About FDMC

The mission of the Family and Divorce Mediation Council of Greater New York is

1. To promote professional excellence by providing education, development and support for family mediators; and
2. To increase public awareness and use of family and divorce mediation.

• View our CE and Event Calendar to learn about our programming!
• Our mediators are available to assist you and are working remotely!  Find a mediator here.
• Interested in joining?  Click here to sign up online or for more information on membership and benefits, including our Diversity & Inclusion Scholarship program.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CARMEN RODRIGUEZ (FDMC President; CLE and Bylaws Committees) is a Manhattan family, divorce and employment mediator and attorney, and the founder of Rodriguez Law & Mediation, PLLC. A recipient of the James Duane Award (2024), she has mediated more than 500 matrimonial, family and employment cases. Trained in five models of mediation, she tailors her approach to each family’s needs rather than following a single method. A graduate of Brown University and Columbia Law School who began her career at a Wall Street law firm, she is known for explaining complex legal and financial issues in plain English. Carmen is President of the Family and Divorce Mediation Council (FDMC) and Co-Chair of its Nominations Committee. She also co-chairs the New York State Bar Association Mediation Committee and its Professional Development Family Law and Mediation Roundtable. She serves as a Special Master for the Appellate Division, Second Department, and sits on New York State Supreme Court and Surrogate’s Court mediation panels. She previously served as Secretary of the New York City Bar Association’s ADR Committee. A frequent speaker for the New York State Bar Association, the New York State Judicial Institute, New York State Council on Divorce Mediation, and law schools, Carmen mediates fluently in Spanish. She believes every party should be able to participate in the language in which they are most comfortable. She has served on the Board of Trustees of Brown University and the board of Literacy, Inc. Contact Carmen Rodriguez

STACY FRANCIS (FDMC Secretary; Chair, Mentorship Committee, Events Committee member) is the President and CEO of Francis Financial, Inc., a fee-only boutique Wealth Management, Financial Planning and Divorce Financial Planning firm dedicated to providing ongoing comprehensive advice for successful individuals, couples and women in transition such as divorce or widowhood. Stacy is a nationally recognized financial expert with over 25 years of experience in the financial industry. She is one of twenty of the nation’s leading wealth managers on CNBC’s Digital Financial Advisor Council , and frequently appears in media outlets such as Forbes, Kiplinger, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. She completed the Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP®) designation and is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® (CDFA®) as well as a Certified Estate and Trust Specialist (CES™). Stacy is the founder of Savvy Ladies™, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating and empowering women to take control of their finances.  Contact Stacy Francis

DAVID CAMPBELL-CLARK (FDMC Treasurer; Chair, Finance Committee, Member, Sponsorship Committee) is a Director with the Forensic Consulting Group at CBIZ and has been serving clients for over fifteen years and is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA) providing forensic accounting and economic analysis in complex matrimonial matters and litigation consulting. David also has experience in civil litigation, internal investigations, and fraud investigations. David is experienced in the valuation and division of marital and separate property, quantifying factors relevant to deviations from guideline child support and maintenance, quantifying credits, and reimbursements. He assists with net worth statement preparation, financial discovery, settlement negotiations, and other financial issues that often arise in complex high-net-worth marital dissolutions. Before joining CBIZ, David worked in-house as the Head of Forensics and Chief Operating Officer for a premier boutique matrimonial law firm in New York City. Prior to that, David was a Manager in the Anti-Bribery and Corruption Compliance Group at an international bank where he assisted with the development and enhancement of the bank’s Anti-Bribery and Corruption risk management framework. David began his career at a Big 4 Accounting firm auditing private equity and hedge funds. He ultimately rose to Manager in the Fraud Investigations and Dispute Services Group managing various domestic and international investigation teams. David also serves as Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee to the board of the National Institute for the Psychotherapies, also based in New York City. Contact David Campbell-Clark

MICHELLE EXLINE MINOVI (Chair, CE Committee) leads Minovi Law & Mediation and offers a sliding scale fee structure. Michelle is an Adjunct Professor of Clinical Law at Brooklyn Law School, an approved mediation trainer under NY Part 146, and a trainer at the Center for Understanding in Conflict. She sits on New York’s Presumptive Mediation Panel for the NY Supreme Court, Kings County Supreme Court, Child Permanency, and NYC Family Court. Michelle worked with domestic violence advocates and New York Court ADR coordinators to collaboratively create a guide to help litigants assess their capacity to mediate that goes beyond the traditional screening tool and engages parties and mediators in thoughtful conversation around whether mediation is the right process and how it can be adapted to encourage more meaningful participation.  Contact Michelle Exline Minovi

