The founding partners and attorneys at Warner, Federico & Ryan have over 100 years of collective experience providing individualized services for all manner of complex family law matters that arise in the divorce setting. Our services include the valuation and division of complex assets, including closely held family business interests and family trusts, the treatment and division of inherited and gifted property, non-traditional compensation issues, the valuation and allocation of stock and stock options, child support, child custody, alimony, paternity, the drafting of pre and postnuptial agreements, the modification of previous orders of support, contempt actions and the appeal of adverse judgments.
The family law practice at Warner, Federico & Ryan provides a full spectrum of individually tailored service for our select clients. All the attorneys appear regularly throughout the Probate and Family Courts of the Commonwealth and lecture and publish extensively on topical issues in family law.
Two of the most important rights and responsibilities that attach to the institution of marriage are the rights that arise in the event the marriage is terminated by divorce, and those that arise in the event the marriage is terminated by the death of one of the parties.
Entering into a prenuptial agreement before marriage will afford you financial certainty by establishing rights and responsibilities prior to the marriage. Establishing a postnuptial agreement after a marriage has been consummated serves a similar purpose.
For an individual (or individuals) with a high net worth, whether because of the transfer of generational wealth, expectations of a significant inheritance, or as a result of the accumulation of assets through individual efforts prior to the marriage, entering into a prenuptial agreement or a postnuptial agreement is an important and critical step to safeguard that wealth.
The attorneys at Warner, Federico & Ryan are experts in the negotiation and drafting of prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. If you have any questions about the need for a valid and enforceable prenuptial or postnuptial agreement in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, an experienced attorney from our firm can provide you with assistance.
Court appointed Masters and Special Masters may address a myriad of issues in divorce and post-divorce matters in a more cost effective manner. Masters can be appointed by the Court to hear evidence and enter findings of fact and judgments. Special Masters are appointed by the Court to address more limited issues such as discovery disputes, the sale of real estate or businesses, and to divide property, among other things. Mark Warner, Phyllis Federico and Steven Ryan are regularly appointed by the Court and privately engaged by other attorneys to serve as both Masters and Special Masters.
Where custody and/or parenting time is contested, the Court will often appoint a Guardian Ad Litem (“GAL”) to conduct an investigation and make recommendations to provide the Court with the information necessary to determine what is in the child or children’s best interests. The attorneys at Warner, Federico and Ryan are all skilled at working with their clients to prepare them for the GAL investigation and their interview and to help their clients assess the report and recommendations.
Sandy Durland and Emily Nicholson are trained and certified Guardians Ad Litems and have been appointed by the Court and privately engaged by other attorneys to serve as a GAL.
The founders and attorneys at Warner, Federico & Ryan have extensive experience in all aspects of traditional trial advocacy at all stages of the process, from contested motions and evidentiary hearings to multiday trials on the merits. Yet, for many of our clients, the expense and notoriety inherent in a contested proceeding in the Probate and Family Court is an unwarranted intrusion into their private lives in a very public way. Not all cases are best suited for trial, and many of our clients seek a process that is more refined and private than that afforded in the Probate and Family Court system. For these clients, we offer services as advocates in mediation, conciliation, and arbitration.
Each of these dispute resolution processes is confidential and efficient.
As neutrals overseeing mediations, conciliation or arbitration proceedings, or as counsel representing clients in these matters, oftentimes before retired Probate Court judges, the lawyers at WF&R bring a wealth of experience and wisdom to the alternative dispute resolution process.
Please ask us if you think your matter might be suitable for a non-traditional dispute resolution process.
Clients come to us to help them with a wide array of personal and family matters, including will contests, complaints involving trusts and fiduciaries, disputes over inheritances and accounts in related proceedings in the Probate Court. This area of the law involves complicated personal and family relationships, and we guide and advise clients in connection with these challenging issues.
Our clients include individuals, banks/financial institutions, and fiduciaries. When necessary, we also work with psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals, and state and local agencies to resolve guardianship and conservatorship issues. For more information, please contact Sandy Durland, Mark Warner, or Glenn Schley.
Appellate law is a specialty which embraces a wide range of issues. It requires the mastery of complex procedural and legal issues, as well as an ability to craft compelling and persuasive written and oral arguments to best challenge or defend the trial court’s decision.
In our appellate practice, we have a demonstrated record of effectively advocating for our clients and achieving favorable outcomes, before both the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. We have been directly involved in arguing some of the most consequential appellate, family law decisions in the past few decades. We have also participated in continuing legal education panels involving appellate practice and recent developments in the law.
Many of our appellate cases are referred by attorneys outside our firm, who handled the cases at trial, as it can be beneficial to have separate appellate counsel to provide a fresh perspective of the case and the issues. For more information, please contact Sandy Durland.
The attorneys at Warner, Federico & Ryan have extensive experience advising franchisees, retailers, licensees, and distributors on employment, transactional, advertising, real estate, operational, and regulatory issues. We have helped clients to review franchisor disclosures and agreements, negotiate sales, purchases, and transfers of their businesses, relocate, and remodel their locations, respond to notices of noncompliance, nonrenewal, defaults, and terminations, and deal with enforcement of covenants not to compete. While many of these matters are not contentious and can be resolved amicably, we have also advocated on behalf of our clients in mediation, arbitration, and litigation when appropriate.
In addition to representing clients individually, we have also helped numerous clients form their own associations and advocate for their interests collectively. Some notable clients include franchisees of the brands 7-Eleven, McDonald’s, Hardee’s, Popeyes, Pure Barre, BrightStar, Burn Boot Camp, Jackson Hewitt, Dale Carnegie, Home Instead, Choice Hotels, Dunkin Donuts, and Massage Envy.