Influential Woman · Mediation
Natalie Batista
Partner and Lead Mediator at Spear Mediation Services, Tip of the Spear Mediation Services
Irvine, CA
Her Story
About Natalie
Natalie Batista is a legal and conflict-resolution professional with 8 years of experience in mediation, dispute resolution, and advocacy. She recently opened her own mediation company and serves as partner and lead mediator at Spear Mediation Services. Her responsibilities include helping parties reach resolutions through mediation, drawing on her background to empower clients to create their own agreements rather than relying on the court system. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Chapman University and a Juris Doctor from Western State University in Irvine. She also completed mediation training through Chapman University and divorce mediation training through Orange County Human Relations. Batista is a member of the American Bar Association and participates in online mediation groups. She volunteers her time with the non-profit Waymakers when possible and received the DERPA Award from Waymakers approximately 4 to 5 years ago. Her interest in the field was sparked by her parents' experiences with divorce and mediation, and she attributes her success to them. Batista values peace and a resolution-based mindset, aiming to help people resolve conflicts efficiently while prioritizing personal well-being.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Natalie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my parents. For better or for worse, they had their own issues when I was growing up, and I often felt like I was their mediator. That sparked my interest. I watched my parents go through a divorce, and they dealt with attorneys for a few years and then ended up utilizing mediation at the end, and that is kind of what saved their relationship as friends.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
It's more life advice than career advice, but just keep going, listen to yourself. There were so many times that I felt like I didn't, and I think my path that I was meant to follow kept showing up. Even if it's scary, just keep going. Like, you'll never know if you don't do it. If you don't try, you'll never know. My dad got sick a year ago, and when you're on your deathbed, you're not thinking about all the things that you did, you're thinking about all the things that you could have done and didn't do.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
There was more complications for me as a woman being in the law field. In general, there's always people that are going to have their preferences. But the best thing you can do is just prove them wrong. Keep being confident.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenges are definitely everyone's coming in with a problem. So the tensions are high, the feelings are high. That's where I credit a lot of my psychology background, is how do you calm people down? How do you get people to the point of I don't need a judge to tell me I'm right. That I'm gonna feel better if I figure this out myself. But it's a matter of working with people and getting those feelings out and then balancing out.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I want to say peace. I think there's a lot of that lacking, and I see, especially after going to law school, there's so many people that want to argue. I want to say people's personal well-being on top of just general peace. And having that resolution-based mindset. At the end of the day, I really want everyone to be able to deal with their problems as efficiently as possible, and that way it aids them in just feeling better moving on instead of feeling worse. Feeling peaceful.
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