Douglas J. Witten

Mediator/Arbitrator

Doug Witten
Phone

Main:

678-222-0248


Fax:

404-252-3376


Direct:

678-427-9030

Email

[email protected]

Fees

  • View Fees

    Administrative Fee
    $200.00 per party/per day

    Workers’ Compensation Cases
    2 Party Case: $250.00 Per Party Per Hour
    3 Party Case: $225.00 Per Party Per Hour
    4 Party Case: $200.00 Per Party Per Hour

    Non-Workers’ Compensation Cases
    2 Party Case: $300.00 Per Party Per Hour
    3 Party Case: $275.00 Per Party Per Hour
    4 Party Case: $250.00 Per Party Per Hour

    Fees are the same for any additional time spent on document review, research, written findings of fact/law and other outside time, if any, necessary to prepare or make an informed award or evaluation.

    MINIMUM TIME:
    A 3-Hour Minimum will be charged all Cases.

    TRAVEL TIME:
    For travel time charges for mediations & arbitrations held at locations other than at BAY’s offices in Atlanta, please contact BAY.
    Available to travel throughout Georgia and Florida.

    ALL CHARGES WILL BE SHARED EQUALLY AMONG ALL PARTIES, UNLESS OTHERWISE AGREED IN WRITING. RATES MAY BE ADJUSTED FOR SPECIAL SITUATIONS. THE FEE IS TO BE AGREED UPON IN ADVANCE.

    OUR CONTRACT FOR SERVICES IS WITH THE ATTORNEY(S). WE EXTEND CREDIT, WITH NO ADVANCE DEPOSIT REQUIREMENT, BASED ON THE ATTORNEY’S CREDIT. THE ATTORNEY, IN TURN, COLLECTS FROM HIS/HER CLIENT. THEREFORE, WE EXPECT PAYMENT FROM THE ATTORNEY(S) REGARDLESS OF CLIENT ACTIVITY. ALL FEES MUST BE PAID IN FULL ON EVERY ARBITRATION PRIOR TO THE AWARD BEING PUBLISHED.

    *** A FINANCE CHARGE OF 1.50% PER MONTH (18% PER YEAR) WILL BE CHARGED ON BALANCES DUE OVER 45 DAYS.

Schedule

  • Schedule with Doug

    To reserve an appointment online, please click your preferred available date.
    Our staff will contact you on receipt of your Appointment Request form.

    Please note that a requested date is not fully booked until confirmed by our scheduling coordinator, Sam Kinghorn.

Schedule

Connect with Doug

Doug Witten is available to mediate online and to travel for mediations. Please call 678-222-0248 for travel rates and more information.

Doug Witten is a highly experienced attorney and ADR professional. Since 2003, Doug has been a registered neutral with the Georgia Commission on Dispute Resolution and has mediated over 1,200 cases. He has over 25 years of legal expertise, including nearly 13 years working in increasingly senior roles for the State of Georgia’s workers’ compensation agency with a focus on ADR and administrative law. He has served as primary legal liaison to various departments and governing bodies regarding tactical direction for a wide range of legal matters affecting the state’s rights and responsibilities as well as complex policies and procedures. Doug is extremely effective at building consensus and fostering compromise among competing interests to influence favorable outcomes on diverse legal issues.

Doug has also cultivated an extensive background in health law, featuring early roles in healthcare practice groups at prominent law firms and current affiliations and training with national organizations such as the American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA) and American Bar Association (Healthcare Committee, Dispute Resolution Section; Task Force on ADR and Conflict Management in Healthcare, Health Law Section).

As a trained and experienced mediator and arbitrator, Doug specializes in serving as a neutral in the areas of Business & Commercial matters, Healthcare/Health Law issues, and Workers’ Compensation cases. Fluent in English and Spanish, Doug has published numerous works and spoken extensively on ADR and healthcare topics.

