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Overview
Motions, Discovery, Assets, Child Custody and Support Issues, Settlement, and Trial
Can you navigate the divorce process with ease? Are you looking for practice pointers, best practices, and sample forms to build your divorce practice? Our veteran faculty will provide you with a solid foundation and real-world tips for handling each key step of a divorce case. Start the case off on the right foot, streamline your motion practice, pick up discovery tools, get insights on valuing/dividing marital property, and more. Don't miss this fast-paced, information-packed program - register today!
- Go beyond the textbook - gain real-life insights from attorneys who have mastered their craft.
- Receive sample pleadings, discovery requests, agreements, motions, checklists, and other documents.
- Leave no stone unturned: explore methods for uncovering undisclosed assets and liabilities.
- Learn how to properly use divorce experts and gain pointers on examining them.
- Understand the core mechanics of valuing and dividing different types of marital assets.
- Help clients work out and calculate parental responsibility, parenting time, and support.
- Get practical tips for navigating divorce settlements and trials.
Abbreviated Agenda
- Client Intake and Preliminary Steps
- Motions in Divorce (with Samples)
- Discovery Procedure and Finding Hidden Assets
- Experts in Divorce
- Valuing and Dividing Assets
- Custody, Visitation, and Support: A Practical Guide
- Negotiating the Final Settlement and Trial
- Legal Ethics
Credit Details
Credits Available
There is no credit available on this course.
Select Jurisdiction
Agenda
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Client Intake and Preliminary Steps
- Client Interview and Initial Analysis
- Answers to Common Client Questions
- Process Selection and Informed Consent
- Venue and Jurisdiction Considerations
- Pleadings and Responses (With Samples)
- Sample Intake Form
- Divorce Law Checklist
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Motions in Divorce (with Samples)
- Key Considerations
- Procedures for Making and Responding to Motions
- Protective Orders
- Motions for Temporary Orders (Support, Custody, etc.) - With Supporting Documentation
- Effective Use of Discovery and Other Pre-Trial Motions
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Discovery Procedure and Finding Hidden Assets
- Disclosure Requirements
- Timing and Scope of Discovery
- Effective Interrogatories, Requests for Production, Requests for Admissions
- Responses and Objections
- Subpoenas to Banks, Phone Companies, Social Media Companies, etc.
- Depositions in Divorce
- Social Media, Email, Smartphone Evidence, etc.
- Finding Undisclosed/Hidden Assets: Tips and Techniques
- Sample Discovery Requests and Checklists
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Experts in Divorce
- Divorce Experts: What They Do, When and How to Use Them
- Working With Experts and Preparing Them for Testimony (With Checklists)
- Direct and Cross Examination - Quick Tips and Sample Questions
- Accountants and Appraisers
- Business Valuators
- Custody Evaluators, Mental Health Experts, Guardians Ad Litem
- Financial Planners
- Vocational Experts
- Medical Experts
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Valuing and Dividing Assets
- Tracing Commingled/Transmuted Assets
- Real Property
- QDROs and Retirement Plans
- Stock Options
- Business Valuations
- Trust Valuations
- Intangible Property
- Life and Health Insurance
- Debt, Foreclosure, and Bankruptcy
- Common Mistakes in Dividing Assets
- Settlement Traps to Avoid
- Basic Tax Issues to be Aware of
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Custody, Visitation, and Support: A Practical Guide
- Custody Options, Procedures, and Forms
- Tips for Negotiating Child Custody and Visitation
- Sample Parenting Plan
- Child Support Considerations, Calculations, Guideline Worksheet, Deviations
- Spousal Support Considerations, Calculations, Deviations
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Negotiating the Final Settlement and Trial
- Negotiating and Drafting the Marital Settlement Agreement (With Sample)
- Hearings/Settlement Conferences
- Pre-Trial Preparation
- Trial Process and Procedure
- Getting Your Evidence Admitted
- Practical Trial Pointers
- Preparing/Reviewing the Final Judgment (With Sample)
- Post-Divorce Wrap-Up
- Sample Checklists
-
Legal Ethics
- Conflicts of Interest Checks
- Declining Representation
- Attorneys' Fees
- Setting Clear Expectations With Clients
- Emails and Confidentiality
- Dealing With a Pro Se Litigant
Who Should Attend
This basic level online seminar is designed for attorneys. Paralegals may also benefit.
