Chris Osborn
Chris Osborn Neutral
See Rates Below

Overview

Chris Osborn

Drawing upon 30+ years of litigation experience and his extensive training as a mediator and collaborative lawyer, Chris Osborn has helped parties reach amicable resolutions in hundreds of disputes involving complex legal issues and difficult interpersonal dynamics. Chris frequently mediates complicated disputes involving real estate and construction contracts allegations of professional malpractice or breach of fiduciary duties, contested wills and estates, and ownership and control disputes among owners of closely held corporations and LLCs.

As a collaboratively trained family lawyer and family financial mediator, he also mediates complex equitable distribution, post-separation support/alimony, and child custody matters.

Chris was certified by the N.C. Dispute Resolution Commission as a superior court mediator in 2009, and in 2016 he was among the first cohort of North Carolina lawyers to be trained in collaborative law practice for civil disputes. In 2017, he began practicing family law, and in 2021, he was also certified by the N.C. Dispute Resolution Commission as a family financial settlement mediator.

From 2012-2015, Chris was an assistant professor at the Charlotte School of Law, where he taught “Interviewing, Client Counseling, and Negotiations,” along with first year classes in contracts and civil procedure. Since 2016, he has owned and operated The Law Offices of D. Christopher Osborn, PLLC. He joined Miles’ Charlotte panel in November 2022.

Admitted to Practice

  • North Carolina State Bar, 1995
  • All North Carolina state district, superior, and appellate courts
  • Western District of North Carolina, 1995
  • Eastern District of North Carolina, 1995
  • Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. 1996
  • Middle District of North Carolina, 1997

Education

  • University of Virginia School of Law, J.D., 1995
    Honors/Awards: Hardy Cross Dillard Scholarship (full tuition plus stipend)
    Activities: Virginia Law Review — Editorial Board (1993-94); Articles Review Board (1994-95); Law Christian Fellowship; Libel Show (writer and performer)
  • University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, B.A. with highest distinction, 1992
    Honors/Awards:  James M. Johnston Scholarship (full financial need award); James L. Whitfield Prize for best Undergraduate English Honors Thesis (1992); Phi Beta Kappa, UNC Honors Program, National Merit Scholar, Dean’s List
    Activities:  Student Attorney General’s Staff; Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity; Intervarsity Christian Fellowship; Dialectic and Philanthropic Literary and Debating Societies; LAB Theatre; intramural sports.

Professional or Trade Affiliations

  • Mecklenburg County Bar (Grievance Committee, 2013-16; Fee Dispute Committee, 2016-18; Professionalism, Lawyer Life, & Culture Committee, 2003-2010)
  • North Carolina Bar Association (Professional Vitality Committee, 2021-25; Dispute Resolution Section)
  • American Bar Association (Dispute Resolution Section)
  • Global Collaborative Law Council
  • International Academy of Collaborative Professionals
  • North Carolina Civil Collaborative Law Association
  • North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission
  • Charlotte Collaborative Divorce Professionals
  • Academy of Professional Family Mediators

Publications


Representative Mediation Experience

Chris has successfully mediated the following disputes:

  • Numerous construction contract disputes between general contractors and subcontractors involving money owed, lien claims, warranty claims, and claims of defective or incomplete work.
  • An alienation of affections action and related real property/business dispute, following an alleged affair between plaintiff’s wife and defendant, a general contractor who had performed substantial construction projects for the couple. Defendant contractor’s wife had exposed the affair to plaintiff and had previously filed and settled an alienation of affections claim against plaintiff’s wife. Companies owned by the couple and general contractor had also entered a financing agreement, promissory note, and deed of trust to jointly invest in real estate property for development purposes, and general contractor had filed claims alleging either breach or invalidity/voidability of the real estate contracts.
  • Will caveat claim between once-estranged daughter of the deceased and deceased’s longtime domestic partner regarding validity of decedent’s purported revocation of a will in favor of the partner.
  • Partition sale action and related claims between co-owners who were former domestic partners and had jointly purchased their home and investment property through an LLC.
  • Numerous partition sale actions among joint heirs to real property.
  • A contract dispute arising out of a business acquisition, including claim for a $300K unpaid purchase price and counterclaims for breach of contract, fraud in the inducement of the contract, and alleged violations of non-compete by seller.
  • Racial and gender discrimination claims under Title VII by high-ranking federal government official versus Department of Homeland Security and Transportation Safety Administration.
  • Complex commercial landlord-tenant dispute involving claims and counterclaims for breach of implied warranty of habitability, breach of contract, unfair and deceptive trade practices, fraud in the inducement, conversion, and unjust enrichment.
  • Hotly contested will caveat action involving dispute over which of decedent’s two wills was valid and in effect at the time of his death.

Honors and Awards

  • Best Lawyers in America (2025)
  • NC SuperLawyers 2025

Community Involvement

  • Harris YMCA (Girls’ Rec League soccer coach, U-8 through U-14, 2008-15)
  • Uptown Church (1996-2002; ruling elder, small group leader)
  • Hope Community Church (2002-19; ruling elder, small group leader)
  • West Charlotte Church (2019-2022; worship team)
  • Warehouse 242 Church (2022- present; Men’s Leadership Team)
Rates and Fees

Rates - Chris Osborn

If you have questions regarding our rates and fees, please contact support@milesadr.com

Charlotte Rates
2 Party Case: $200 per party; per hour
3 Party Case: $175 per party; per hour
4 Party Case: $150 per party; per hour
5+ Party Case: Flat Rate Available Upon Request

Travel time and expenses, including meals and lodging, billed separately and split equally among the parties at the Neutral's hourly rate.
Pre/Post Consultation & Document Review: Hourly Mediation/Arbitration Rate

Mediation Admin Fees
Charlotte Mediation Admin Fee - $200 per party

MEDIATION CANCELLATION POLICY

Mediations cancelled within 10 days of the mediation will be charged a cancellation fee of $500. However, mediations cancelled, rescheduled or settled within 24 hours of the mediation will be charged 4 hrs. of the Neutral's hourly rate . Cancellation fees shall be sent to the cancelling party unless otherwise agreed to by the parties.