Areas of Expertise

  • Insurance + Coverage
  • Injuries + Accidents
  • Workers' Compensation
  • Business + Commercial
  • Healthcare

Locations

  • Atlanta
  • Macon

Languages Spoken

  • English
  • Spanish

Credentials

ADR Training
  • AAA Presenting an Efficient Case for In-Person or Virtual Hearings for Healthcare Arbitrations (2021)
  • AAA Healthcare Webinar Series: The Healthcare Arbitration Preliminary Hearing (2021)
  • FINRA Dispute Resolution: Basic Arbitrator Training Program (2021)
  • Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) and You (2020)
  • Ethical Considerations for Use of Online Tools for Dispute Neutrals in the COVID-19 Era (2020)
  • Learn to Mediate Online (2020)
  • Mediating Online Disputes, Silicon Valley Summer Institute (2019)
  • AAA Healthcare Dispute Resolution Innovation and Strategy Conference (2018)
  • Business Mediation Basics 101 (ABA Webinar – 2018)
  • Divorce Mediation Training for Professionals, Justice Center of Atlanta (2017)
  • Domestic Relations Mediation Practicum, Henning Mediation & Arbitration Service (2017)
  • The Future of Binding Arbitration in Long-Term Care (ABA Webinar – 2017)
  • Considerations for Arbitrating Payer/Provider Disputes (AHLA Webinar – 2017)
  • Health Care Arbitration (American Health Lawyers Association – 2016)
  • Health Law Neutrals (2016)
  • Hot Topics in Managed Care Litigation (2016)
  • Arbitration Agreements with Nursing Home Residents (2016)
  • Registered Neutral with the Georgia Commission on Dispute Resolution
  • Arbitration Training, Henning Mediation & Arbitration Service (2016)
  • Utilizing Mediation to Navigate the Perils of Electronic Discovery in Arbitration (2016)
  • The Role of the Organizational Ombuds in the Healthcare Setting (2015)
  • ABA Advanced Mediation and Advocacy Skills Institute (2015)
  • Representing Clients in Mediation: A Master Class in Mediation Advocacy (2015)
  • AHLA Annual Practice Group Leadership Training (2015)
  • Transforming Peer Review through Mediation (2015)
  • Mediating Disputes in Accountable Care and Value-Based Health Care Settings (2013)
  • AHLA: Advanced Mediation Training (2011)
  • Advanced Mediation: Beyond Process to Skills (2011)
  • Civil Mediation Training, Resolution Resources Corporation (2003)
Education
  • University of Houston Law Center: Houston, TX, LL.M. in Health Law & Policy (1997)
  • New York University School of Law: New York, NY, J.D. (1996)
  • Emory University of Goizueta Business School: Atlanta, GA (B.B.A, with Highest Distinction (1993)
  • University of New South Wales: Sydney, Australia: Study Abroad (Summer/Fall, 1991)
Bar Admissions
  • Georgia
  • Florida
Employment
  • Innovative ADR International, LLC, Atlanta Georgia (Founder, 2015 – present)
  • State of Georgia (SBWC), Atlanta, Georgia (Division Director/Attorney General Liaison – Appellate Division, 2013-2016; Deputy Director/Attorney General Liaison – Appellate Division, 2007-2013; Deputy Director/Chief Mediator/Attorney General Liaison – Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Division, 2003-2005; Attorney Mediator – ADR Division, 2003-2005)
  • King & Spalding, LLP, Atlanta, Georgia (Associate, 2000-2002)
  • Long, Aldridge & Norman LLP (n/k/a Dentons), Atlanta, Georgia (Associate, 1997-2000)
Professional Affiliations
  • University of Georgia School of Law
    • Mediation Coach
  • University of Florida Levin College of Law
    • Coach, Mediation Advocacy
  • National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (2021-present)
  • Contributing Writer, Nolo
  • John Marshall Law School
    • Mediation Coach, Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Volunteer, Georgia Latino Law Foundation
  • State Bar of Georgia (Dispute Resolution, Health Law, Workers’ Compensation Law Section)
    • Planning Committee Member, Georgia ADR Institute & Neutrals’ Conference (2020-present)
  • The Florida Bar (Alternative Dispute Resolution Section)
  • American Bar Association (ABA)
      • Member, Dispute Resolution Section (Committees: Healthcare; International; Mediation; Technology in ADR)
