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I am realizing that many of us call ourselves family lawyers and often it is a misnomer. Unfortunately, often times we are not lawyers who work for families. Many of us have turned our profession into lawyers who work for one party, get enrolled in their drama, and advocate a position based righteousness, hurt feelings - filtered with a little law in between. What am I saying? A family lawyer can be expected to be just that. A lawyer representing one interest, yet being for the entire family. I am suggesting that family law is about the wholeness of the family. Am I a good advocate, yes. Do I get good reliable results for my client, yes. Am I for the families, yes. What am I saying? The job of a family lawyer is to bring professional sanity to a hurt and insane situation. Our job is to bring expertise and compassion to a highly emotional setting. Our job is to advocate for, while redirecting energies and attention to a new future. Yes, a new future. You do not have to always be fighting paren ...
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The act of being thankful, often seems like a far cry from what is happening when engaged in the legal system, especially in matters of family court. When we think of the an adversarial system such as ours, thankfulness is not an idea that comes to mind. However, I want to encourage you to approach your legal situations with a thankful heart. Does that mean, you do not fight for or advance your own interests? No. Does that mean you do not put forth the relevant facts that advance your cause? No. It does mean that as you do those things you bring with you a thankfulness in your heart and mind and a vision for what you want for your future. When is the last time you approached your legal battles with a focus on the future? One of the first things I do with my clients is I have them write down their mission statement for my representation of them. This is so that we begin to get present in writing, what do you want your future to look like after this case is over. Said another way, when you look beyond the em ...
Giving honor to God for life, loved ones, and health is a natural start to my day. It is a natural practice throughout the day that helps us stay centered on what really matters and a natural tendency in this season of thanksgiving and family. As one who represents parents, grandparents, and other family members in family court, I have the privilege to serve all kinds of people in need as they seek to raise their children, care for elderly parents, and make their way in life through major events (e.g., divorce, aging parents, co-parenting between two homes, etc.) The opportunity of these life events is an opportunity to use the court system to be thankful. Yes, thankful. At the heart of the court system is the intention to reunite families and empower people to care for their loved ones. Although some of the parts of the court system do not always work well, the existence of the court is intended for the working and care of families. For example, child welfare law indicates that the court should ...