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Press Releases
Michael S. Gillie Joins Taecan.com as V.P. Business Development, Content Acquisition & Corporate Communications
Michael is a 1977 graduate of the University of Puget Sound School of Law and he practiced law in Seattle for several years. Recognizing a need for a different approach, in 1981 Michael founded a private company offering impartial "alternative dispute resolution" services--mediation, arbitration, training, and customized settlement programs. These services had never been offered before and were not understood by the business or legal communities. Over the next decade, Michael became a nationally-known "pioneer" in the mediation field, and his business grew from one office in Seattle to locations throughout the United States and in Canada and Europe. He gave speeches and presented seminars around the country, and appeared on programs such as "Good Morning America with Joan Lunden" and NBC "Sunday Today". He also designed dozens of dispute-settlement programs including a nationwide program for asbestos health claims for the $3.0 billion Manville Trust, the Washington State "Lemon Law" Arbitration Program, and several class actions. As President of these companies, Michael developed and oversaw all aspects of this explosive growth including: Strategic Planning, Financial Planning & Controls, Negotiation of Business Contracts, Business Development, Public & Media Relations, Training, Employment, Program Design, and Legal Affairs/Problem Solving. He placed a special emphasis on Business Development, where he worked in virtually every vertical market in the country. When he sold these businesses in 1995, they were both the local and national leaders in mediation services-resolving approximately 1000 cases per month-- and ADR was part of the day-to-day practice of law. Michael is 49 years old, and he and his wife live with their four daughters on their 38 acre farm in Snohomish, Washington. Since selling the mediation businesses, Michael has been appointed by the courts numerous times as a Receiver to run businesses-including a 3 year effort managing and then selling a West Coast chain of radio stations, music stores and other properties. He has also mediated several significant cases and acted as a business consultant. He began with Taecan.com as a volunteer, and now has become a full-time employee. "The internet is a very exciting field to work in, and online training is clearly proving itself as a worthwhile service to be offering. Throughout my career I've looked for "common sense" solutions to business issues, and giving attorneys the ability to take their CLE training when their schedule permits-nights and weekends rather than time out of the office--clearly meets that definition. It's no surprise that this business is really taking off." Michael S. Gillie About Taecan.com. Taecan is Old English for " To teach". Taecan.com is a Seattle based Internet company that offers a convenient and affordable alternative to seminar style " fixed time and place" CLE seminars. The company, founded by an attorney and educator, has rapidly aggregated the largest online library of approved CLE titles in the world by partnering with Bar Associations to deploy their content over the Internet. Taecan.com has similar contracts with numerous other Bar organizations including the Florida Bar, the New York City Bar, the Ohio Bar, the State Bar of California, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the Houston Bar; and with numerous other CLE content providers In addition to the courses offered for purchase, any user may take a free sample course at Taecan.com. This course is being offered to Ohio lawyers to familiarize them with Taecan.com and the Internet as a legal education delivery tool. The sample class does not allow the user to receive credit for the course, but it allows the attorney to have the Taecan.com experience. This fully-functional site enables users to review course materials, take quizzes and tests, and report CLE credit electronically, all online. While significant effort went into the implementation of this site, it is only the beginning: improvements will be added based on Taecan.com's business-plan directives and customer and investor feedback.
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