Elevated Mediation

Julie Ralhan cares deeply about the wellbeing of families, and seeks to use her skills, diligence, and compassion to help people meaningfully resolve conflict.

Julie obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from York University in 1999, a Bachelor of Laws from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2002, and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 2003.  Julie then practiced family law with a focus on child-related issues for two decades in various contexts, including as legal counsel for the Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton, and subsequently as a lawyer for parents, grandparents and other family members in Children’s Aid Society cases.  Julie also obtained a (part-time) Master of Laws in family law from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2009, while working full-time as legal counsel for the Hamilton Children’s Aid Society. Additionally, Julie has had the opportunity to engage in special projects and contractual arrangements during her time as a lawyer, including being outside counsel to the Motherisk Commission, which was established by the Ontario government to examine the reliability of drug testing in child protection cases; and as contract counsel for the Law Society of Ontario, where she dealt with professionalism issues pertaining to family and child protection files.

During and subsequent to the pandemic, Julie became increasingly interested in various issues affecting seniors, including the issue of how to help families in the midst of conflict related to the care of an aging loved one. Julie engaged in the Ontario Association for Family Mediation’s (OAFM) training program in intergenerational (elder) mediation, and holds accreditation through OAFM as an intergenerational (elder) mediator. Julie is also accredited as a family mediator through OAFM. 

Julie’s approach and philosophy as a mediator is to recognize that family conflict can be profoundly painful for all involved. Family members may be experiencing stress, grief and fear in relation to the issues they are being confronted with. Historical family dynamics and grievances may also exacerbate the conflict. Julie believes in speaking the truth with dignity, and equipping and encouraging families to find new ways to resolve conflict. 

Elder Mediation (sometimes referred to as intergenerational mediation) is a cooperative and voluntary process in which a professionally trained and impartial mediator helps facilitate discussions that assist family members in addressing conflict related to age-related issues such as caregiving for an aging loved one, living arrangements, and adult sibling conflict, among many others.

This form of mediation often involves many people such as family members, friends, caregivers, and other service providers. The role of the mediator is to assist the parties to come to a mutually agreeable resolution to the conflict.

There are a number of reasons to consider elder mediation, including the following:

• Unresolved conflict is painful. It exhausts physical and mental resources, and can damage precious family relationships.
• Mediation provides family members with the opportunity to come together to discuss and develop an Elder Care Plan aimed at sharing responsibilities, and accessing community resources, using a non-adversarial model of conflict resolution. This in turn can enhance the quality of life of an aging loved by ensuring the various needs of the person are met, including their physical, emotional, cognitive, social and spiritual needs.  
• Mediation can provide an avenue to deal with underlying issues that the legal system is often unable to deal with, such as intangible values, interpersonal conflict, family history and dynamics, among others.
• Negotiating a comprehensive and workable Elder Care Plan may prevent premature admissions to a long term care facility for seniors who desire to live at home as long as possible.

For further information regarding how to retain Julie as a mediator, please email julieralhan@elevatedmediation.com or call 647-819-5348.

Please note: Elevated Mediation/Julie Ralhan focuses exclusively on providing mediation services (not legal services). If you are seeking a lawyer/need legal advice, the following is a list of possible resources:

Advocacy Center for the Elderly

Phone: 416-598-2656

Website: https://www.acelaw.ca/about/legal-information-services/

Law Society Referral Service

Phone: 1-855-947-5255

Website: https://lsrs.lso.ca/lsrs/welcome

Legal Aid Ontario

Phone: 1-800-668-8258

Website: https://www.legalaid.on.ca/