Best Lawyers Near You in Denver, Colorado for Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation
About Cynthia Cynthia L. Ciancio is a founding shareholder of Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. She also heads up the firm’s Family Law Group. Ms. Ciancio’s practice specializes in high asset divorces and complex child custody disputes. She is also a certified mediator conducting both mediations and arbitrations for parties with or without lawyers. With over 20 years of experience exclusively in family law, and another four years prior as a Deputy District Attorney in Adams County, Ms. ...
About Banafsheh Banafsheh Lari is an associate attorney with Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. and a member of the Family Law Team. Banafsheh earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Affairs with an emphasis on the Middle East from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2012. She earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2015. Banafsheh began her legal career as a law clerk in Adams County District Court primarily for the Honorable Jac...
Megan is the President and CEO, as well as a founding shareholder of Sherr Puttmann Akins Lamb PC. She is a seasoned attorney with an extensive background in family law. Megan served as a Deputy District Attorney, where she earned an appointment from District Attorney Bill Ritter to lead a juvenile federal grant program. Through the grant program she managed a team of professionals from multiple agencies and departments. Megan has litigated, mediated, and settled all types of family law cases...
Lynne Weitzel began her college career at Boston University and graduated from UCLA in 1991. Her college days included a trip around the world via Semester at Sea in 1989. She then attended law school at Tulane Law School in New Orleans, clerking in San Francisco and Washington D.C. during the summers. After graduating from law school, she moved to Denver where she has continuously resided. Lynne has sat on various boards during her legal career including the Metropolitan Denver Interdiscipli...
Adeline Sulentich is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Adeline, who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Adeline is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Emily Olson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Emily, who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Emily is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Emily P. Koekkoek is a shareholder at Sherr Puttmann Akins Lamb PC and a dedicated family law attorney serving clients throughout Colorado. Known for her compassion, strategic thinking, and tenacious advocacy, Emily has spent over a decade helping individuals navigate some of life’s most challenging transitions—divorce, custody disputes, post-decree modifications, and complex domestic relations matters. She combines the skill of a seasoned litigator with the genuine empathy of som...
A steadfast commitment to public service drives Ryan Kinsey’s legal practice. Ryan expertly leverages his skills and experience to resolve problems affecting all aspects of his clients’ lives. Prior to joining Robinson & Henry, P.C., he dedicated several years to representing clients with a wide range of family law matters in the Denver metro area and throughout Colorado. Ryan’s background, which includes over a decade scrutinizing financial crimes and international tran...
Mary L. Walsh is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Mary L., who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Mary L. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
About Amanda Amanda Reeves is an attorney and part of the Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. family law team. Amanda has worked in the legal field for over 10 years, working in various areas of the law including bankruptcy and disability law. Since April 2017, Amanda has worked exclusively on family law matters. Amanda believes there is no one-size-fits-all solution for people who find themselves facing divorce, the allocation of parental responsibilities, the modification of existing family law ord...
Katherine Baiardi is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Katherine, who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Katherine is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Jonathan Bereman joined Sherr Puttmann Akins Lamb PC following six years in Chicago and working at two prominent family law firms in Denver, where he has become one of the most experienced and highly acclaimed young divorce attorneys. Jon has developed a reputation for guiding his clients through high conflict situations with a calm and reasonable approach with the goal of negotiating an advantageous settlement wherever possible. He is also an accomplished litigator who vigorously defends his...
Kaela Zihlman is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Kaela, who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Kaela is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Kathryn DeVries is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation. Kathryn, who practices law in Denver, Colorado, has been recognized since 2021. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Kathryn is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Richard J. Rotole focuses his practice on negotiation and settlement of complex family law disputes involving such issues as divorce, parental responsibility, spousal maintenance, child support, division of property, and prenuptial/marital agreements. He maintains an active and well respected mediation practice assisting lawyers and parties to divorce in amicably resolving their family law cases with an impressive number of settlements. He is also a well respected Arbitrator known for his tho...
Jim has been a lawyer for 39 years representing over 1,900 family law clients. His years of experience in litigating and negotiating family law cases has honed his ability to achieve success in mediation. Jim was a Municipal Court Judge for 22 years. His experience as a judge has provided him with the demeanor and temperament to arbitrate family law cases. Jim has mediated and arbitrated a myriad of issues including decision-making and parenting time, child support, complex property division,...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.