Our Mediators
Melissa Mangiaracina and Karen Zavora founded Sierra Mediation after years of practicing law. Together, Melissa and Karen have nearly 30 years of experience in the legal field, having represented clients in a variety of civil and family law cases. Melissa and Karen have worked together since 2008, including as Co-Directors of the Senior Law Project and at the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. As a result of their history of working as a team, Melissa and Karen are able to effectively co-mediate disputes.
Melissa Mangiaracina, J.D.
Melissa received her law degree from the University of Denver College of Law, where she graduated with honors and received the Melanie Hardaway Award for Academic Excellence. As an attorney, Melissa represented children in child protection cases, provided free legal services to low-income Nevadans, and served as the Co-Directing Attorney of the Washoe County Senior Law Project. In addition to Melissa's extensive experience as a legal advocate, Melissa has worked in a number of quasi-judicial roles, including as a Justice of the Peace Pro Tempore, a Court-Annexed Arbitrator, and an Administrative Hearing Officer. Melissa spent five years at the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, where she provided technical assistance and training to professionals working on custody, child protection and domestic violence cases. Melissa now focuses on mediation, serving as a Settlement Judge for the Nevada Supreme Court, mediating child protection cases for the Nevada Statewide Juvenile Dependency Mediation Program, and mediating custody and guardianship cases for the Second Judicial District Court of Nevada. Melissa is also a member of the ADR section of the Nevada State Bar Association and the Nevada Dispute Resolution Coalition. When Melissa is not working, she enjoys skiing, hiking and mountain biking with her family in Lake Tahoe.
To view Melissa's full resume, click here. |
Karen Zavora, J.D.
Karen returned to her home state of Nevada after graduating summa cum laude from Seattle University School of Law in 2005. As an attorney, Karen dedicated her career to representing children in foster care as a Child Advocate Attorney for Washoe Legal Services; senior citizens as the Co-Directing Attorney of the Washoe County Senior Law Project; and victims of family violence as a Program Attorney with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. Always a mediator at heart, Karen often used mediation and communication skills in her cases and found that helping the parties find resolutions outside of the courtroom generally created better results. Karen now focuses her career solely on mediation. Karen serves as a mediator for the Nevada Statewide Juvenile Dependency Mediation Program, the Second Judicial District Court Custody and Dependency Mediation Panels, and the Ninth Judicial District Court Custody Mediation Panel. Karen is also a member of the Nevada Dispute Resolution Coalition. Karen also serves on the Board of Directors of the Child Assault Prevention Project and previously volunteered as a mediator for the Neighborhood Mediation Center. When not mediating, Karen enjoys spending time with her family and friends in Northern Nevada and in Elko.
To view Karen's full resume, click here. |