Mediation
Resolving commercial disputes
Without the cost and uncertainty of trial.
Peter Agardy is a Nationally Accredited Mediator and a Doyle's Leading Mediator (Victoria, 2025), with more than two decades at the Victorian Bar and over four decades in the law. He is appointed mediator in a wide range of commercial, insolvency and corporate disputes.
Why Peter
Most disputes settle. The question is when, at what cost, and on whose terms. Peter brings to mediation the same qualities that have made him a sought-after commercial counsel: a forensic grasp of the law, an instinct for where the real obstacles to settlement lie, and the patience to work through them.
Parties brief Peter because he understands their disputes from the inside. Thirty years as a solicitor and barrister — much of it in insolvency, banking, trusts and corporate litigation — means he rarely needs the law explained to him. He can move quickly to the commercial heart of a matter and help parties test their positions realistically against the risks of running it.
He has been recognised by Doyle's Guide as a Leading Mediator in Victoria (2025) and received the Law Institute of Victoria President's Award for Outstanding Service (2023).
Areas of mediation practice
Peter is regularly appointed to mediate disputes involving:
- —Insolvency and bankruptcy — voidable transactions, insolvent trading and director liability, trustee and liquidator claims, creditor disputes
- —Commercial and corporate disputes — contract, shareholder and partnership disputes, oppression claims
- —Banking and lending — guarantees, securities, and enforcement
- —Trusts — including trading trusts and trustee indemnity disputes
- —Owners corporations
- —Sporting and disciplinary disputes — drawing on his work as a Conciliator on the AFL Vilification and Discrimination Panel
His insolvency expertise is a particular point of difference. Few mediators can navigate the interaction between a commercial dispute and an insolvent party, a corporate trustee, or competing creditor priorities with the same fluency. Peter has published on exactly this intersection — his article "Mediation and the Insolvency Practitioner" appeared in the Insolvency Law Journal.
Approach
Peter mediates in a way that is rigorous but pragmatic. He prepares thoroughly, engages directly with the parties and their advisors, and is alert to the human and commercial realities that sit behind the legal positions.
He has spoken nationally on the craft of mediation itself — including "The Importance of Language in Mediation" (National Mediation Conference, 2021) and "Mediation in Sports Disputes" (National Mediation Conference, 2018) — and is a member of the Victorian Association for Restorative Justice.
The goal is always the same: a durable resolution the parties can live with, reached as efficiently as the dispute allows.
Accreditation and recognition
- —Nationally Accredited Mediator under the Australian National Mediator Accreditation Scheme (NMAS)
- —Doyle's Guide — Leading Mediator, Victoria (2025)
- —Conciliator, AFL Vilification and Discrimination Panel
- —Member, Victorian Association for Restorative Justice
- —Law Institute of Victoria President's Award for Outstanding Service (2023)
- —Admitted in Victoria, New South Wales and the Federal jurisdictions
Arrange a mediation
Enquire about Peter's availability.
To enquire about Peter's availability or discuss a prospective mediation, use the contact form below or reach out directly.
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