      • Mediation Committee – Subcommittee Co-Chair, Special Projects
      • Welcome Committee, Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference, Minneapolis, MN (April 10-13, 2019)
      • Mediation Committee — Subcommittee Co-Chair, Just Resolutions publication
  • Member, Health Law Section (Task Force on ADR and Conflict Management in Health Care)
  • Member, ABA Advisory Panel (2011-2014)
  • Member, Business Law Section (Dispute Resolution Committee)
  • American Health Lawyers Association
    • Past Chair and Vice Chair, ADR Affinity Group
    • Panel Neutral, AHLA Dispute Resolution Service
  • Atlanta Bar Association
    • Chair, Dispute Resolution Section
    • Member, Litigation Section
    • Member, Workers’ Compensation Section
  • Foro Internacional de Mediadores Profesionales (FIMEP)
    • Ambassador to U.S./Embajador a EE.UU. (U.S. Ambassador)
  • ODR Latinoamerica
  • Georgia Hispanic Bar Association
  • Hispanic National Bar Association
  • Georgia Committee on Dispute Resolution (Registered Neutral)
    • General Civil Mediation
    • Domestic Mediation
    • Arbitration
  • Gwinnett County Courts
    • Approved ADR Provider
  • Georgia State University School of Law
    • Mediation Coach, Civil Mediation Training
Publications
  • Course Creator/Instructor, Don’t Let Them Rattle You!: The “Fundamental 5” Stoic Keys to Better Everyday Negotiating, launched May 2022 (available on demand at https://thestoicnegotiatoracademy.thinkific.com/).
  • Georgia’s Surprise Billing Consumer Protection Act: Spotlighting Dispute Resolution Provisions, Atlanta Bar Association Dispute Resolution Newsletter, Winter 2022.
  • No More Surprises: An Overview of Georgia’s Latest Effort to Resolve Balance Billing Disputes, Georgia Health Law Developments, Winter 2021.
  • Online Dispute Resolution as Healthcare Litigation Tool: Mediation Tips, Lessons Learned, and Looking Ahead, ABA Health eSource Magazine (August 2021).
  • American Bar Association Dispute Resolution Section Just Resolutions Newsletter, March 2021 (co-editor).
  • Author/Creator/Podcaster, The Stoic Negotiator™ Substack newsletter and community hub, launched November 2020 (available at stoicnegotiator.substack.com).
  • Douglas J. Witten, Mediation Essentials Toolkit: A Practitioner’s Emergency Survival Guide (2021)
  • Video Mediation During the Coronavirus Pandemic: How Online Dispute Resolution Works, Nolo, June 2020 (available at https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/video-mediation-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-how-online-dispute-resolution-works.html).
  • Mediation in the Service of Others, Revista ADR Magazine, Foro Internacional de Mediadores Profesionales, Número Especial, April 10, 2020.
  • American Bar Association Dispute Resolution Section Just Resolutions Newsletter, March 2020 (co-editor).
  • American Bar Association Dispute Resolution Section Just Resolutions Newsletter, January 2020 (co-editor).
  • Co-editor, ABA Just Resolutions (March 2019)
  • If you will, I will: Bracketology for Mediators, American Bar Association (ABA) Dispute Resolution Magazine, Vol. 24, No. 3 (Spring 2018).
  • Georgia Proposals Would Provide Mechanisms for Resolution of “Surprise” Medical Bill Disputes, AHLA Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Affinity Group, PG Bulletin (February 2018).
  • Texas Bill Would Expand Balance Billing Mediation, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (March 2017).
  • Nursing Home Association Sues United States Over Final Rule Restricting Arbitration, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (October 2016).
  • Rhode Island Superior Court Denies Nursing Home Motion to Dismiss or Stay Proceedings and Compel Arbitration, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (September 2016).
  • European Commission Launches New ODR Platform, American Bar Association, Section of Dispute Resolution, Just Resolutions eNewsletter (September 2016).
