Deborah B. Steele, Esq. is a highly accomplished independent neutral arbitrator, mediator, and certified federal EEO investigator with over three decades of diverse legal experience spanning civil litigation, corporate compliance, and public sector advocacy. Admitted to the North Carolina State Bar, Ms. Steele operates an agile alternative dispute resolution (ADR) practice serving multiple jurisdictions across North Carolina, Arizona, and Utah. She holds comprehensive federal sector credentials through the ADR Academy’s New EEO Investigators program, specializing in investigating and resolving complex workplace disputes, Title VII compliance, and discrimination claims. Her extensive litigation background includes representing major corporate and financial entities—such as Ford Motor Credit Company and Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation—in commercial finance, creditors' rights, and bankruptcy matters at firms like Guthrie, Davis, Henderson & Staton and Cansler Lockhart & Evans. Complementing her commercial acumen is a deep commitment to public service, highlighted by seven years as a court-appointed Guardian Ad Litem for disabled adults and a volunteer supervising attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina. An educator at heart, she also shaped future legal professionals as a Paralegal Instructor at Central Piedmont Community College, developing curricula in case analysis, evidence, and legal ethics. Ms. Steele earned her Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, with highest honors, from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, where she was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. Today, she leverages her balanced perspective, technical objectivity, and deep legal expertise on neutral panels—such as the RMA Panel (Resolute Mediation & Arbitration)—to de-escalate high-stakes conflicts and guide competing parties toward sustainable, fair solutions.

The Honorable Francis A. Polito (Retired) is a highly distinguished former federal Administrative Judge, legal scholar, and veteran employment law specialist with an illustrious public service career spanning over four decades. Admitted to the State Bar of New Jersey in 1986, Judge Polito dedicated a major portion of his professional life to the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), where he rose to prominent leadership positions including Chief Administrative Judge and Supervisory Administrative Judge within the agency's vital Philadelphia and New Jersey regional frameworks. Throughout his extensive tenure on the federal bench, he presided over high-stakes regulatory issues and complex civil rights matters, expertly adjudicating and resolving dense federal sector employment conflicts involving claims of workplace discrimination, harassment, and structural retaliation under Title VII, the ADA, and the ADEA. Beyond his direct adjudicative responsibilities, Judge Polito served as a national advocate for systemic operational improvements within the federal government, famously leading an association of administrative judges to advocate for balanced legal reforms that protect civil rights while improving case processing efficiency. A trusted mentor who has shaped emerging legal careers through his judicial clerkship programs, he continues to leverage his massive institutional knowledge and reputation for unwavering impartiality as an elite consultant and alternative dispute resolution neutral on premier independent arbitration and mediation panels like the RMA Panel (Resolute Mediation & Arbitration).

Kimberly Best, RN, MA, is a civil and family mediator and FINRA Arbitrator, court-listed in Missouri and Tennessee, and founder of Best Conflict Solutions, LLC. She helps individuals, families, and organizations navigate their most difficult conversations and find solutions that preserve relationships and avoid the cost, damage, and delay of litigation. Drawing on decades as a critical care nurse, Kim understands what happens when emotions run high and the stakes feel impossible. She brings that same steadiness to high-conflict disputes, staying neutral while helping the people at the table find their own way forward. Kim holds an MA in Conflict Management from Lipscomb University and graduate studies in Clinical/Community Psychology from UNC Charlotte. She serves as Adjunct Professor at Lipscomb University's Institute for Conflict Management and is Immediate Past President of the Tennessee Association of Professional Mediators, Past Membership Officer of the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution, and a Board Member of the Association of Missouri Mediators. She is the author of How to Live Forever: A Guide to Writing the Final Chapter of Your Life Story and creator of the Best Conflict Conversation Cards. Credentials and Listings Missouri Court Listed Civil and Family Mediator (2024); Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 General Civil Mediator and Trained Family Mediator (2014); FINRA Arbitrator; Senior Mediator, Los Angeles City Attorney's Office Community/Police Unification Program. Education MA, Conflict Management, Lipscomb University (2014); Master's Certificate, Clinical/Community Psychology, UNC Charlotte (1994); BA, Psychology, UNC Charlotte (1992); RN Diploma, Jewish Hospital School of Nursing, Cincinnati (1980). Training and Professional Development Certificate in Negotiating and Mediating Healthcare Disputes, University of South Florida; Conflict Resolution Consulting, Pepperdine University School of Law; Transformative Mediation, Hofstra University School of Law; Advanced Negotiation: Leveraging Emotions, and Overcoming Resistance, Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School; Restorative Practices Training of Trainers, IIRP; Facilitating Meetings Around Community Conflict, Department of Justice; Advanced Mediation and Systems Design Training, Kenneth Cloke. Affiliations Adjunct Professor, Lipscomb University Institute for Conflict Management; Member, Mediators Beyond Borders International; Member, National Association for Community Mediation; Association of Conflict Resolution Elder Mediation Professional Development Group. Board Member: Association of Missouri Mediators Publications and Media Published in the Australasian Dispute Resolution Journal, Newsweek, Fox News, Medscape, SHRM, Very Well Mind, and the Missouri Nursing Journal.

