Our Team

Olive Mediation is founded by Mel and Kristal.

  1. We are Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners (FDRPs) (Mediators).

  2. We are both admitted Solicitors of the Supreme Court and High Court of Australia (we don’t wear these hats when we mediate but we bring the practical knowledge and experience which we find to be invaluable).

  3. We are passionate about facilitating difficult conversations and resolving disputes in a variety of settings including separating families and small business.

  4. We offer fixed fees.

  5. Read more about our formal qualifications, experience and approach to mediation below.

Melissa Cossar

Mel is an accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP) and a National Mediator Accreditation System (NMAS) mediator. Mel has a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Communications.

Mel has had a varied career working in construction litigation for Australia’s top tier builders, communications and business development for the Law Society of NSW and then moved back to the Central Coast to take over a family business.

Mel has now come full circle returning to law, practising as a family lawyer in assisting clients with both their parenting and property matters following separation.

Seeing her legal clients spend significant time and money trying to find a way forward in these circumstances gave Mel a true appreciation of the benefits of mediation over litigation.

Working as an FDRP and NMAS mediator, Mel loves seeing how mediation gives clients the opportunity to control their own outcome and keep their families out of the court system.

Mel also understands the challenges of running a business and wishes to help organisations and individuals who are facing unexpected conflict in this space and need an outsider to help them to navigate a solution.

Kristal Naividi

A practicing lawyer since 2011 and holding a Master of Law (Applied Law) majoring in Family Law, Kristal is an experienced family lawyer.

Kristal also holds the following mediation qualifications:

  • Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP),

  • National Mediator Accreditation System (NMAS) Mediator

  • Lawyer Accredited Mediator

When not practicing as a mediator, Kristal works in the family law space practicing as the Principal of a law firm as a collaboratively trained family lawyer on the Central Coast.

Kristal prioritises being a trauma informed practitioner and calls on over a decade of experience as a prosecutor at the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) where she supported victims of crime and family violence on a daily basis.

Providing an empathetic and understanding mediation space for all participants is one of her top priorities.

In her personal life, Kristal has 3 spirited young boys, and understand the practical realities of juggling relationships and children for working parentings.

Kristal has a passion for assisting to resolve complex property settlements in both a legally assisted and party to party settings.

Kristal also enjoys working with separated parents to create practical parenting pathways and agreements and that are child focussed through the process of FDR and the creation of parenting plans that reflect the unique nature of each family.