Speakers
Speaker bio
Brandon C. Elkins-Barkley
is an attorney with the law firm of Cross Glazier Reed Burroughs, PC, where his practice is focused on complex family law litigation, tax, and the division of various types of retirement and employment benefits. He provides comprehensive family legal services involving custody disputes and parenting issues, while also representing high-net-worth clients with complex benefits packages and financial issues. As a family law attorney with over a decade of experience, Mr. Elkins-Barkley regularly teaches other attorneys about retirement and employee benefits and how those assets are handled in divorce cases. He earned his B.A. degree from Indiana University, his J.D. degree from Indiana University Maurer School of Law and his Masters of Law in taxation from the University of Denver. Mr. Elkins-Barkley is a member of the Indianapolis Bar Association.
Speaker bio
Christen Commers Smith
is a Union City, Indiana attorney in the Law Office of Christen Commers Smith, where she practices in family law and juvenile law while also serving as a public defender in Indiana. She graduated from Indiana University Bloomington with degrees in Spanish and political science, and received her J.D. degree from Valparaiso University Law School. Ms. Commers Smith is licensed in Indiana and Ohio. She also serves as a guardian ad litem in both Indiana and Ohio.
Speaker bio
George A. Lohmeier
is a partner in the Greenfield law firm of Allen Wellman Harvey Keyes Cooley, LLP with offices in Greenfield and Indianapolis. He earned his B.S. degree, with honors, from Florida State University where he majored in government. Mr. Lohmeier earned his J.D. degree from Indiana University School of Law at Indianapolis. Throughout his career, his primary area of practice has been in family law, with an emphasis on child custody litigation. Mr. Lohmeier is a member of the Indiana State Bar Association and practices throughout the state of Indiana. In addition, he has represented clients pro hac vice in the states of New York, Nevada, Wisconsin and North Carolina.
Speaker bio
Julie C. Dixon
is a shareholder at Dixon & Mosely, P.C. where she practices in the areas of family law, including complex financial components of domestic relations, business matters and estates. She has co-written, taught and researched several articles on family law and domestic relations matters. Ms. Dixon earned her B.S. degree from the Indiana University, Bloomington and her J.D. degree from the Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis.She is a member of the Indianapolis, Indiana State and Boone County bar associations. Ms. Dixon practices in counties throughout the state of Indiana.
Speaker bio
Carrie L. Batalon
is a partner at Mallor Grodner LLP. Her primary area of practice is family law, including divorce, post-divorce modification, child custody and support issues, premarital and post-marital agreements, adoptions, guardianships, jurisdictional/interstate issues, and paternity matters. Ms. Batalon is a certified family law specialist, by the Family Law Certification Board, since 2011. She offers her clients the full range of legal process options. Ms. Batalon appreciates that legal process, particularly related to the family, is frightening and stressful for the participants and believes that a good understanding of the process, the applicable law and what to expect diminishes the stress factor. As such, Ms. Batalon provides her clients with understanding of their options based on realistic expectations and compassionately addresses the sensitive aspects of each case. As a seasoned trial attorney, she provides strong advocacy for her clients in traditional divorce and post-divorce conflicts, including high asset and high conflict cases, when amicable resolution cannot be achieved. Ms. Batalon is also a skilled and resourceful negotiator, guiding her clients through alternative dispute resolution processes including mediation and collaborative divorce. In addition to her comprehensive practice of family law, she continues to represent clients in civil litigation and landlord/tenant law. A graduate of Bloomington High School South, Ms. Batalon is a long-term and active member of the community. She has previously served on the Board of Directors for the Monroe County Chapter of the American Red Cross and as a volunteer with the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana. She presently serves on the Family Law Certification Board and the Family Law Council for the Family Law Section of the Indiana State Bar Association. Ms. Batalon is also a volunteer attorney for Counsel in the Court and the Maurer School of Law Protective Order Project. She earned her B.S. degree from Indiana University and her J.D. degree from Indiana University School of Law.
Speaker bio
Matthew P. Dinn
is a partner with the Indianapolis law firm of Popcheff & Dinn, LLP and focuses most of his practice on family law issues. He also owns Brightline Legal Consulting, a practice management and practice development company that helps solo and small firm attorneys become better business owners. Mr. Dinn also assists small business clients with contracts, policies and strategic planning. He is an active member in the Indiana State Bar Association and Association of Family and Conciliatory Courts (AFCC), and a former member of the Second Indiana State Bar Association Leadership Development Academy. Mr. Dinn regularly volunteers with the Indianapolis State Bar Association and sits on the IndyBar Pro Bono Committee, in addition to being a volunteer guardian ad litem for Kids' Voice of Indiana. He earned his B.A. degree from DePauw University and his J.D. degree from the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law.
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