Divorce MattersĀ®
Expert Legal Advice. Personal Approach.
A tenacious team of divorce attorneys with the ability to deliver for you.
Divorce MattersĀ® has helped thousands of families across Colorado move past their divorce and on to a fresh start. Each divorce attorney at our Denver firm is a part of a team with more than 100 years of combined legal experience, providing you with excellence in legal practice. We are committed to being strong, but compassionate, advocates for you.
A tenacious team of divorce attorneys with the ability to deliver for you.
Divorce MattersĀ® has helped thousands of families across Colorado move past their divorce and on to a fresh start. Each divorce attorney at our Denver firm is a part of a team with more than 100 years of combined legal experience, providing you with excellence in legal practice. We are committed to being strong, but compassionate, advocates for you.
What our clients say
Meet our divorce attorneys
Our areas of practice include
Douglas A. Thomas
Founding Partner
Emily F. Ahnell
Partner and Managing Attorney
Justin J. Oliver
Attorney
Ariel E. Williams
Attorney
Audrey B. Braccio
Attorney
Heather A. Rubin
Attorney
Katherine Kendrick
Attorney
Miranda Bouchey
Attorney
Samer Bandak
Attorney
Conventional divorce with the specter of litigation and lengthy court time can create significant unease in couples who wish to divorce in a respectful, dignified way. Collaborative law divorce (or no-court divorce) can be a viable alternative to traditional divorce proceedings.
Conventional divorce with the specter of litigation and lengthy court time can create significant unease in couples who wish to divorce in a respectful, dignified way. Collaborative law divorce (or no-court divorce) can be a viable alternative to traditional divorce proceedings.
Here we cover the process of appealing a ruling in a family law case, as well as some of the issues that are unique to family law.
Colorado allows parties to enter into a common law marriage. Contrary to popular belief, there is no time requirement for a common law marriage. Therefore, you do not have to live together for any specific period of time before you can have a common law marriage in Colorado. However, just merely living together will not result in a common law marriage either.
While there are a million things to plan when a couple decides to marry, often the most difficult to discuss with your future partner is the possible need for a Colorado prenuptial agreement. While this subject is not the most romantic or exciting part of wedding planning, a couple contemplating marriage in Colorado may need to consider entering into a prenuptial agreement, or a contract before marriage.
Navigating the court system without the assistance of a divorce attorney can be difficult regardless of how complex or combative your case is. It is important for self-represented parties (called pro se) to seek alternative forms of representation.
After having gone through a divorce or once you have some orders from the court, you may at some point find yourself on either end of a contempt of court Colorado action if one of the parties is not complying with the orders.
Divorce is never an easy process, but when either you or your spouse are in the military it can be even more complicated as there is more to consider than in a traditional divorce. We understand the sacrifices military families make every day and we want to be sure they donāt have to make any when it comes to legal representation. Here at Divorce Matters we aim to reduce and even eliminate many of the obstacles that can stand in the way of a successful outcome for our clients.
Neither spouse has an automatic right to alimony, also known as spousal maintenance in Colorado. The court will award maintenance only if the spouse seeking maintenance cannot meet their reasonable needs and, in addition, is either unable to support themselves through employment or should not be required to seek employment because of childcare responsibilities
Divorce cases involving children almost always require difficult, and even painful, negotiations over child custody. The same can be said of non-married parents who decide to separate, which raises the sensitive question of how custody will be allocated.
Proper representation is critical for any parent when going through a child custody case. While parents are allowed to create their own child support agreements, any agreement that deviates too far from the Colorado child support laws & guidelines will likely not receive court approval. This is just one reason why having an attorney with expertise in child support cases is critical.
When a couple in Colorado gets divorced, the marital settlement agreement they sign isnāt set in stone for life. A change in circumstances can justify revisiting the agreement and seeking what is called a post-divorce modification or post-decree modification. Family law courts in Colorado recognize that marital settlement agreements need to be modified, either because of changing circumstances or the discovery of information that wasnāt disclosed during divorce proceedings.
