Family Law

• Divorce
• Child Support
  Whether you are seeking an initial custody arrangement or seeking to modify an existing custody order, we can help. Custody cases can be complex. At a minimum, legal custody, physical custody, and child support must be determined.
• Child Custody and Visitation
  Mediation can be a wonderful tool in ending your marriage or raising your children more collaboratively. In mediation, the two sides will meet with a neutral third party, a mediator, who will help facilitate conversations and negotiations surrounding the biggest issues in your case. The goal of a divorce mediator is to oversee the settlement negotiations of a separation. The goal of a child custody mediator is to oversee the negotiations, parental planning, and decision making.
• Adoption
• Paternity
  A major issue is paternity cases with whether paternity (fatherhood) has been established. While maternity (motherhood) is assumed, where the parents were not married at the time the child was born paternity (fatherhood) must be established. Evidence of paternity includes marrying the child’s mother, filing an affidavit with the heath bureau, consenting to be named as the father on the child’s birth certificate, paying voluntary or court ordered child support, and by DNA test.
• Premarital Agreement
  Prenuptial or Pre-marriage agreements are not only for the wealthy. In the unfortunate event of a divorce, a Prenuptial Agreement can help smooth the transition back to single life. These agreements can be especially reassuring for those who have been previously married and want to ensure they do not have to endure another difficult divorce proceeding. A prenuptial agreement can give both parties the peace of mind they need to enter readily into a lifelong partnership.
• Guardianship
  When an adult is incapacitated in such a manner that they are not able to manage their own finances or provide for their own physical health. As our loved one’s age, they may begin experiencing a mental and physical decline that prevents them from managing their own finances and caring for their own physical wellbeing. Guardianship and Conservatorship allows another individual to manage the individual’s funds, pay their bills, ensure they have adequate housing, and make their healthcare decisions. This action can help adult children protect their elderly parents from catfishing and financial abuse.
• Spousal Support
  This includes any mortgages, car loans, student loans, pay-day loans, credit cards, unpaid bills, liens, and judgments. Having an attorney is important because we can advise you on whether an asset or debt is marital property and what your soon to be ex may have a legal claim against. Divorce often involves alimony or maintenance as well.

Criminal Law

• DUI/DWI
• Misdemeanors
  To qualify for an expungement, you must pay all fines and successfully complete probation or parole. To expunge a misdemeanor offense, municipal offense, or infraction, you must wait a minimum of one year after the conviction of the offense before petitioning for expungement. For a felony conviction expungement, you minimum of three years must have passed since your last felony conviction.
• Drug Crimes
  Since 2021, more than 1,900 Missouri criminal offenses qualify for expungement. This includes status offenses like MIPs (Minor in Possession), traffic infractions, drug crimes, property crimes, and other non-violent criminal offenses. Obtaining an expungement seals the criminal record and allows the individual to maintain that they have not been convicted of the expunged with the exception of certain disclosures required by §610.140.9 RSMo.
• Restraining Order
  If you believe you have been a victim of Domestic Violence, Domestic Abuse, or Stalking, you may consider seeking an Order of Protection. An Order of Protection, more commonly known as a restraining order, is a civil judicial order seeking to protect victims from physical abuse and stalking. Missouri’s Adult Abuse Act is intended to protect individuals from serious danger.

Business and Corporate Law

• Corporate Law
  Business Law is a wide-ranging topic that covers areas such as property rights, corporate governance, contracts, and business formation and dissolution. If you own a business or are thinking about starting out on a new business venture, our attorneys can aid you in establishing a corporation, Limited Liability Company, or a Partnership.
• Business Formation
• Business Disputes

Property Law

• Real Estate Litigation
  Real estate law encompasses the leasing, purchasing, using, and selling/transfer of land (legally known as “real property”). This includes homes, buildings, barns, and other large structures upon the land.
• Eminent Domain
  You may need a real estate attorney if there is an issue with the title to your property, if you wish to dispute or enforce the covenants and restrictions contained within a deed (Homeowners Association Disputes), or wish to force the sale of jointly owned property. Other common areas of real estate law include easements, eminent domain, zoning, and estate planning.
• Easement
• Land Use and Zoning

Health Law

• Medicaid Planning

Trusts and Estates

• Estate Planning
  We also assist our elderly clients with estate planning that complements the process of applying for Medicaid, such as powers of attorney, wills, trusts, and conveyances of property in a manner that will not be disqualifying.
• Wills
  Wills and Trusts are mechanisms for protecting and distributing your property upon your death. Estate planning ranges from the very simple to the incredibly complex depending upon the extent of your assets and your wishes for their distribution. We are happy to provide the following downloadable Estate Planning FAQs, which provide a more in-depth look at the ins and outs of Estate Planning.
• Trusts
• Power of Attorney
  A “Power of Attorney” is the written appointment of an agent to act on a person’s behalf.  A person executing a Power of Attorney is known as the “principal.”  The person appointed is known as the “attorney-in-fact” and has a fiduciary obligation to the principal. A power of attorney may be “general” or “limited.”  A general power of attorney grants general powers to the attorney-in-fact to do nearly everything that the principal could do, with certain statutory exceptions.  A limited power of attorney grants the power to do only certain acts, such as conveying specific real estate, or giving a spouse the authority to sign specific documents while the principal is out of the country.  A power of attorney may be designated as a “durable power of attorney.” This means that the powers do not automatically terminate if the principal becomes incapacitated.
• Probate

Finance Law

• Foreclosure
• Tax Law