Mark W. Sims, Attorney & Mediator
Mark W. Sims
Mark W. Sims is an attorney and mediator with 29 years of experience in family law and other areas of general civil litigation. Since 2001, Mr. Sims' primary focus has been dispute resolution, primarily as a mediator, in Travis, Williamson, and Hays counties, as well as in other Central Texas counties and across the state.
It is Mr. Sims' belief that by breaking down areas of conflict into distinct, easy-to-manage pieces (often by incorporating visual aids and computer models that provide quick, accurate calculations), parties to any conflict can identify and understand the variables necessary to achieve a complete agreement. Mr. Sims works to empower mediation participants to make informed decisions when negotiating those variables, so they can work together to arrive at a fair and satisfactory result. Mr. Sims uses a streamlined system that he developed to quickly draft detailed Mediated Settlement Agreements in a clear, efficient manner.
Mark W. Sims is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, where he was President of the Student Bar Association, and has Finance and Marketing degrees from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. Mr. Sims served as President of the Texas Association of Mediators in 2021-2022 and had previously served on the organization's board for several years. He was the co-chair of the 2020 TAM Annual Conference.
It is Mr. Sims' belief that by breaking down areas of conflict into distinct, easy-to-manage pieces (often by incorporating visual aids and computer models that provide quick, accurate calculations), parties to any conflict can identify and understand the variables necessary to achieve a complete agreement. Mr. Sims works to empower mediation participants to make informed decisions when negotiating those variables, so they can work together to arrive at a fair and satisfactory result. Mr. Sims uses a streamlined system that he developed to quickly draft detailed Mediated Settlement Agreements in a clear, efficient manner.
Mark W. Sims is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, where he was President of the Student Bar Association, and has Finance and Marketing degrees from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. Mr. Sims served as President of the Texas Association of Mediators in 2021-2022 and had previously served on the organization's board for several years. He was the co-chair of the 2020 TAM Annual Conference.
Mark W. Sims is a Credentialed Distinguished Mediator with the Texas Mediator Credentialing Association and currently serves on the Board of Directors of that organization.
Mr. Sims is a Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and a Fellow in the Austin Bar Foundation. Mr. Sims, a CV Peer Review Rated Attorney, is a 20-year Fellow of the Texas Bar College, a Professional Society of Legal Scholars. He has facilitated over five thousand mediations, both in family law cases and in other civil litigation matters. Mr. Sims regularly attends continuing education seminars in mediation, family law, and collaborative law, and he significantly exceeds the annual continuing legal education requirements for practicing attorneys in Texas.
Mark W. Sims has given numerous lectures and talks on mediation issues and techniques, family law topics, and Collaborative Law. He regularly speaks at continuing education seminars for attorneys and at mediation training seminars for attorneys and non-attorney mediators, including at his alma mater, the University of Texas School of Law. He is a former chair of the Lawyer Referral Service of Central Texas and has volunteered with VLS of Central Texas, including running a pro se family law clinic.
In 2013, Mr. Sims was awarded the J. Chrys Dougherty Award by Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas in recognition of his volunteer efforts. Mr. Sims is proud of his work to establish an Endowed Presidential Scholarship at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin to honor his close friend and mentor, Joseph H. Culver.
Mark W. Sims is a fluent Spanish speaker and has facilitated hundreds of mediations for Spanish-speaking parties. Mediations facilitated in Spanish are available upon request.
Mark W. Sims has given numerous lectures and talks on mediation issues and techniques, family law topics, and Collaborative Law. He regularly speaks at continuing education seminars for attorneys and at mediation training seminars for attorneys and non-attorney mediators, including at his alma mater, the University of Texas School of Law. He is a former chair of the Lawyer Referral Service of Central Texas and has volunteered with VLS of Central Texas, including running a pro se family law clinic.
In 2013, Mr. Sims was awarded the J. Chrys Dougherty Award by Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas in recognition of his volunteer efforts. Mr. Sims is proud of his work to establish an Endowed Presidential Scholarship at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin to honor his close friend and mentor, Joseph H. Culver.
Mark W. Sims is a fluent Spanish speaker and has facilitated hundreds of mediations for Spanish-speaking parties. Mediations facilitated in Spanish are available upon request.