Family Law
Family Law
Family Law is an area of legal practice that covers family issues and domestic relations. This includes a broad array of matters such as adoption, alimony, child custody and visitation, child support, divorce, and domestic violence. Family law matters are heard in a special, separate section of the Maryland court system called the Family Division. Family law is the primary area of focus at Wobber Law Group.
Our firm is committed to providing a sophisticated and cost-effective approach to representing clients’ interests and ensuring our clients maintain dignity through the legal process. Our family law attorneys are here to assist you with everything from uncontested divorce matters and separation agreements to highly contested litigation. We will help you to look ahead to secure a stable financial future for you and your family. Our goal is to help our clients find the best path forward when navigating through the often difficult and emotional waters of the family courts.
The family law attorneys and divorce attorneys at Wobber Law Group have experience in a wide range of family law matters. Our clients have consisted of individuals from all professions, including, but not limited to, members of the military and law enforcement, people in the medical field, other attorneys, restaurant workers, entrepreneurs, small-business owners, beauticians, teachers, and more. We assist parties within a broad band of financial circumstances, from part time hourly workers and stay-at-home parents to high-income individuals with large and complex financial dealings. We have extensive experience dealing with the interrelation between business matters and family law, including the valuation of businesses and the analysis of compensation for self-employed spouses.
We handle settlement negotiation and litigation, and we also encourage the use of alternative dispute resolution, including mediation and collaborative law procedures and techniques.
Mediation
In mediation, parties are usually not represented by counsel during the process, although attorneys may review agreements that the parties make. It works well for people who feel that they truly know their own mind and situation and, with the help of a mediator, are comfortable speaking for themselves. It is often chosen so that a person has more direct influence and control over the process and outcome. If you and your spouse elect to resolve your differences using a mediator, we can mediate the case with you or represent one spouse while the couple is involved in the mediation process.
Collaborative Law
We also have collaboratively trained attorneys on staff. Collaborative practice involves a team that includes the parties and their attorneys. The team get together in a non-adversarial setting to solve problems and reach decisions by consensus. The team can include a variety of specialists, such as divorce coaches, child specialists, financial neutrals, and vocational coaches. The collaborative process is best for people who feel they need the support and advice of their own lawyers.
General Family Law Practice
Wobber Law Groups’ family law attorneys are involved in a wide variety of family law practice areas, including adoption, alimony, asset protection and uncovering hidden assets, child custody and visitation, child support, contempt and enforcement, divorce planning, divorce litigation, domestic violence, legal separation, marital property division and reimbursement, peace orders and protective orders, spousal support, third-party and de facto parent custody rights, and uncontested divorce.
For more information about our family law services, please select one of the practice areas below or reach out and schedule an appointment with one of our family law attorneys today.
Family Law Practice Areas
What Happens in Family Law Mediation?
Before the first session, each spouse fills out a confidential questionnaire (which is not disclosed to the other spouse) which assists the mediator in narrowing down the issues to be mediated. We start by reviewing the client’s goals and further narrowing the issues for resolution. We generally discuss the law on child access and child support, marital property, and alimony. We ensure that each spouse is prepared to address issues by ensuring that documents are exchanged and full information is provided before we negotiate the issues.
Although Family Law Mediation can be an emotional process, we approach the mediation in a business-like fashion which provides an agenda for each meeting. When spouses attend a mediation meeting with Wobber Law Group, they are prepared to discuss the issues at hand and have participated in crafting the agenda for that session. After each session, minutes are generated, to ensure that we do not rehash any issues which have already been resolved and to keep the pace of the mediation moving forward. Issues are addressed in the order set by the participants, with the most urgent issues being addressed first. The participants may have “mini-agreements” which enable them to move forward with their lives while working through the mediation.
Once an agreement has been reached, the mediator will draft either a Marital Settlement Agreement (if the parties do not have their own attorneys), or will provide a list of items which have been agreed to, enabling the party’s attorneys to draft a Marital Settlement Agreement. Once mediation is completed, the spouses may decide to wait before filing for divorce, or may file an immediate, uncontested divorce.
The entire mediation is a cooperative process and nothing is decided unless both parties have agreed. Mediation is confidential and although signed agreements are enforceable, nothing said in mediation may be used in court.
Contact Wobber Law Group LLC
If you would like to speak to or schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys, please provide your contact information below or call us at (410) 832-1800.