• MEDIATOR
  
  
• ARBITRATOR
  
  
• PRIVATE JUDGE
  
  
• SPECIAL MASTER

Judge Rimstidt is a former Judge of the Marion Superior Court, Civil Division, located in Indianapolis, Indiana. During his ten years of judicial experience, Judge Rimstidt managed mass tort cases involving vehicles, plastic pipe, contraceptive devices and asbestos. He developed a pre-trial management plan which makes him exceptionally qualified to serve as private judge or special master in matters involving complex litigation. He is one of the founding partners of the dispute resolution services firm of Van Winkle • Baten • Rimstidt and is available for cases nationwide.

LEGAL EXPERIENCE
Judge Rimstidt has been a lawyer for thirty years. His diverse background includes participating in over one hundred jury trials, founding a law firm and serving as Chief Deputy to the Prosecutor of a major metropolitan area. Judge Rimstidt tried more civil jury trials than any judge in Indiana during his tenure as judge. Recently, he has been commissioned to serve as Special Administrative Law Judge involving matters of gaming licenses and minority/women business enterprise status. Otherwise, Judge Rimstidt has pursued a full-time mediation and arbitration practice since his retirement from the bench in 1996. (C.V. available)

ADR TRAINING
Judge Rimstidt has received mediation training at the National Judicial College, the Indiana Judicial College, JAMS/Endispute LLC, The Divorce Mediation Institute and the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum. He has provided advanced mediation training to lawyers and law students. The Judge was certified as both a domestic and civil mediator in 1992 and has recertified as required. He is also certified as one of Indiana’s private judges. He has consulted on the issues of mediation rule changes, appellate mediation, school based peer mediation, and on pre-suit mediation. He is a certified Medicare QIO mediation specialist.

ADR EXPERIENCE
After leaving the bench, Judge Rimstidt immersed himself into a full-time ADR practice. He has mediated approximately 1,500 cases in many areas. While he has mediated in the areas of commercial, wrongful death, employment, property, probate, family law and personal injury, the judge is especially proud of his accomplishments in matters involving environmental claims, medical negligence, construction, and product liability disputes. Recently, Judge Rimstidt was the highest rated former judge on the Indianapolis Business Journal’s most active Indianapolis Area Mediators listing. After the high volume experience of the first five years of his practice, Judge Rimstidt is now focusing his practice in the areas of complex litigation, as well as high net worth dissolution of marriage matters.

Judge Rimstidt has served as a litigation management special master in the patent litigation matter of Cummins Engine v. Detroit Diesel, Inc. He was instrumental in settling this matter one year after his appointment. Judge Rimstidt has also served as a fact finding special master in various state court matters.

Judge Rimstidt remains a popular choice on arbitration panels not only because of his prior judicial experience, but also because he has chosen to continue his career as a full-time professional neutral. The variety of cases submitted to arbitration before Judge Rimstidt include construction, employment, personal injury, defamation/slander, insurance coverage, underinsured and uninsured motorist claims matters.

Judge Rimstidt has convened over 50 medical review panels. As chair of these panels, he facilitates and advises medical practitioners in a peer review of cases involving allegations of medical negligence.

Judge Rimstidt has given public and private neutral evaluations of cases involving high financial exposure. His neutral evaluations are accompanied by an opinion letter based upon legal and factual findings.