Michael Cover

Michael Cover has been a full time mediator since 2008. He was accredited as a mediator by CEDR in 2002 and now practises full-time as an independent mediator and arbitrator. He is a Barrister, Accredited Mediator and Chartered Arbitrator. He has been involved in around 260 mediations. He is a member of the mediation panels of many of the leading UK and international institutions. He has recently been trained as an Investor State mediator with ICSID (the World Bank), CEDR and IMI.

Michael’s practice covers both commercial and family business disputes. He is accredited as a Commercial Mediator by CEDR and also as a family and family business mediator.

Michael has combined a 30-year career as a lawyer in private practice and industry with involvement in a range of leisure and legal information companies. He has, therefore, a rare mixture of legal and business experience and, although this allows him to get straight to the heart of contentious issues, it is perhaps his grasp of disputants’ psychology that makes him such a successful mediator. He has a broad commercial mediation practice, although he is particularly strong on intellectual property, technology and insurance and is particularly adept at helping to solve cross-cultural and cross-border disputes. He comes from a family business background and, as a trained family mediator is, therefore, particularly suitable for disputes where commercial and family interests collide. Michael is a natural communicator, bringing to the parties a combination of charm and tenacity. He has not only the business skills to understand and deal with ancillary and financial issues but also the sensitivity to deal with children and other difficult issues in situations of high emotion.

He is a regular writer, speaker and presenter on ADR topics, including being on panels at the International Mediation Interest Group in Geneva. Michael has been a Judge at both the ICC International Commercial Mediation Competition in Paris and the UK Mediation Skills Competition in London.

He has been a trainer on mediations at an event organised by the Energy Charter Secretariat and, in 2017, trained mediators for the CIArb in Kuala Lumpur, as well as speaking on hybrid dispute resolution processes in Bahrain and Rotterdam in 2018 and Rio de Janeiro in 2020.

He has a particular interest in mediation of cross-cultural disputes and has mediated disputes in the French language. Michael is listed in the mediation section of the Legal 500 directory.

The University of Southampton LLB 1972