Earlene R. Baggett-Hayes

Earlene Baggett-Hayes is an attorney, arbitrator, mediator, fact-finder and trainer. She is president of the Law and Mediation Center, PLLC, in Michigan, and is also certified to practice law in Illinois. Earlene serves on numerous arbitration and mediation panels. She is a member of the International Association of Mediators as a distinguished fellow, and in 2018 received the State Bar of Michigan “Award for Distinguished Service in ADR.” Earlene is an active member of the Professional Resolution Experts of Michigan (PREMi). Community service and mentoring are also staples in Earlene’s practice.

She has utilized alternative dispute resolution throughout her career.  In managerial positions in Human Resources in both the automotive and telecommunications industries, Earlene excelled in negotiating labor contracts as well as overseeingand resolving employee disputes at all levels of the organizations.  As an attorney, she has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in various aspects of employment and labor law, approaching litigation vociferously and zealously.  She currently serves on numerous national mediation and arbitration panels and travels extensively in that role.

As a mediator, Earlene utilizes facilitative, evaluative, and transformative processes, and has mediated cases involving large corporations to small businesses, community service agencies, the probate arena, neighborhood disputes, municipalities, and religious institutions.  Additionally, for several years she has organized and conducted mediation training that include 40-hour Civil Mediation Training, 40-hour Domestic Mediation Training, and numerous other programs targeted to specific aspects of mediation.

In her arbitration role, Earlene serves individually, as well as on three-person panels.  She has written numerous reasoned awards for both public and private sector parties and disputes, and has participated in and conducted training on arbitration topics.  She regularly serves as a guest lecturer at colleges, universities, and law schools to discuss mediation and arbitration.

Earlene received the 2013 D. Augustus Straker Trailblazer Award for her work in alternative dispute resolution as both a practitioner and a mentor.  She has been recognized by the National Association of Business Women, National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women, and the Oakland County Bar Association. Earlene is also a Distinguished Fellow of the International Academy of Mediators.