns; and she assures everybody that she relies on their feedback. The ADR Center also offers training and programs with CLE credits, and she invites the Bar and court staff to participate.
