Two experienced general counsel are teaming up to use the business expertise they gained in-house to offer alternative dispute resolution services.

Deep understanding

Noah Hanft, general counsel at MasterCard Worldwide from 2001 to 2014, and Richard Ziegler, general counsel at 3M from 2003 to 2007, have joined to offer their  expertise gained in-house to offer alternative dispute resolution services through their New York-based company AcumenADR. As former general counsels of global companies, the pair say each brings deep commercial understanding to business disputes and a track record of successful resolutions and solutions.

Not too serious?

Mr Hanft was previously chief executive officer of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (“CPR”) in New York. He had served as General Counsel of MasterCard Worldwide for 13 years, and in 2012 the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) named him general counsel of the year.  In addition to overseeing all legal and regulatory matters, he had responsibility for public policy, compliance, and government regulations and served as Corporate Secretary. Mr Hanft was an early adopter of mediation and personally mediated settlements of many of the company’s major business conflicts. Mr Ziegler after 3M Company was co-chair of the international arbitration practice at Jenner & Block in New York. He is an experienced arbitrator in international and domestic matters and an accredited mediator, including for international matters. Mr Ziegler has over four decades in financial, technology-intensive and regulatory matters. The two men say they share at least one other attribute, “they don't take themselves nearly as seriously as they take the matters entrusted to them.”