Biography
Judge Jonathan Silbert’s practice is devoted exclusively to mediation and arbitration, and he is a member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals. Judge Silbert was born in Stamford, Connecticut in 1943 and attended public schools in Stamford and West Hartford. He is a 1965 cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College, where he majored in Government, minored in Russian Civilization, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He received his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1968.
Judge Silbert’s experience includes three years as a legal services attorney and seventeen years in private practice. He has also served on the faculties of Yale Law School and the University of New Haven. For more than a dozen years, he acted as a consultant to the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation’s Justice Program, specializing in issues relating to sentencing and alternatives to incarceration.
Judge Silbert served as Vice-Chairman of the Guilford Board of Education prior to being nominated to the Superior Court bench in 1991 by Governor Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. Over the course of a 21-year judicial career, he served in courthouses in New London, Norwich, Willimantic, Meriden, Middletown and New Haven, presiding over civil, criminal, and juvenile matters.
Long active in continuing education, Judge Silbert has served on faculties for judicial education programs in his home state of Connecticut, as well as Alabama, Delaware, Mississippi, and the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada. Under the auspices of the ABA/CEELI program, he visited the Republic of Georgia twice in 1999 to speak on judicial independence and judicial ethics, and that same year he participated in a conference on the prosecution of official corruption cases at the St. Petersburg Law Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia. In February of 2001, he delivered a paper called “Citizen Participation in the Administration of Justice” at the First International Conference of the Korea Criminology Association and lectured on judicial ethics at Seoul National University College of Law.
Building on his interest in Russian history, language, and culture, Judge Silbert chaired the Connecticut-Pskov Rule of Law Partnership, an affiliate of the Russian-American Rule of Law Consortium, from 2002 through 2012. During that period, he conducted seminars in Pskov and other cities in Russia an average of twice a year on such subjects as jury trials, judicial ethics, mediation, and the media and the courts.
In 2001, the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association honored Judge Silbert with its annual Judiciary Award. In 2003, the Connecticut Bar Association presented him with the Henry J. Naruk Judiciary Award. In 2005, he was the recipient of the Hon. Robert A. Zampano Award for Excellence in Mediation. In 2010, he received an award for Professionalism and Civility from the Connecticut Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and in 2013, the New Haven County Bar Association presented him with its Yale Sappern Civility Award.
During the many years he served as a Presiding Civil Judge, Judge Silbert developed an interest in various forms of dispute resolution, earning a reputation for his skills not only in deciding cases at trial, but also in mediating cases to a successful conclusion without trial. He has lectured on mediation in Connecticut, as well as in the Russian Federation and Ecuador. In 2012, after 21 years as a judge, he has returned to Garrison, Levin-Epstein, the successor of the law firm he helped to found in 1977, with a practice devoted exclusively to Mediation and Arbitration.
Judge Silbert has been married to his wife, Bonnie McHale, for more than 40 years. Their twin daughters, Corey and Jessica, are, respectively, a physical therapist and a fashion designer. Off the bench, he travels widely, plays squash several times a week, and also enjoys photography, entomology, and scuba diving. On October 7 and 8, 1998, he appeared as a contestant on the television quiz program, “Jeopardy!”
Client Experiences
Thank you, Judge Silbert. This was truly an unusually difficult matter for many reasons as you know, and at least for my side, I don't think we would have been able to reach settlement without your assistance. - Former Client
. . .I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to you for all of your efforts last Friday during the mediation. It is clear to me that this case would not have settled if it had been with another mediator. The time, effort, patience and wisdom you extended to us allowed us to finally achieve a common goal: settlement . . .your guidance, hard work and knowledge, without a doubt, provided more relief to these parties than one could ever have imagined. - Former Client
I also believe even more so that without mediation with Judge Silbert, the opportunity for recovery may have been lost. - Former Client
Judge Silbert, Thank-you again for all of your hard work, assistance, and even some refereeing. Your help in resolving this dispute was greatly appreciated. - Former Client
I just wanted to thank you again for your assistance in bringing the [X] matter to resolution. As you noted, it was an unconventional and odd case, but after spending time with my client and his wife you can no doubt understand why I took on the matter. Your ability to get the “big picture” early on and to deftly steer the parties through a narrow channel full of obstacles was impressive, and key to the successful outcome. - Former Client
Blog Posts
News
August 17th, 2023 Every Garrison Law Attorney Named to Best Lawyers for 2024
February 8th, 2022 Judge Silbert Interviewed By the New Haven County Bar Association
June 22nd, 2020 Mediations Are on the Rise, and Experts Expect Them to Continue After Courthouses Reopen
March 6th, 2020 Judge Silbert Helps Church Street South Residents, Northland Reach $18.75 Million Settlement
November 10th, 2017 Garrison, Levin-Epstein, Fitzgerald & Pirrotti Turns 40
December 16th, 2014 Thoughts on Mediating Employment Cases
June 9th, 2014 Judge Silbert Inducted into National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals
August 26th, 2012 Judge extends New Haven Fire Department oversight; special master must OK all promotions
July 27th, 2012 School Bus Crash Victims Settle for $6.5 Million
