We hired Debra Bogaards to represent us after our beloved mother passed away as the result of negligent administration of medications at a reputable, upscale assisted living. Day by day we watched her decline, took her to medical appointments and were told by her doctors that they did not understand why. After her admission to the hospital, we discovered that nursing staff failed to administer prescribed medication; the unused pills were sitting unopened in our mother’s pill basket at the nurse’s station.

This was a painful, unnecessary and premature loss.  We did not want other families to experience such an awful decline and death; we felt the assisted living facility had to remediate their practices and be held accountable.

Debra was an outstanding representative for us.  We were exhausted, upset and bereft. Debra’s strength, confidence and knowledge comforted us. She helped us let go of the heavy responsibility of addressing the elder abuse because she carried it in her capable hands. Debra is uplifting to work with; she brings positive energy to all of her interactions, including with the opposing side and the mediator. Her strength and optimism reduces stress in naturally stressful situations. She has deep knowledge and experience and expertly researches case specific information.  She is well prepared, a strong advocate, and is patient and respectful with her clients throughout the decision-making process.

Our result was very satisfying.  The assisted living changed their protocol and instituted ongoing nursing supervision for the administration of medications.  In addition, we received financial compensation. The results Debra achieved for us were excellent and helped us gain closure.

We highly recommend Debra as an advocate. She has high integrity, tremendous energy and gets results.

Miriam & Robert Mills

I recently had to mediate a complex and difficult case, where opposing counsel and I agreed to use Debra as the mediator. I found her to be extraordinarily competent, empathetic and efficient in getting my case resolved.

Debra was very thorough, read through and understood all the materials, and was very well prepared. She privately met with the parties and impressed upon them the risks each of them faced by going to trial. As a result, the parties reached a compromise which was fair, and only accomplished because Debra was able to see the case from a good perspective from both the plaintiff and the defendant’s point of view.

REUBEN J. DONIG

A month before trial, Ms. Bogaards successfully mediated a challenging personal injury case and was able to effectively bridge a vast cultural and legal divide, to broker a settlement acceptable to all.

SHELLEY KRAMER