Congratulations to Walzer Melcher LLP partners Peter M. Walzer , Christopher C. Melcher , Steven K. Yoda, and associate John B. Chason for ranking in the 2018 SuperLawyers SoCal Family Law Section .

Walzer Melcher LLP Says Goodbye to Jennie Riemer

It is with sadness that we bid farewell to Jennie Riemer . Jennie has been with the firm for 10 years and although she will be greatly missed, we are proud and excited for her to take the next step in her career. We wish her all the best at Wasser, Cooperman, & Mandles . 

Congratulations

to Steven K. Yoda on Two Recent Victories

First, after a 4-day arbitration, which he first-chaired, Steve successfully defended a real estate breach of contract case on behalf of his clients. The arbitrator ruled in favor of Steve’s clients because (1) the plaintiff breached his own obligations under the contract; and (2) Steve’s clients never breached the contract. Steve obtained liquidated damages and attorneys’ fees. The arbitration award was subsequently confirmed by the Superior Court. 

Second, Steve consulted with Japanese family law counsel on a case that resulted in the Supreme Court of Japan ruling, for the very first time, that the mother, who had abducted the parties’ son to Japan, was illegally confining him from the US-based father. Steve consulted on behalf of the father seeking to reunite with his son.  

Leena S. Hingnikar Elected to Levitt & Quinn Family Law Center's Board of Directors

Walzer Melcher LLP is excited to announce that partner Leena S. Hingnikar has been chosen to serve on Levitt & Quinn Family Law Center 's board of directors. For the past four decades, Levitt & Quinn’s team of dedicated lawyers, legal assistants, and trained volunteers have provided legal services for families most in need in the Los Angeles area. Leena looks forward to being a part of this great organization that does so much for our Los Angeles community.

Christopher C. Melcher Lead Counsel on International Child Custody Case

Walzer Melcher LLP teamed up with Alan Dershowitz and were successful in having a writ of supersedeas granted in an international child custody jurisdiction case.

April 13th, Chris presented for the Trial Basics Seminar in Costa Mesa, CA. This program is provided for free every year by AAML SoCal to 100 lawyers that are new to family law. We teach them how to be trial lawyers.

April 28th, Chris will be speaking for the break-out session at Loyola Law School.

Chris argued a case before the Court of Appeal that Ellen Stross handled at the trial court level. 

Chris attended an AAML subgroup at Torrey Pines where guest speaker Shir Oretzky Phd , sports psychologist, spoke about how athletes get in the “flow state” and how we use those techniques for court battles.

P R E S S

Peter M. Walzer was interviewed for the KTLA 5 video segment " The Stormy World of Non-Disclosure Agreements and 60 Minutes Interview With Stormy Daniels. " He was featured in the ABC 7 video segment " International Marriage Challenges." He was quoted in the Bloomberg article " Bitcoin Bitterness Starts to Make Messy Divorces Even Worse" and Moneyish article " Gimme That Ring Back! Couples Confess Who Got the Rings in Their Divorce." He was also quoted in the Bravo Personal Space stories " Wait, Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux May Never Have Legally Married , " " This Billionaire Is Suing His Ex To Get His $250,000 Engagement Ring Back - But Does She Have To Return It?" " Why Hasn't Georgina Chapman Filed for Divorce Yet? " and " Would Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Get a Prenup?. " He recently wrote an article for Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine titled " Alimony As We Know It Bites the Dust. " It will be published in the June issue.

Peter M. Walzer and Steven K. Yoda were featured in the Bravo Personal Space story " Guess Who Could Be Entitled To Half That Porn Star Hush Money Donald Trump Allegedly Paid?"

Steven K. Yoda was quoted in the US News article " 5 Traits That Help People Get Into Top Law Schools . "

Christopher C. Melcher was interviewed for the Bloomberg article " Stormy Hush Money Not as Common as Trump Claims, Hollywood Says. " He was quoted in the Moneyish article " Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Aren’t Signing a Prenup, but Here’s How to Ask for One Without Being Awkward." He was qu oted in the Bravo Personal Space story " Donald Trump Jr.'s Wife's Divorce Filing Is Perfect Timing — Here's Why " He was featured on ABC 7 and Voice of America discussing the New Tax Plan.

Jennie Riemer was quoted for the Moneyish article " The Sick Reason Many Miserable Married People Are Pondering Divorce in 2018." She was also featured in The New York Post article " The Cynical Reasons the Divorce Rate is About to Boom."

