My firm is dedicated to assisting clients with the most important part of their life – their family. Although your family may be changing as you separate or divorce, that change does not have to turn into a legal battle that may harm your relationship with others. If you have children, no doubt they will be affected by the separation, but they can also be harmed by the process. The process option you select and the attorney you hire will affect not only the legal outcome of your matter, but it may also affect your ongoing relationship with others and, if you have children, their well-being.
I clerked for a family court judge from 1986-1987 and observed family law litigation almost daily from inside the courtroom. Since 1989, I have personally litigated hundreds of family law disputes including child support, child custody, grandparent’s and third-party custody, division of property, protection from abuse, possession of the marital home, and many other types of disputes. I have represented individuals from nearly every walk of life. From 1987 through December 2010, most of my work was in litigation in a larger law firm context with a few collaborative law cases from 2007-2010. Since January 2011, my law practice has been as a sole practitioner either litigating family law cases or working to resolve them outside of court. In more recent years, my work has focused more and more on out-of-court processes to resolve family law matters.
Education and Experience
- Graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law
- Attorney with a law firm in Fairfax, Virginia for 9 months
- Law Clerk, Washington County Court of Common Pleas for 14 months
- Attorney with a commercial litigation firm in Pittsburgh for 2 years
- Attorney with a general practice firm in the Mon Valley for almost 12 years
- Attorney with two family law and divorce firms in Pittsburgh for 10 years
- Sole-practitioner attorney from 2011 to present
Court Admissions and Associations
- Virginia State Bar
- Pennsylvania State Bar
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
- Member – Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA)
- First Chairperson – PBA Collaborative Law Committee
- Member – PBA Family Law Section
- Member – PBA Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Committee
- Member Allegheny, Butler, and Washington County Bar Associations
- Founding Member and Former Officer – Collaborative Law Association of Southwestern Pennsylvania
- Member – International Academy of Collaborative Professionals
- Matrimonial Inns of Court, Pittsburgh Chapter – participated five years
Most of my professional career has been in court or preparing for court. I have come to realize that in most cases a client’s interests are better served by avoiding the courtroom. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss your legal options both in court and outside of court to resolve your matter.
