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Retired Judge Barbara McCarthy

Barbara McCarthy  is excited to bring her extensive experience to mediation as a retired Judge, Magistrate, social worker, and educator. Before becoming a certified mediator, Barbara presided over thousands of lawsuits, ranging from discovery disputes to complex multi-party civil matters, as well as over 750 jury trials. Barbara welcomes the opportunity to work with the parties to resolve disputes, and she is also available to serve as a Special Master on discovery matters and as an Arbitrator.

Barbara is a retired Judge from the Circuit Court civil division in Broward County.  Barbara has served on the bench for over ten (10) years in several divisions including Dependency, Family, Criminal, and the Civil Division. Barbara brings her extensive experience from the bench as well as having served as a Civil Magistrate for over seven (7) years in Broward County.

Barbara is a Florida Civil Circuit Court Mediator, and has been licensed to practice law in Florida since 1988. Barbara has a multi-faceted legal career which  includes being a certified intern for the Honorable William Hoeveler, a staff attorney to the Honorable Barry Stone at the Fourth District Court of Appeal, an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Fort Lauderdale, and was a lead  prosecutor for the Broward State Attorney’s office.

Prior to her legal career, Barbara was a special education teacher, in both Florida, and Massachusetts, and holds a Masters degree in Social Work. The patience, understanding, and skill set she developed in those environments are particularly beneficial to the mediation process. Barbara is also very active in the community in mentoring young adults.