Best Mediator

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William A. Jennaro, Cook & Franke S.C., Milwaukee

What is the secret to successful mediation?

According to the attorney voted Best Mediator in Wisconsin, it is cookies.

“The number one, most important quality is being able to provide food and nutritious cookies in the mediation session,” said William A. Jennaro of Cook & Franke S.C., in Milwaukee.

Throughout the last decade Jennaro has handled more than 1,000 mediations and aside from offering delicious edibles, the ability to listen is his recipe for reaching a resolution.

Whatever the conflict concerns on the surface – from a complex corporate spat to a dispute between neighbors – the root of the problem is always the same, said Jennaro.

“It all comes down to the human factor and human emotion connected with the issue,” he said.

While Jennaro, 69, still finds his way into a courtroom from time to time as a litigator, he admits that the role of a mediator may be one he was born to play.

His 12 years as a circuit court and county judge in Milwaukee also helped hone his skills as a problem solver.

“I listened to people’s problems and tried to sort out credibility,” Jennaro said.

But perhaps his best barometer for how he would fare as a mediator came in raising his two children.

“The family dynamics of parenting are not so much different,” Jennaro said. “That’s why it’s so important to always have the cookies.”