Courtenay trained as a mediator with ADR Group.
He is a barrister with a wide-ranging commercial and civil practice. He is an attorney-at-law in California and an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University. He is also an arbitrator through National Arbitration and Mediation (NAM) and Consumer Dispute Resolution Ltd (CDRL).
Before becoming a barrister, Courtenay used to work on rule of law reform and justice sector capacity-building in post-conflict countries which means that he has experience in negotiating high-level, sensitive issues in a diplomatic way.
Courtenay originally qualified as a lawyer into construction and arbitration law, dealing with complex, high-value cases where the stakes are high. He has also diversified into employment law where the disputes are often highly personal and highly charged.
Through his legal practice, he has on numerous occasions represented parties in mediations which successfully achieved a resolution. This has given him the perspective to understand how the participants feel and what they want from the mediator.
He tries to bring that insight into his mediation practice, so that he can assist the parties in de-escalating and seeing past the immediate dispute in favour of the opportunities in a conflict-free future.