Winner of the 2025 OBA Award of Excellence in Alternative Dispute Resolution reflects on a career dedicated to healing and resolution
To open this newsletter season, we are delighted to feature an inspiring conversation with Jay Rudolph, the
recipient of the 2025 OBA Award of Excellence in ADR. Jay’s work and reputation in the field of mediation have long earned him the respect of colleagues, clients, and peers across the profession. I had the honour of sitting down with Jay to talk about his practice, his aspirations, and moments of reflection that reveal both nostalgia and gratitude. Our discussion offered a window into the thoughtful and grounded approach that has defined his career and the deep sense of purpose that continues to guide his work.
That sense of purpose is rooted in both experience and gratitude. Even after 32 years as a mediator, Jay still remembers the moment that he launched his career. It was November 1993 when Cliff Hendler, a founding figure of mediation in Ontario, called him about a case. Over lunch, Hendler gave the newly trained mediator his first opportunity, a chance that would shape the next three decades of Jay's professional life. "I definitely am extremely grateful to Cliff Hendler for giving me that opportunity and encouraging me and mentoring me," Jay recalls. "I will forever be grateful to him." That gratitude has become a cornerstone of Jay's philosophy as he receives the 2025 OBA Award of Excellence in ADR, the most significant honour of his career, he says.