Agustin “Gus” Perez-Cervera is a Florida attorney and Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Court Mediator with more than 40 years of experience in civil litigation and dispute resolution. A member of The Florida Bar since 1979, Gus built his legal career in Miami, where he handled a broad range of matters involving commercial litigation, real estate, banking and lending, mortgages and liens, consumer disputes, condominium issues, securities and investments, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, and other civil cases. Since 2020, Gus has focused his practice on mediation, including private mediations and real property insurance dispute matters assigned through the Florida Department of Financial Services. His decades of litigation experience give him a practical understanding of case valuation, liability exposure, negotiation dynamics, and the business realities that often drive settlement. He brings a calm, experienced, and resolution-oriented approach to mediation and arbitration, helping parties evaluate risk, narrow disputed issues, and work toward efficient resolution. Gus earned his Juris Doctor from Villanova University School of Law in 1979 and his bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Miami in 1976. He is fluent in Spanish and is available for English- and Spanish-language matters.

Guno O. Ritfeld, JD., LL.M. is an accomplished alternative dispute resolution (ADR) strategist, Florida Supreme Court certified mediator, and retired U.S. Armed Forces Commissioned Officer. With over two decades of military leadership and specialized legal expertise, he serves as the Founder, President, and CEO of Resolute Mediation & Arbitration Inc. and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Academy (ADRA). His extensive background includes securing and managing complex dispute resolution contracts for both state and federal government agencies, backed by a diverse professional history encompassing federal programs, corporate risk management, and over a decade of private investigative service specializing in white-collar and insurance fraud cases.As a highly specialized ADR practitioner, Mr. Ritfeld holds a Juris Doctor (JD) degree alongside a Master of Laws (LL.M.). His multi-tiered federal and civil mediation practice includes serving as an EEO Investigator and Counselor, handling high-stakes structural conflict, independent personnel investigations, and Title VII compliance initiatives. Certified by the Florida Supreme Court across civil circuit, family, and county jurisdictions, he is also an approved arbitrator recognized by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the National Dispute Resolution Center.

Nicole Giuliano graduated from the University of Miami School of Law magna cum laude in 2009. While at UM, Nicole was a member of the University of Miami Law Review, the Moot Court Board, and President of the American Constitution Society. Prior to that she graduated from the University of Central Florida with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and a minor in History. She is a proud “Flying L” – having graduated valedictorian from Fort Lauderdale High School in 2002. As an attorney, Nicole started her career working for a wonderful non-profit organization, Legal Services of Greater Miami, Inc., in the housing department. She represented tenants and homeowners in subsidized housing disputes, evictions, foreclosures, and bankruptcies. Thereafter she joined a large law firm with offices throughout the country focusing primarily on community association disputes (condos/HOAs). She has represented parties on all sides during the foreclosure crisis and has represented both debtors and creditors in the bankruptcy courts. She has been recognized several times within the legal community for her “no nonsense” litigation style and her advocacy skills. Nicole started her own practice in South Florida in 2014 but relocated to Orlando in 2018. She is available to mediate state-wide brings her varied litigation experience to the table as a knowledgeable and passionate mediator, dedicated to getting business moving again and out of the courts

MBA, PMP, GS-14, DoD, HQDA, ADR, L&D, and PD

Stephanie Harris Curington, Esq. is a seasoned employment and labor law attorney, arbitrator, mediator, and former Administrative Judge with the District of Columbia Office of Employee Appeals. She brings extensive experience adjudicating complex personnel and employment disputes, conducting evidentiary hearings, assessing witness credibility, interpreting federal employment laws, and drafting well-reasoned legal decisions. Her federal-sector experience includes representing agencies in matters before the EEOC, MSPB, FLRA, and in arbitration proceedings. Ms. Curington holds a Juris Doctor from Howard University School of Law and is admitted to the Georgia and District of Columbia Bars. She serves Resolute Mediation & Arbitration Inc. (RMA) as a Final Agency Decision (FAD) Writer, applying her judicial and employment-law expertise to the objective analysis and resolution of federal EEO matters.