About Michael T.
Michael T. Kleps is an attorney who combines dispute resolution work with community service. He holds certification as a mediator from the Whatcom Dispute Resolution Center and serves as a hospice volunteer for Whatcom County Hospice. Those dual roles inform each other. The mediation work requires calm and impartiality. The hospice work requires presence and listening.
Kleps trained and qualified as a lawyer before adding formal mediation credentials. Over the years he has moved between direct client work and neutral third‑party roles. He has chosen to maintain both strands in his professional life. That choice reflects an interest in how law and human relationships intersect.
Certification through the Whatcom Dispute Resolution Center signals formal training in facilitation, negotiation, and settlement practice. In mediation sessions Kleps guides parties through structured conversations. He emphasizes clear ground rules and sustained attention to the issues each side brings. He works to keep exchanges focused and to preserve confidentiality, two elements often central to reaching workable outcomes.
At Whatcom County Hospice Kleps volunteers in a setting that is largely outside typical legal practice. The hospice role is not legal advocacy. It is companionship and practical support for individuals and families facing serious illness. That experience shapes how he approaches difficult conversations in mediation. It also gives him direct exposure to the kind of emotional complexity that can accompany family disputes and end‑of‑life planning.
Colleagues describe his style as measured. He tends to prefer direct questions that clarify interests rather than abstract legal posturing. He prepares parties for what mediation can and cannot accomplish. He stresses process over rhetoric and often lays out simple options for next steps. That approach can speed resolution and reduce the time parties spend in contention.
Kleps’s professional life bridges neutral dispute resolution and community service. He continues to serve as a certified mediator and to volunteer at Whatcom County Hospice while maintaining an active legal practice. He currently practices law and serves as a mediator and hospice volunteer.