ALLA KUROLAPNIK (Membership Committee, Sponsorship Committee) is an experienced divorce attorney who has seen through her many years in practice that divorce litigation, especially if protracted, is damaging to families.Alla is a trained divorce mediator who has built a practice helping families resolve marital disputes before seeking the Court’s intervention. Mediation allows a divorcing couple to make decisions about their future rather than having the course of their lives determined by a judge. In Mediation, the couple has the power to decide what is best for them and their children. Mediation is less expensive than divorce litigation, takes less time, and is more likely to result in an agreement that is consistent with the parties’ objectives. Divorce Mediation is not right for every couple, and if Mediation or settlement efforts fail Alla is an experienced litigator who will avidly protect her clients’ interests in Court. Alla started her legal career as a special prosecutor for the New York City Law Department prosecuting child neglect and abuse cases, in Family Court, on behalf of the Administration for Children’s Services. After serving as special prosecutor for six years, Alla worked for several prominent New York matrimonial and family law firms before starting her own practice in 2012 which is devoted to matrimonial and family law. Alla trained as a divorce mediator in 2018, and in addition to providing mediation services to retained clients, Alla is a court approved mediator on the New York State Mediation Program roster in New York County, Kings County, Richmond County and Nassau County Supreme Court. Contact Alla Kurolapnik

TODD NEUHAUS (Website Committee, Events Committee) is the Managing Associate of Moore Family Law, P.C., where he represents clients in all aspects of family and matrimonial law, including child custody, property distribution, spousal and child support, and pre- and post-nuptial agreements. Todd has dedicated his legal career to helping people through some of life’s most difficult and emotionally charged circumstances. Before entering private practice, he spent six years as a public defender with the Legal Aid Society, where he represented indigent New Yorkers charged with a wide array of crimes. As a divorce and family law attorney, he continues to litigate and negotiate on behalf of individual clients—but is also deeply aware of the emotional and financial harm that litigation can inflict on people and families. That awareness led Todd to expand his practice to include mediation as a more constructive and collaborative path for resolving conflict. With certifications from the Center for Understanding in Conflict, the New York Peace Institute, and the New York State Council on Divorce Mediation, Todd now serves as a facilitative mediator for parents and divorcing couples in conflicts involving custody and parental decision-making, child and spousal support, and property division. He also volunteers with the New York Legal Assistance Group’s divorce mediation program, where he provides free mediation services to low-income New Yorkers. Contact Todd Neuhaus

IAN STEINBERG (Sponsorship Committee, CLE Committee) Ian Steinberg is a senior associate with Berkman Bottger Newman & Schein, LLP. His practice focuses on litigation, mediation, negotiation, and settlement of complex high net worth matrimonial and family law cases. Ian also specializes in negotiating and drafting prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. Ian has been recognized as a New York Metro Area Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2021 through 2024. Ian’s unique blend of skills and experience, including extensive experience with litigation and high-level negotiation, provides him with special insight into the divorce process. Ian is sensitive to his clients’ emotional needs while helping them obtain the results to ensure a stable and successful future. Ian regularly mediates divorce and family law matters. Ian has also been trained in collaborative law. Previously, Ian worked at a New York City real estate firm representing building owners in courts throughout the five boroughs and surrounding areas. Ian also provided counsel for cooperatives and condominiums and represented both landlords and tenants in negotiations of commercial lease agreements. Ian also represented individual and bank clients handling their residential real estate closings. Contact Ian Steinberg.

COREY SHAPIRO (CE Committee, LinkedIn Committee) – Corey is a divorce attorney in New York City with more than twenty-five years in family law. He litigates, negotiates, and mediates, and his practice is built for the one-sided divorce, when one spouse negotiates in good faith and the other escalates. Corey’s parents divorced when he was eight. His mother left, and he did not see her for more than six months. That year is why he does this work. He is the author of Getting Divorced Without Losing Your Mind.  Contact Corey Shapiro

SHELLEY KLEIN (Events Committee, Membership Committee)  is a family law attorney, divorce mediator, and newly trained psychoanalyst whose dual background in law and psychoanalysis informs a uniquely thoughtful approach to conflict resolution. After graduating magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School—where she was an editor of the Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif—Shelley began her legal career as a clerk for the Hon. Frederic Block in the U.S. District Court (E.D.N.Y.), followed by a position in litigation at Paul, Weiss. She later moved into social impact work, including research and leadership roles at Columbia Law School and Columbia University, and advocacy work at GEMS (Girls Educational and Mentoring Services), supporting girls impacted by commercial sexual exploitation. Her own collaborative divorce experience sparked a passion for mediation and collaborative law, leading her to train with Antoinette Delruelle at NYLAG and launch a private practice committed to helping families navigate divorce as a potentially reparative process. She challenges the assumption that divorce breaks families apart, working instead from the belief that families can emerge from the process feeling more intact—resolved, free, and whole. To deepen her understanding of the emotional and unconscious forces shaping conflict, Shelley completed a five-year psychoanalytic training at the National Institute for the Psychotherapies in 2025. That same year, she was honored with the Early Career Professional Award by the International Association for Psychoanalytic Self Psychology. She is a frequent presenter with Untied, speaking on topics such as narcissism in divorce, trauma, and dream interpretation.  Contact Shelley Klein