Alternative dispute resolution, or ADR, refers to any means of settling a dispute outside the confines of a courtroom. In the context of divorce, two alternative dispute resolution methods can be highly effective at helping couples resolve their differences in a relatively fast and affordable manner. Those two methods are as follows:
Domestic violence happens to people in all classes, statuses, and ranks in life, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, education, profession, or socioeconomic status.
Videos & Blog
Stay informed of the latest legal news and educational articles with videos and blogs from Divorce MattersĀ®. Our comprehensive playlist provides you with answers to the most commonly asked questions in the Colorado divorce process to keep you in the know and feel more at ease during this difficult time.
Associate Attorney
Attorney Spotlight: Heather Rubin
Is Alimony Taxable?
Congratulations to the 2022 Divorce Matters Scholarship Winner, Amanda Nguyen!
Colorado Springs Hidden Gems
Lakewood Hidden Gems
Fort Collins Hidden Gems
Where to See Fireworks in Colorado this Weekend
Last Minute Father's Day Activities
Will My Child Support Increase with My Kids' Age?
How Do I Deal with a Vindictive Ex?
The Best Summer Activities for Kids
Can Cheating Affect My Divorce?
How Should I Communicate With My Ex During Our Divorce?
Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
Awards and Accolades
American Institute of Legal Counsel
The American Institute of Legal Counsel compiles an exclusive list of the ā10 Bestā Attorneys for each State. This is a prestigious honor for the Attorney as each Attorney must:
- Be formally nominated by the Institute, client, and/or fellow Attorney;
- Have attained the highest degree of professional achievement in his or her field of law; and
- Having done so with an impeccable Client Satisfaction rating.
The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40
Top 40 under 40 are national, interconnected invitation-only professional honorary, networking, educational and leadership organizations composed of top attorneys from each state or region who take pride in guiding and representing individuals and families that need an advocate on their side in the American legal system. The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40 exemplify superior qualifications of leadership, reputation, influence and performance in their area of specialty.
BBB
Accredited by the Better Business Bureau
Avvo 10 Rating
Avvoās rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information they collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals.
National Academy of Family Law Attorneys
The National Academy of Family Law Attorneys is an organization devoted to recognizing the top family law attorneys in the nation. With over a million attorneys in the United States, choosing the best lawyer is difficult. However, through a stringent selection process, the NAFLA awards the best family law attorneys in each state with our most prestigious honor of being named āTOP 10ā. The very few attorneys (less than 1%) that are good enough to make our list have demonstrated an extraordinary amount of knowledge, skill, experience, expertise and success in their practice of family law.
2020 Colorado Rising Stars List
We are proud to announce the selection of four of our attorneys, William Smith, Kathlyn Laraway, Ashley Balicki and David Kalisek, to the 2020 Colorado Rising Stars list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 2.5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
2020 Super Lawyers List
We are proud to announce the selection of managing partner, Douglas Thomas to the 2020 Colorado Super Lawyers list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel is an organization dedicated to promoting the highest standards of legal excellence. By virtue of the incredible selectivity of our research process, only the elite few are invited to join the ranks of the NADC. Specifically, less than 1% of practicing attorneys in the United States are members of the āNationās Top Attorneysā.
Expertise – Best Child Support Lawyers in Denver
Expertiseās goal is to connect people with the best local experts. They score Denver Child Support Lawyers on more than 25 variables across five categories, and analyzed the results to give you a hand-picked list of the best.
American Institute of Legal Counsel
The American Institute of Legal Counsel compiles an exclusive list of the ā10 Bestā Attorneys for each State. This is a prestigious honor for the Attorney as each Attorney must:
- Be formally nominated by the Institute, client, and/or fellow Attorney;
- Have attained the highest degree of professional achievement in his or her field of law; and
- Having done so with an impeccable Client Satisfaction rating.
