Judges David I. Brown (Ret.) and Ben Davidian (Ret.) both served for years as judges on the Sacramento Superior Court. They now serve as private mediators. They will discuss practical ways to resolve disputes either informally, or during mediations and mandatory settlement conferences. In particular, they will offer practical advice for parties to resolve their disputes without unnecessary expense. They will also discuss the “Do’s and Don’t’s” for both Plaintiffs and Defendants in mediations and settlement conferences. Both judges’ bios are below.  

Hon. David I. Brown (Ret.) is a full-time mediator and arbitrator with JAMS, bringing over 46 years’ experience in the legal profession. In 2008, Judge Brown was appointed to the Sacramento County Superior Court. Starting in 2010, Judge Brown served in the Law and Motion Department and worked to eliminate the court’s backlog. From 2010 to 2021, he also served in the Civil Settlement Department, settling numerous personal injury claims, business and employment disputes, lemon law cases and professional negligence claims, among others. Drawing from his extensive civil litigation experience as a lawyer, Judge Brown brings a balance of legal thinking and commonsense reasoning to each case. His extensive background in mediation and settlement conferences allows him to evaluate both factual and legal claims, and to help the parties reach reasoned resolution. Judge Brown is known as a fair, detailed and reasoned neutral, respected by both plaintiffs and defendants. He was named Judge of the Year by the Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association in 2012 and Judge of the Year by the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the American Board or Trial Advocates in 2013. Those who have appeared before him have witnessed his fairness and settlement skills. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Brown was a co-founder of the Law Offices of Bailey & Brown, where he had an extensive civil litigation practice, handling matters in the following areas: insurance litigation, personal injury, uninsured and underinsured motorist arbitration, professional errors and omissions, insurance coverage litigation, construction defect claims/litigation, employment litigation, administrative proceedings, elder abuse litigation and others. In addition to his civil litigation practice, Judge Brown provided private mediation and arbitration services to the legal community, helping to resolve over 300 cases. Judge Brown has lectured extensively to various bar associations, at judges’ seminars and training sessions, and for other legal and law-related organizations, including the Sacramento Paralegal Association. He has lectured on many occasions for the Sacramento County Bar on law and motion matters, including e-discovery, name and gender changes practice, and attorneys’ fees and costs issues, as well as creditor/debtor issues and lis pendens.

Hon. Ben Davidian (Ret.) is a full-time JAMS neutral, with decades of experience as an attorney, government official and judge in the Sacramento County Superior Court. Judge Davidian was appointed to the Superior Court in 2009 and served over 12 years, including his most recent assignment of almost seven years as the supervising civil settlement conference judge. His work on the court clearly demonstrated his integrity, fairness and professionalism. While on the bench, Judge Davidian personally presided over more than 150 jury trials, and as supervising judge of the court’s civil settlement center, he personally performed thousands of voluntary and mandatory settlement conferences. He also managed thousands more mandatory settlement conferences performed by judges pro tem. Throughout his time on the bench, Judge Davidian was known for his tenacious efforts to resolve cases. His conscientious, personable, diligent and evenhanded administration of justice allowed for creative and successful settlements. He is known for his personal touch, use of humor when appropriate and his concern for all litigators and litigants in his efforts to effectuate a settlement. In his more than 40 years in the legal profession, Judge Davidian has amassed broad experience in a wide variety of practice areas, including business/commercial, construction defect, employment, government/public agency, health care, insurance, personal injury, professional liability, elder abuse, landlord/tenant, PAGA cases and real property/real estate matters. When COVID-19 resulted in the temporary closure of the courts, Judge Davidian developed a voluntary settlement conference program using videoconferencing, primarily utilizing the Zoom platform. He has conducted almost 200 voluntary and mandatory settlement conferences using virtual or videoconferencing techniques. Judge Davidian was honored to be named Judge of the Year by the Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association in 2017 and Judge of the Year by the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) in 2018. Judge Davidian has worked in both private law practice and government service. As a practitioner, Judge Davidian specialized his practice in the areas of political, election and campaign law; professional negligence; administrative law; government law; and business litigation. Judge Davidian is a veteran of the United States Air Force, where he served as a flight-rated navigator, attaining the rank of captain. His service included a combat tour in Southeast Asia.