IVY MENCHEL (Nominations Committee, CLE Committee) is the president and founder of Family Wealth Planning Partners, a practice dedicated to guiding individuals and families through the financial complexities of divorce. With more than 30 years of experience in financial services, Ivy helps clients — along with their attorneys and mediators — make informed, strategic decisions as they transition into the next chapter of their lives. Her focus on divorce financial planning is deeply personal. Having witnessed the financial and emotional challenges her own parents faced during their divorce, Ivy is committed to helping clients navigate this life-changing event with clarity, confidence, and fairness. Trained in all three divorce processes — traditional/litigation, mediation, and collaborative — Ivy prioritizes client education, ensuring they understand the financial nuances and implications of each option. Her unique combination of credentials — CDFA®, CFP®, and CBEC® — allows her to take a comprehensive view of her clients’ financial and personal goals, including considerations around business ownership, retirement, and long-term planning. Beyond her practice, Ivy is recognized as a thought leader in the field of divorce financial planning, regularly sharing her expertise through teaching, mentoring, speaking, and writing. She is also an active member of multiple professional organizations dedicated to advancing best practices in divorce finance. Contact Ivy Menchel

MELISSA GOODSTEIN, ESQ is the immediate past President of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals (NYACP) and currently serves on its Executive Board and has maintained a family and matrimonial private practice in the NYC metro area with a focus on the alternative dispute resolution models of mediation and collaborative divorce since 1993. Melissa co- chairs NYACP’s Training and Education Committee, facilitates the Northern Westchester NYACP Pod and co facilitates the Northern Westchester Support Group Collaborative Practice and Diversity Support Group. Melissa also serves on the roster of mediators for New York Courts 9th Judicial District and the American Arbitration Association. She is a long-standing member of the New York State Council of Divorce Mediation, the Westchester Women’s Bar Association, The Family and Divorce Mediation of Greater New York and the International Association of Collaborative Professionals. Melissa is a graduate of Brandeis University and Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. She resides in Katonah, N.Y. with her husband of over 35 years and has three adult children. Melissa enjoys museums, traveling, cooking and baking, long walks, theater, film, television, Mah Jong and word games.  Contact Melissa Goodstein.

ADI ROFFE SCHAFFER (Events Committee), is the CEO and founder of LTA Mediation, an attorney, and a certified mediator with extensive experience in family and business disputes. Driven by a deep commitment to helping individuals navigate conflict with dignity and clarity, she approaches mediation with empathy, cultural sensitivity, and a solutions-oriented mindset. Adi is fluent in Hebrew and English. Adi began her legal career in Israel in 2005 after earning degrees in law and business. She later trained in mediation in New York and New Jersey, focusing on divorce, child custody, visitation, and civil disputes. Adi serves on the New York Supreme Court mediation roster in Manhattan and White Plains and has mediated cases through the New York State Court System’s Alternative Dispute Resolution program, primarily in Westchester and Rockland Counties. She is also a certified mediator in New York City for custody and visitation cases and participates in the Child Permanency Mediation (CPM) program. In addition to her casework, she is passionate about promoting effective communication and conflict resolution. She conducts workshops and seminars that address challenges arising from cultural and language differences.  Adi is a member of NYSCDM, FDMC, NJAPM, and the Israel Bar Association. Contact Adi Roffe Schaffer.

KATHLEEN GARRIGAN has been practicing family and matrimonial law exclusively since 1992 when she started her own practice. Kathleen litigates cases, negotiates out-of-court settlements, and mediates. She is a mediator for the Richmond County Supreme Court ADR Program and was the recipient of its Matrimonial Impact Award in 2025.  Kathleen served on the Richmond County Law Guardian and 18-B panels for Family and Supreme Court for 17 years.  In 2000, she was the inaugural recipient of the WBASNY Stephanie Kupferman Juvenile Justice Award for her work as a Law Guardian. In addition to practicing law, she taught a variety of undergraduate courses as an Adjunct Instructor in the Paralegal Studies Program at St. John’s University, Staten Island Campus, and now as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Division of Legal Studies at The Collins College of Professional Studies at St. John’s University, Queens Campus.  Kathleen is a long-standing member of the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, the New York State Bar Association, the Richmond County Bar Association, and the Staten Island Women’s Bar Association.  She is a member of the NYSBA Family Law Section Executive Committee, former member of the RCBA Board of Directors and current Chair of its Family Court Committee, and Past President of SIWBA.  She is also a member of the NYS Council on Divorce Mediation and a new member of the Family and Divorce Mediation Council.  Contact Kathleen Garrigan.

JESSICA ROTHBERG (CLE Committee), Mediation Works NY LLC in 1998, and has been serving New York families for nearly 30 years as a family and divorce mediator and collaborative attorney. Jessica has received extensive mediation and collaborative practice training through numerous organizations and is a member of many professional organizations, including the Family and Divorce Mediation Council of Greater NY, the Association for Conflict Resolution, the New York State Council on Divorce Mediation, the Academy of Professional Family Mediators, and the NY Association of Collaborative Professionals. Jessica dedicates much of her professional career to training and mentoring aspiring mediators and collaborative practitioners through NY State certified trainings and independent apprenticeships. Jessica shares her time between Brooklyn and Woodstock, New York.  Contact Jessica Rothberg.