Firm Overview

HFLP is a full-service family law practice. Attorneys at HFLP provide representation, consulting, mediation, counseling, and advice for individuals, couples, and families experiencing the need for assistance on issues ranging from the formation to the transition of families. Sometimes, we are consulted by an individual hoping to avoid a marital dissolution to whom we offer supportive suggestions and advice as well as answers to questions about a potential dissolution.

Our many years of experience enable HFLP to address legal questions and problems in complex and high asset family law matters. We commit ourselves to providing thorough and creative representation in the forum most suited to our clients' needs and providing each client with professional support suited to her/his individual needs.

Our practice is comprised of family law attorneys having a range of experience from a few years to forty years. As a result, we are able to provide services of associates in less complex cases who work at competitive rates under the supervision of more experienced lawyers. This arrangement enables indirect access to the skills of very experienced lawyers as well as direct access to those skills as needed if such circumstances arise.

We understand that many family law matters involve both financial issues and issues related to the continuing parent/child and co-parenting relationship. We believe that the financial issues and parenting issues should be addressed in distinct ways since each reflects a very different constellation of issues, worries, concerns, and legal standards.

We provide fully integrated, in-house services on both the financial and custody sides of the case. We believe that our clients deserve and benefit from the services and strategy of one firm's addressing the universe of problems related to their marital dissolution or other family transition.

We have many years of experience analyzing, mediating, litigating, and appealing complex property problems. We also draft and negotiate Prenuptial Agreements and Postnuptial Agreements. Our analysis, services, drafting, and negotiating have included the characterization, tracing, division, valuation, allocation, or protection of a wide range of assets, businesses, and financial interests including, but not limited to:

• Venture Capital
• Hedge Funds
• Financial Management
• Real Estate Investment Trusts
• Equity Compensation
• Entertainment
• Intellectual Property
• Technology Start-Ups and Enterprises
• Complex Investment Portfolios
• Manufacturing, Warehousing, and Wholesaling
• Private Equity Investments
• Complex Organizational Business Structures

We utilize or collaborate with other professionals as consultants or experts when appropriate. These other professionals may be accountants, economists, business valuators, business consultants, brokers, appraisers, auctioneers, or psychologists. We also work with attorneys from other practice areas or jurisdictions, as needed. The other practice areas, for example, could be estate planning, tax, real estate, or business. Often, we collaborate with our clients' other professionals, if doing so would be prudent and confidential.

We represent parties in co-parenting or custody disputes. We believe that each family has unique emotional or psychological needs that affect the parties and their children. We also believe that the assistance of a mental health professional may provide support for our clients as they go through a difficult transition and may help ameliorate the impact on the child or children of our clients' dissolving relationship. We sometimes work with mental health experts to provide advice when the Court has appointed its own psychologist to advise it on custody matters.

Our legal services in co-parenting and custody matters will vary depending upon the most constructive approach for our client's family or the legal necessities created by our client's particular problems. This may include assisting our client to manage the transition from a single household to two households in a decent and constructive way for the child or children. This could include representing a client emerging from or participating in a high-conflict dispute with the other parent on matters related to the child or children. In some instances, we may be involved in cases in which one of the parents wishes to move away with the child or children from the locus of the parties' marriage and residence. From time to time, the dispute may include international custody questions involving Hague Convention or non-Hague Convention countries.

HFLP recommends to our clients a range of approaches for dispute resolution, depending upon the most suitable approach for each individual. Our goal is to contain conflict and problem solve, to the extent possible, taking into account that we can try to manage but ultimately cannot control the decisions, choices, and conduct of our client's spouse or co-parent. Our philosophy is to assume that the "other side" will be reasonable until he or she is not reasonable and then to proceed accordingly. Our many years of experience and training enable the elasticity necessary to meet unexpected changes in circumstances and behaviors.

There are many tools for resolving dissolutions and we will rely on any or all of them as needed or useful. These may include mediation, case management, private judges, or any other ideas or innovations potentially of assistance. We have the maturity and scope of experience to identify and evaluate suitable strategies that are consistent with our client's goals.

HFLP provides mediation services. Ms. Hersh was trained as a mediator in 1985 by the Center for Mediation in Law. She may be contacted as a potential mediator.

HFLP provides transactional services to assist in the formation of families. This area covers parenting agreements, prenuptial agreements and postnuptial agreements.

HFLP does appellate work. We have appeared before the Appellate Courts of California, the Supreme Court of California, and the Supreme Court of Vermont.

HFLP provides consulting services. The attorneys at HFLP are consulted by clients who would like a "second opinion" and by other family law attorneys seeking strategic, procedural, substantive, or appellate advice.

Our firm provides pro bono services to the community and the courts.