Best Lawyers in America for Family Law: Arbitration and Mediation
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State
Lisa Sharpe provides the highest level of legal services to clients in complex dissolution and custody cases. She is a tough advocate who works to protect the best interest of her clients and their children. Her practice emphasizes resolving contested financial issues and child custody issues. Her financial cases include executive divorces, divorces involving businesses, large estates, child support and maintenance (alimony). Lisa has represented clients in divorce, legal separation and in me...
ANNMARIE P. BRIONES is Of Counsel to Cohen and Wolf’s Family Law and Litigation Groups practicing in the firm’s Bridgeport and Westport offices. Ms. Briones practices primarily in the area of family law representing parties in divorce, legal separation, custody and post-judgment dissolution matters. Ms. Briones currently serves on the Faculty of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy. She has frequently served as a court appointed Guardian ad Litem and Attorney for Minor Childre...
Kristen A. Algert is a Board-Certified family law Partner at Goranson Bain Ausley in Austin and one of the most peer-distinguished collaborative law practitioners in Texas. She has been included in The Best Lawyers in America© in the fields of Family Law, Family Law Mediation, and Collaborative Law: Family Law continuously since 2007, representing nearly two decades of sustained peer recognition. Best Lawyers has named Kris “Lawyer of the Year” in Austin for Collaborative Law...
Jeralyn Lawrence is the Managing Member and Founder of Lawrence Law, and devotes her practice to matrimonial, divorce, and family law, and is a trained collaborative lawyer, divorce mediator, and arbitrator. Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Matrimonial Law Attorney, Jeralyn represents clients with matrimonial and family law needs, including divorce litigation, mediation and arbitration, custody and parenting time issues, alimony and child support, separation and property sett...
Willard Benton Gregg is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law Mediation. Willard Benton, who practices law in Ridgeland, Mississippi, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Willard Benton is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Though divorce can be an emotional, life-changing event, Rob Frazer offers stability, experience, and guidance to put clients at ease and on a positive path forward. Rob approaches all of his cases with the perspective gained as a seasoned and confident litigator. He communicates well with clients to dispel the myths and misconceptions they may have about divorce. He assures them there is a legal process in place to protect their interests, relieving them of unreasonable fears. Drawing on his...
About Nicholas Boca: Board-Certified Family Law Specialist, State Bar of Arizona Former Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Child Safety 2020 recipient of the James Waite Mahoney Award for meritorious service to the Arizona Juvenile Law Section 2019-2020, Judge Pro Tempore 2019, 2022, and 2023 Top 100 Lawyers in Arizona AV Preeminent Rating by Martindale Hubbell Super Lawyers Rising Star Extensive Trial Experience Interviewed and quoted by the Arizona Republic Interviewed by Insi...
About Carrie Carrie Chaille Eckstein is a Partner at Cline Caldwell. Carrie is a member of the distinguished Family Law Team. Her practice includes handling high asset matters, drafting marital agreements, working as a mediator between cooperative clients, and resolving child custody disputes. Carrie’s experience as a Guardian Ad Litem and Child & Family Investigator for the Colorado Courts has given her extensive experience into court processes as well as into the needs of children...
Pittsburgh Family Lawyer Joseph R. Williams is a tenacious litigator and accomplished negotiator admired by his peers for consistent advocacy and effective leadership. A skilled litigator who also is well-versed certified in collaborative divorce, Pittsburgh family lawyer Joseph R. Williams puts clients in the driver’s seat and helps them navigate a wide range of family law concerns to reach their goals. Joe thrives on the challenges of each unique client situation in a diverse, compreh...
Kelly Ausley-Flores is a Partner at Goranson Bain Ausley in Austin, Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, with more than 25 years of experience. She has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© for Family Law and Collaborative Law since 2012, and for Family Law Mediation since 2024. She has been named Austin “Lawyer of the Year” multiple times. Kelly is also included in LawDragon’s 500 Leading Family Lawyers (2024–2026) a...
An incisive thinker and passionate client advocate, Monica Garcia Harms chairs Stein Sperling’s family law practice group, where she has practiced for more than fifteen years. Monica maintains a very robust and diverse family law practice, focusing her work not only on divorce, but on complex and often emotionally fraught matters such as custody, support, domestic violence, pre- and post-nuptial agreements, alimony, property distribution, grandparent visitation, contempt/enforcement act...
Paula J. Swensen, who was born in Orange, New Jersey in 1955, has been an Orange County resident since 2000 after relocating to California from New England. Ms. Swensen lives in Trabuco Canyon and has three children. She is an avid sports fan, supporting any and all teams from the Boston area. Ms. Swensen graduated from the University of New Hampshire (B.S., Behavioral Science, highest honors, 1996) and Franklin Pierce Law Center (J.D., 1999; M.A., Intellectual Property). Between her second a...
Marnie Smith is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law and Family Law Mediation. Marnie, who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2016. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Marnie is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Nicole Schmidt is a partner and Certified Family Law Specialist at Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara. Nicole Schmidt focuses on divorce and family law matters in Newport Beach and San Diego. Ms. Schmidt has experience in a plethora of issues arising in the general area of family law, including prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements, child custody and visitation, spousal support, child support, divorce, and complex asset and debt division. She specializes in cases involving non-traditiona...
Laura Dale is Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Her practice is concentrated in the area of family law involving high conflict divorce, high net worth property division, both domestic and foreign, property valuation, custody cases, international child abduction brought under The Hague Convention and complex multi-jurisdictional family law disputes. Ms. Dale is a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers and a USA Delegate on the Board of Gov...
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.