Do you need a family law lawyer?
Every family is unique and many family law cases involve novel issues. Family law issues can be more complex than they first appear to be. It requires an attorney, like myself, committed to lifelong learning in the area of family law, and who has been involved in family law litigation and mediation for over a decade.
Delivering excellent custody results is what gives me the greatest satisfaction. I am well versed in all aspects of family law, including property division, child support, spousal support and domestic violence litigation.
It is not wise to hire an attorney for your family law case who does not have a practice dedicated to family law. I bring many years of experience with the typical issues that confront families as they go through divorce for their first time, and provide perspective and guidance during this tough time.
“My approach seeks to consider the overall long-term health of a family, protect the client’s interests, preserve the adult relationship of spouses when possible, shield children from the court process, and help parents work together.”
Family law is my passion.
I was a family law paralegal for more than a decade before becoming a lawyer. I went to law school so that I could advocate for parents and spouses in the courtroom and negotiate for clients.
What to Expect
The court process is slow, consumes time, saps energy and exhausts emotion. I have witnessed what years of litigation can do to a family, even when the client obtains the results they want in court.
The process that litigants must navigate is not easy, even if everyone agrees. There are many tools in the tool box and selecting the right tool for the outcome a client wants is central to delivering the desired result. Keeping a case on budget is also critical to delivering the result a client desires. It is important to make wise or economical actions to advance your case.
Whenever possible, and when it is in the client’s best interest, mediation is an approach that should be explored. But mediation is only one tool. Litigation is an equally important tool that often must be used to deliver an outcome desired by a client.
A big factor in a case is the actions and expectations of the other spouse/parent, and they type of lawyer they hire. These factors are outside a client’s control. But a client can control the selection of their own attorney which one of the most important decisions made in a case.
Schedule a Consultation
I am happy to schedule a conference to meet with you to make sure that I am the right fit for your family law case.
Family Law Attorney - Los Angeles
➤ LOCATION
225 S. Lake Avenue, 3nd Floor, Pasadena, CA 91101
☎ CONTACT
(626) 657-0115
Areas of Practice
Divorce
In California, parties must wait at least 6 months before they can get divorced. But, in reality, most divorces take years. Even in the rare cases where everyone agrees to an early global settlement of all issues, or to resolve only the issue of marital status in a separate judgment, it can take the court many more months to enter a divorce judgment.
In short, expect delays. You cannot plan your divorce party just yet.
Property Division
In divorce, all of the assets and debts need to be identified, characterized, valued and divided. The mandatory disclosures, and discovery process, help spouses identify the assets and debts which then need to be characterized as either community property or separate property.
Sometimes post-judgment enforcement actions are needed for a spouse to receive the ‘equalization payment’ due under the terms of the judgment.
PRENUPTIAL agreements
Prenuptial agreements have a bad reputation. Many people either feel that it is wrong to get one or getting one makes them a ‘gold digger,’ or are uncomfortable having financial discussions and disclosures before the big day.
Instead, a prenuptial agreement should be viewed as the contract that sets the financial terms of the new business partnership formed by the marriage.
Custody
Preparing for custody hearings requires careful preparation and extensive fact gathering.
When parents work out custody arrangements that allow the child or children to thrive in their re-configured family without court intervention, that is optimal.
Domestic Violence
Sadly, domestic violence is present in many marriages and intimate/family relationships. Our local courts have judges and commissioners dedicated to providing victims with protection in the form of restraining orders lasting anywhere from one to five years.
Move aways
In our mobile society, Parents often move from state to state, or from distant county to distant county. Parents have a constitutional right to live wherever they want, but must seek Court permission to relocate with their minor child (when that move changes the primary residence of the minor child).
Spousal Support
Early in a case, a spouse can ask the court for spousal support. If you need spousal support early in a case, you must act quickly as each month you wait is another month you will likely not get spousal support.
Spousal support litigation needs to be cost-conscious as there is a cap on what is possible to obtain versus the cost to obtain that result. Rational considerations must balance the desire to receive the maximum one can receive under the law which is difficult to precisely calculate since the amount of spousal support is set at the discretion of the trial court.
Child Support
Child support is determined by a ‘guideline formula’ using a computer program. Much of the time the ‘guideline formula’ really does not provide enough for a parent to raise a child in most of Los Angeles County, and can generate a windfall to the parent paying child support. Other times, it can financially crush the parent paying child support, especially if not based on the true incomes.
If you need child (or spousal) support, or need to modify your child (or spousal) support order, you cannot wait, and must file an application with the court immediately. Each month that you wait is likely another month of support you will not receive, or another month of overpaying support that the court cannot retroactively modify.
“Delivering child-focused custody results is a central part of my work.”
