Stephen has been practicing law and mediating cases since 2000. He is a shareholder in the Salt Lake City law firm of Christensen & Jensen, where he chairs the firm’s Dispute Resolution Committee. In addition to mediation, his practice includes complex commercial and tort litigation on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants. He has represented clients in numerous disputes throughout his career, including business transactions, personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, contracts, insurance coverage, professional liability, real estate, construction and development, probate, business sales and dissolutions, and employment disputes. He is dedicated to assisting parties to resolve their disputes in the most effective, efficient and economical manner.
Stephen received mediation training and his Master of Dispute Resolution from the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Pepperdine Law School. He is rated AV Preeminent® by Martindale-Hubbell, and he is listed as one of Utah’s Legal Elite in Civil Litigation. He has formerly served as the Chair of the Utah Council on Conflict Resolution (UCCR) and Chair of the Dispute Resolution Section of the Utah Bar Association. Since 2010, he has provided service to the community as a pro tempore small claims judge.
Stephen is the recipient of the 2017 Peacekeeper Award from the Utah Council on Conflict Resolution, the 2011 Utah Service to the Courts Award from the Utah Judicial Council, and Utah Dispute Resolutions Mediator of the Year (2005). He is a regular presenter on mediation topics. He has published more than 50 articles throughout the United States, and he has been both profiled and featured in the ABA Journal for his studies conducted with state bar associations. Stephen received his Bachelor of Arts in History (1995) and Master of Arts in History (1997) from the University of Utah, his Juris Doctorate (1999) from J. Reuben Clark Law School (Brigham Young University, and Master of Dispute Resolution (2013) from the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine School of Law.
Selected Presentations and Articles
- Presentation, Apology: Utilizing Effective Communication in Conflict, 23rd Annual Idaho Mediation Association Conference, Boise, Idaho, October 10, 2020
- Presentation, Threats & Violence in and After Mediation: What’s Happening & How to Respond, 23rd Annual Idaho Mediation Association Conference, Boise, Idaho, October 10, 2020
- Presentation, Making the Most of Mediation: Intermediate Course, co-presenter, Utah State Bar Litigation Section CLE, Salt Lake City, Utah, January 22, 2020
- Presentation, “You Call That an Apology?”: Utilizing Effective Communication in Conflicts, Dispute Resolution Section of the Idaho Bar Association, Boise, Idaho, November 26, 2019
- Presentation, Joint-Sessions and Caucusing, South African Judiciary Mediation Training – Utah 2019, S.J. Quinney College of Law and J. Reuben Clark School of Law, Salt Lake City, Utah, October 28, 2019
- Presentation, Should Trials Vanish? The Limits of ADR, co-present, The Federalist Society and Alternative Dispute Resolution Society, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Provo, Utah, Provo, Utah, October 19, 2019
- Presentation, Mediation Skills For Everyday Life – Including Models for Facilitating Engaging Conversations, co-present, Utah State Bar Summer Convention, Park City, Utah, July 20, 2019
- Presentation, Defusing Conflicts and Difficult Situations, Utah Paralegal Association, Annual Paralegal Day, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 21, 2019
- Presentation, Basic Mediation Training Seminar, Utah Dispute Resolution’s 40-Hour Basic Mediation Training Seminar, regarding mediation of monetary disputes (5 hours), Salt Lake City, Utah, June 14, 2019
- Presentation, De-Escalation of Disputes: Strategies to Address Uncivil and Contentious Tactics, Utah Defense Lawyers Association, Annual CLE Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah, May 3, 2019.
- Article, How to Avoid Inadequate Case Evaluation, 42 UTAH TRIAL JOURNAL 8 (Spring 2019).
