Experienced Massachusetts Domestic Relations and Appellate Attorney Providing Smart, Sophisticated Advocacy to Protect the Rights of Individuals and Companies

Family Law Attorney and Certified Financial Litigator

As a  family law attorney and a certified financial litigator, I steer my clients through a wide range of complex family matters.  These include everything from hotly-contested child custody disputes to the analysis of complex business and compensation structures in the context of alimony and property division.  In thirty years of practice, I have worked with countless child-centered professionals and financial gurus to achieve the optimal parental and financial outcomes for the women and men I represent.  I know when to compromise and when to not give an inch.  My goal is to ensure that your life after family court leaves you with a solid foundation for a satisfying future.  I know that no two family law cases are alike, so I work with my clients and not at my clients.  We are a team.  Having gone through the divorce process myself, I am keenly aware of the expense and the emotional turmoil.  My commitment is spend your money wisely and give you all the resources you need to move forward with confidence.

All areas of family law are in my wheelhouse:  divorce, modification, paternity, interstate custody, adoption, and domestic violence.  My clients include traditional and non-traditional families.  I most frequently appear in the Probate and Family Courts of Essex, Norfolk, Middlesex, Suffolk, Plymouth, Bristol, and Barnstable counties.

Guardian ad Litem

I am a qualified Category F Guardian ad Litem.  The Court appoints me to conduct investigations and make recommendations on custody matters.  As a GAL, I am constantly taking courses in family dynamics and child development. I am a member of the Massachusetts Association of Guardians ad Litem and the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Massachusetts Chapter.

Mediator and Conciliator

Recently, I became both a qualified mediator and a Suffolk Probate and Family Court conciliator.  Mediation is private and confidential.  It offers individuals and companies a way to creatively resolve conflicts among themselves rather than leaving their fates to a judge who has limited options for resolving the case and limited time to hear you out.  Litigation is expensive and stressful, and you have little control over the process. In a mediation, you and the other party are in control. I act as a skilled moderator, but the parties set the agenda and craft their own solutions.  I draw up the final agreement.  We can meet in my conference room or remotely. 

Conciliation is a more directed process.  A conciliator tries to get the parties to settle by providing a  realistic, experienced perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of each person’s case.  In conciliation, I am an active participant, making every effort to settle the case, or parts of the case. Conciliation sessions can be in person or done remotely.

Appellate Advocacy and Practice

When you lose your case at the trial level, or if the other party loses, an appeal is often a viable option.  The appeals process is governed by completely different rules than the trial process, and those rules can set traps for the unwary.  In addition to representing clients in domestic relations matters, I offer clients a wealth of experience and insight in appellate advocacy and practice.  For twelve years, I served as a Senior Attorney at the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.  I worked closely with the justices on matters of first impression concerning constitutional, statutory, and common law in civil and criminal appeals.  As an appellate litigator, I have appeared before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court in matters ranging from family law to personal injury law to criminal law.  Some representative appellate cases include D.B. v. J.B.,  97 Mass. App. Ct. 170 (2020); Ogles v. Johnson,  Appeals Court No.  18-P-841 (June 20, 2019); and, Commonwealth v.  Stampley,  Appeals Court No. 14-1535 (December  23, 2015).  My services as an appellate lawyer are available to individuals and organizations.  I also coach or assist attorneys seeking advice about crafting an appellate strategy, briefing the case, and presenting oral argument.