The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40
Top 40 under 40 are national, interconnected invitation-only professional honorary, networking, educational and leadership organizations composed of top attorneys from each state or region who take pride in guiding and representing individuals and families that need an advocate on their side in the American legal system. The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40 exemplify superior qualifications of leadership, reputation, influence and performance in their area of specialty.
BBB
Accredited by the Better Business Bureau
Avvo 10 Rating
Avvoās rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information they collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals.
National Academy of Family Law Attorneys
The National Academy of Family Law Attorneys is an organization devoted to recognizing the top family law attorneys in the nation. With over a million attorneys in the United States, choosing the best lawyer is difficult. However, through a stringent selection process, the NAFLA awards the best family law attorneys in each state with our most prestigious honor of being named āTOP 10ā. The very few attorneys (less than 1%) that are good enough to make our list have demonstrated an extraordinary amount of knowledge, skill, experience, expertise and success in their practice of family law.
2020 Colorado Rising Stars List
We are proud to announce the selection of four of our attorneys, William Smith, Kathlyn Laraway, Ashley Balicki and David Kalisek, to the 2020 Colorado Rising Stars list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 2.5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
2020 Super Lawyers List
We are proud to announce the selection of managing partner, Douglas Thomas to the 2020 Colorado Super Lawyers list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel is an organization dedicated to promoting the highest standards of legal excellence. By virtue of the incredible selectivity of our research process, only the elite few are invited to join the ranks of the NADC. Specifically, less than 1% of practicing attorneys in the United States are members of the āNationās Top Attorneysā.
Expertise – Best Child Support Lawyers in Denver
Expertiseās goal is to connect people with the best local experts. They score Denver Child Support Lawyers on more than 25 variables across five categories, and analyzed the results to give you a hand-picked list of the best.
American Institute of Legal Counsel
The American Institute of Legal Counsel compiles an exclusive list of the ā10 Bestā Attorneys for each State. This is a prestigious honor for the Attorney as each Attorney must:
- Be formally nominated by the Institute, client, and/or fellow Attorney;
- Have attained the highest degree of professional achievement in his or her field of law; and
- Having done so with an impeccable Client Satisfaction rating.
The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40
Top 40 under 40 are national, interconnected invitation-only professional honorary, networking, educational and leadership organizations composed of top attorneys from each state or region who take pride in guiding and representing individuals and families that need an advocate on their side in the American legal system. The National Advocates: Top 40 under 40 exemplify superior qualifications of leadership, reputation, influence and performance in their area of specialty.
BBB
Accredited by the Better Business Bureau
Avvo 10 Rating
Avvoās rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information they collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals.
National Academy of Family Law Attorneys
The National Academy of Family Law Attorneys is an organization devoted to recognizing the top family law attorneys in the nation. With over a million attorneys in the United States, choosing the best lawyer is difficult. However, through a stringent selection process, the NAFLA awards the best family law attorneys in each state with our most prestigious honor of being named āTOP 10ā. The very few attorneys (less than 1%) that are good enough to make our list have demonstrated an extraordinary amount of knowledge, skill, experience, expertise and success in their practice of family law.
2020 Colorado Rising Stars List
We are proud to announce the selection of four of our attorneys, William Smith, Kathlyn Laraway, Ashley Balicki and David Kalisek, to the 2020 Colorado Rising Stars list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 2.5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
2020 Super Lawyers List
We are proud to announce the selection of managing partner, Douglas Thomas to the 2020 Colorado Super Lawyers list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 5 percent of attorneys in Colorado. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a research-driven, peer influenced rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel
The National Association of Distinguished Counsel is an organization dedicated to promoting the highest standards of legal excellence. By virtue of the incredible selectivity of our research process, only the elite few are invited to join the ranks of the NADC. Specifically, less than 1% of practicing attorneys in the United States are members of the āNationās Top Attorneysā.
Expertise – Best Child Support Lawyers in Denver
Expertiseās goal is to connect people with the best local experts. They score Denver Child Support Lawyers on more than 25 variables across five categories, and analyzed the results to give you a hand-picked list of the best.
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