  • SCOTUS Denies Review of Eleventh Circuit Decision Refusing to Compel Arbitration in Nursing Home Dispute, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (May 2016).
  • NLRB Judge Orders Cedars-Sinai to Rescind or Revise Mandatory Arbitration Agreements, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation, Hospitals and Health Systems, Labor and Employment, and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (March 2016).
  • Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Refuses to Compel Arbitration of Wrongful-Death Claim Against Nursing Facility, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation and Post-Acute and Long-Term Services Practice Groups Email Alert (February 2016).
  • U.S. Supreme Court Removes from Argument Calendar Health Care Case Questioning FAA Preemption of California Arbitration Rule, AHLA ADR Affinity Group, Health Care Liability and Litigation, Post-Acute and Long-Term Services, and Labor and Employment Practice Groups Email Alert (January 2016).
  • Pennsylvania Supreme Court Finds Nursing Home Arbitration Agreement Unenforceable Because of Void Integral Term, AHLA ADR Affinity Group (and additional relevant groups) Email Alert (November 2015).
  • Minnesota Department of Human Services Reinstates County Health Plan Options Following Expedited Mediation Process, AHLA ADR Affinity Group (and additional relevant groups) Email Alert (October 2015).
  • Appeal of a Workers’ Compensation Case All the Way to the Supreme Court, Workers’ Compensation Law Institute, October 22-24, 2015, St. Simons Island, GA (contributing co-author).
  • Mississippi Supreme Court Finds Deceased Resident Not Bound by Nursing Home Arbitration Provision, AHLA ADR Affinity Group (and additional relevant groups) Email Alert (August 2015).
  • CMS Proposed LTC Conditions of Participation Address Binding Arbitration Agreements, AHLA ADR Affinity Group (and additional relevant groups) Email Alert (July 2015).
  • Eleventh Circuit: Florida Physician Self-Referral Statute Survives Constitutional Challenge, AHLA Liability and Litigation Practice Group Health Briefs e-Newsletter (February 2013).
  • American Health Lawyers Association Physician Organizations Monthly e-Newsletter, April 2012 (co-editor).
  • Case Law Update, SBWC Annual Conference, March 2012 (contributing author and editor).
  • Judge Approves Distribution of Settlement Awards in AMA Suit Against UnitedHealth Group, AHLA Physician Organizations Monthly e-Newsletter, March 2012 (author and editor).
  • Georgia Supreme Court Strikes Down State Assisted-Suicide Statute, AHLA Liability and Litigation Health e-Briefs Newsletter, February 2012 (author and editor).
  • White House Report: States Progressing Toward Establishing Health Insurance Exchanges, Georgia Health Law Developments, Winter 2012.
  • European Mediation Directive Compliance Date Arrives, DR Currents: A Publication of the Dispute Resolution Section of the State Bar of Georgia, Fall 2011.
  • Revised Form CMS-855I Directly Questions as to Acceptance of Medicare Patients, AHLA Physician Organizations Practice Group e-Alert, August 1, 2011 (author and editor).
  • American Health Lawyers Association Physician Organizations Practice Group e-Newsletter, July 2011 (co-editor).
  • Cyber-Mediators in ADR Future? (If IBM’s Watson can be developed into a virtual physician, it should be able to be a mediator, too), Fulton County Daily Report (May 24, 2011).
  • CMS to Change Physician Signature Requirement for Clinical Diagnostic Lab Requisitions, AHLA Physician Organizations Practice Group e-Newsletter, May 2011 (author and editor).
  • California Court Dismisses Suit Seeking to Bar Blue Shield Physician Rating Program, AHLA Physician Organizations Practice Group e-Newsletter, May 2011 (author and editor).
  • American Health Lawyers Association Physician Organizations Practice Group e-Newsletter, August 2010 (co-editor and contributing author).
  • Enforcement of “Red Flags” Rule Wrought with Further Delay and Uncertainty in the Face of Litigation and Legislative Initiatives, AHLA Healthcare Liability and Litigation Practice Group Health Briefs e-Newsletter (June 2010).
