Eva M. Soeka

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A litigator’s job was “completely different” in the late 1970s, especially for women, according to Marquette University Prof. Eva M. Soeka. She knows, having spent four years as a litigator during that time.

Fast-forward to the present, and alternative dispute resolution has become one of the most frequently used tools in the litigator’s box.

If you were to ask members of the legal community to name some of the architects of ADR in Wisconsin, Soeka would surely be on most, if not all, their lists. The word “architect” was chosen deliberately, because Soeka’s passion is designing dispute resolution systems.

She came to Marquette University Law School as an administrator/teacher in 1982, and started the first ADR course in 1987.

A few years later, she was one of the drafters of Wisconsin’s ADR statutes, as first female chair of the Wisconsin Judicial Council.

From there, she joined Marquette’s general administration in 1993, and created a program for a graduate-level certificate in dispute resolution. Since its start in 1995, the program has been filled to capacity, and more than 150 people have earned the certificate.

Then, in 2006, the university began offering a master’s degree in dispute resolution, which curriculum Soeka designed. Marquette became the 17th accredited university in the nation to offer such a degree.

Among Soeka’s other achievements:

• She designed the Archdiocese of Milwaukee Clergy Sexual Abuse Mediation System and the Wisconsin Special Education Mediation System;
• She consulted with the Midwest Express Center, Miller Park and the Marquette Interchange on dispute resolution issues.

ADR is often touted for saving time and money. But what appeals to Soeka the most about ADR is how it has changed attorney-client dynamics.

“We really share our purpose of resolving the dispute with our clients, and that’s a very different kind of relationship; we don’t just tell the clients what to do. Now there’s much more of a partnership with the client. We can offer clients true options.”

For the past eight years, Soeka has also been an avid ballroom dancer.