Michael Eric Christiansen, Business Attorney in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

I have received the highest rating for legal ability and ethics and am rated as one on the nation's preeminent lawyers in the field of real estate and business. As a founder of Mastriana & Christiansen, my firm and I have focused on business, telecom and real estate for many years, acting as counsel to Fortune 100, Fortune 500 and hundreds of small "mom and pop" companies.

But the changing realities of the real estate market and general state of the company have led me to focus my attention on the ethical representation of clients facing foreclosure of their home and investment property. At M&C, we treat foreclosure clients with the appropriate degree of empathy and compassion and vigorously assert the legal rights they enjoy, but of which they may be unaware. We call it "ethical legal foreclosure defense." We have become skilled in handling foreclosures, short sales, loan modifications and do our level best to represent our foreclosure clients with dignity and for fees which are reasonable and predictable.

I am a Supreme Court Certified Circuit Mediator. Having mediated many commercial cases, including mortgage foreclosure matters, I have a better insight into how to prepare, defend and resolve a foreclosure case in the best interest of our clients. I have also been an active and practicing real estate broker since 1988 with our affiliated company, FRAM Enterprises, Inc.

But while foreclosure is the dynamic which is driving the legal community right now, I continue to handle all manner of business transactions, contracts, mergers and counsel commercial clients each day. Although the telecom market has cooled, I still represent tower constructors and telecom providers. Our firm represented Sprints PCS and Metro PCS for several years and handled over seven thousand telecom matters including contract review, zoning, title examination and negotiations and disputes with owner and vendors.

I put myself through college (Penn State, BS) and through law school (University of Pittsburgh, JD) and was proud to serve the nation's underprivileged as an attorney for Neighborhood Legal Services Association in the Pittsburgh area for several years. During that time, I developed an interest and expertise in children's legal issues. Upon relocating to Florida with my wife, Lynne, I joined Child Advocacy, Inc., serving both as a director and pro bono general counsel. After the highly publicized abduction and murder of Adam Walsh, I became a director and general counsel of the Adam Walsh Child Resource Center. At the urging of John Walsh, my long time client and friend, I acceded to the board of directors of the congressionally chartered National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, the nation's leading missing and exploited children's organization, based in the Washington, D.C. area.

Recently, after 20 years of service as a director, trustee and committee chair and advisory board chair of its Florida Branch, I was elected to the Emeritus Board, the Center's highest honor.

I have been certified by the Supreme Court of Florida as a Certified Circuit Mediator. My mediation practice is limited to commercial matters, real estate matters, including mortgage foreclosure and telecom matters. If your are looking for a mediator who has the skill and patience to effectively create a climate for resolution and who can do more than suggest 50/50 splits or say "can't we all just be friends," then I am your mediator. My mediation philosophy is simple: the mediator must show leadership in the mediation; the mediator must be incisive and know the subject matter to be effective; the mediator must have patience and good interpersonal skills; the mediator must, above all, be neutral; the mediator must be respectful of the parties and treat all with dignity; the mediator must always be mindful that the purpose of mediation is to empower the parties to resolve their dispute.