  • Case Law Update, SBWC Annual Conference, March 2010 (contributing author and editor).
  • Motion Practice, Workers’ Compensation Law Institute, October 4-6, 2007, St. Simons Island, GA (contributing author).
  • Negotiating with a Roadmap: The Importance of Understanding How the Other Side Thinks, Georgia Bar Journal, Vol. 13, No. 1 (August 2007).
  • Answers to Your Burning HIPAA Questions: The Privacy Act and How It Affects Workers’ Compensation, Workers’ Compensation Law Institute, October 2-4, 2003, St. Simons Island, GA.
  • American Health Lawyers Association Year in Review, HMOs and Health Plans SISLC (2002) (contributing author).
  • American Health Lawyers Association Year in Review, HMOs and Health Plans SISLC (2001) (contributing author).
  • Georgia’s New Year 2000 Readiness Disclosure Requirements Call for Immediate Action by Healthcare Providers, Georgia Association of Community Care Providers (2000) (co-author).
  • Corporate Compliance Programs: Physician Insurance for Turbulent Times, Physician’s Practice Digest, Nov./Dec. 1997, at A-7 (co-author).
  • Regulation of ‘Downstream’ and Direct Risk Contracting by Health Care Providers: The Quest for Consumer Protection and a Level Playing Field, 23 Am. J.L. & Med. 449 (1997).
Presentations
  • Panelist, “Overcoming Language Barriers at Mediation,” Atlanta Bar Association Dispute Resolution Section CLE Breakfast, February 5, 2020, Atlanta, GA.
  • Guest, “How to Use Negotiation Jiu Jitsu to Resolve Conflicts & Persuade with Doug Witten Esq.,” Negotiate Anything, May 13, 2019 (podcast interview available at https://www.buzzsprout.com/58026/1132259
  • Panelist, “The One Thing I Know Now That I Wish I Knew as a 1L,” Emory University School of Law, April 9, 2019, Atlanta, GA.
  • Panelist, “Alternative Dispute Resolution,” Emory University School of Law, April 23, 2018, Atlanta, GA.
  • Moderator, “Mediation in Peer Review: A Pearl Hiding in Plain Sight,” AHLA Educational Call, February 14, 2017.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “Nontraditional Uses of Mediation in Healthcare,” American Bar Association 18th Annual Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference, April 7-9, 2016, New York, NY.
  • Moderator, “Live Appellate Division Arguments,” SBWC Annual Educational Conference, September 1, 2015 & August 26, 2014, Atlanta, GA.
  • Webinar Presenter, “Operation and Structure of the Georgia SBWC’s Appellate Division,” Risk Management Inc., July 19, 2011.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “Recent Decisions of the Appellate Division,” Workers’ Compensation Law Institute, October 15-17, 2009, St. Simons Island, GA.
  • Introductory Speaker, “ADR in the Workers’ Compensation Arena,” January 29, 2009, Atlanta, GA.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “Ancillary Issues in Mediation,” ADR in the Workers’ Compensation Arena, January 31, 2008, Atlanta, GA (invited).
  • Program Co-Chair, “Mediation in the Workers’ Compensation Arena,” February 7, 2007, Atlanta, GA.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “Current Ethical Issues in Mediation,” Mediation in the Workers’ Compensation Arena, February 20, 2004, Atlanta, GA.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “HIPAA Security Standards: Transforming the Healthcare Landscape,” at the HIPAA Roundtable, May 2-3, 2001, Atlanta, GA.
  • Co-Presenter, “New Federal Healthcare Information Use and Confidentiality Requirements: 23 Months and Counting,” Southeastern Health Law and Policy Forum, March 30, 2001, Atlanta, GA.
  • Guest Lecturer, “Practicing Health Law,” Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, November 29, 2000, Atlanta, GA.
  • Co-Presenter and Panelist, “HIPAA Security Standards: Transforming the Healthcare Landscape,” at the HIPAA Roundtable, November 15-16, 2000, Atlanta, GA.
  • Presenter, “HIPAA Security Standards,” at the GHA: An Association of Hospitals and Health Systems HIPAA Executive Briefing, November 1, 2000, College Park, GA.