Deborah Clapshaw

Deborah is an Auckland barrister with 40 years’ experience in dispute resolution. She spent the last 28 years practising as a mediator and facilitator. She is recognized by Who’s Who as one of the world’s leading mediators and was named in NBR and Law fuel as in the top 10commercial and family mediators in New Zealand in 2014, 2016 and 2019.

Her mediation/facilitation work is a diverse mix of commercial, property, construction, insurance, franchise, local government, family (wills, trusts and estates and relationship property), sports and employment (as contractor to MBIE) disputes. She has conducted mediations and a review relating to high performance sport in 2019 and 2020. She is also a restorative justice facilitator specializing in resource management prosecutions.

Until 1994, Deborah worked as a commercial litigation and resource management lawyer in both New Zealand and Hong Kong, after which she went to the Bar as a private commercial mediator, taught Mediation and Dispute Resolution at Auckland University Law School for 10years and sat as a member of the Human Rights Review Tribunal from 2003 until 2010 and as Chair of the State Housing Appeal Authority from 2012 to 2017. She is a member of the Auckland Council Code of Conduct Review Panel.

She is on the panel of a number of mediation panels including the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service, the Domain Names Commission and the GCCRS (Christchurch earthquake facilitations) panel. She was an Invited Fellow of the International Academy of Mediators, a Fellow, Disciplinary Tribunal and Mediation Panel member of AMINZ, an assessor for FDR providers for AMINZ and an Advanced Panel and previous Board member of the Resolution Institute.

For further details please visit her web site https://www.deborahclapshaw.co.nz.

To enquire about Deborah assisting with a sport or recreation complaint or dispute please call 0800 493 612 with no obligation to proceed.