    S E M I N A R S/E V E N T S

* January, 2019

Cross-Examining Statistical Analysis

Christopher C. Melcher, Judge

Christine Goldsmith, & Garrett

Dailey

AAML Trial Advocacy Institute

Balboa Bay Club, Newport Beach

Peter M. Walzer to be Installed as AAML President this November

We are excited and honored that our founding partner, Peter M. Walzer , will be installed as president of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers at this year's annual meeting on November 9th, 2018.

The event will take place in Chicago, IL at the Loews Hotel.

2017:

A Year to Forget or Remember?

by Peter M. Walzer

#metoo

The #metoo movement has spurred a lot of women (and some men) to come forward to “out” their abusers, both on social media and via the traditional media. This, in turn, has dashed many marriages on the rocks due to the lack of fidelity, once the cheating was made public. Were the spouses of the abusers oblivious of their mate’s dalliances or, did they know about it but now that it was made public, did it require a day of reckoning? Will there be a plethora of celebrity divorces? Will this spill over to the not-so-famous?  The experienced Family Law Attorneys at  Walzer Melcher LLP believe that the #metoo movement is likely to have widespread changes in our society giving people the courage to stop putting up with abuse and cheating.

Cannabis

The quasi – legal status of cannabis in California has now entered the divorce and custody world. Not so long ago, the use of marijuana (not to mention selling it) was enough for a parent to lose custody. However, over the last couple of years, if a parent presented a license to use medical marijuana, it was permitted. Now, in 2018, due to the legalization of recreational cannabis, no license is even required.

The legality of cannabis opens up a much wider discussion starting with. “Does being a pot-head make you an unfit parent? How much pot use is acceptable? Can you smoke in front of your kids? Can you drive and smoke? Can you share it with your children? How your smoking affects those around you, ie., secondhand pot smoke? How does it affect the development of babies and toddlers? Does cannabis lead to harder drugs or at-risk behavior? And if pot is not so bad, what about ecstasy, acid or mescaline?



There seems to be a contradictory message out there where, it’s not okay to smoke tobacco but it is okay to smoke pot. Court mediators, forensic psychologists, and judges are all hastily trying to catch up with the general use of, otherwise, prohibited drugs. We predict this topic will open up a lively discussion that will continue for some time as our laws continue to change regarding formerly controlled substances.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence allegations continue to be a major part of our Family Law practice. Domestic violence covers the spectrum from serious acts of violence to angry texts that amount to harassment. Once a case of domestic violence is proven it then becomes a factor in establishing custody orders and parenting plans, as well as in setting up financial support. These matters are not easy to settle out of court and often require extensive trial time.

In reviewing the year we just left, these trends impact our Family Law clients as the world that we live in continues to change – some would say for the better, some would say for the worse. We will continue to keep you in informed of how the laws and social movements impact the lives of those who we strive to help, every day, at Walzer Melcher LLP .

Help: My Husband Lost Our Money in Bitcoins!

by Peter M. Walzer

The recent Kamgar case (17 DJDAR 11672, 11/17/2017), published in November 2017, answered a question that comes up in divorces “What if my spouse lost our money in the stock market, gambling, or, in the speculative investment “du jour” — cryptocurrency or bitcoin?”

In this groundbreaking case, the court looked at what the parties “agreement” (or in many instances, their marriage agreement) was. In Kamgar, Moira had told her husband that he could risk a couple of million dollars trying his hand at investing in options, mainly Apple stock options. When he lost that money and Moira tried to hold her husband responsible for that loss, the court told her, “You agreed to let him try this out, so you don’t get your money back.”

However, when Fred continued to invest their community property in these options over Moira’s objections and hid it from her, he was held liable for what he had lost. To come to this decision, the court relied on the parties’ texts, back and forth, to sort out what their agreement had been.

Unbeknownst to Moira, in addition to the nearly $2.5 million initial sum that Fred had invested in the stock market, he had also unilaterally deposited an additional $8,188,605 of community funds into the investment account, and then saw those twin deposits (the initial $2.5 million and additional $8 million) both skyrocket and fall in recurring periods of gains and losses in options trading.

Over the course of these fluctuations, Fred withdrew $3,805,000 of the $8 million amount, and then eventually lost all but $409,492 of the total community funds deposited in the account. The net result was that of the additional, undisclosed $8,188,605 Fred risked in options trading, he lost more than half for a net loss to the community funds of $3,904,113.

In the end result, the trial court found that Fred breached his fiduciary duty to Moira and that Fred’s management of the parties’ investment portfolio was reckless and grossly negligent. Ultimately, the trial court ordered Fred to pay Moira $1,952,056.50, which was half of the $3,904,113 loss incurred following his undisclosed decision to risk the $8,188,605 in community funds. The court says, “Simply and quite obviously, the parties’ disclosure obligations in a partnership, and in a marriage partnership under the Family Code’s incorporation of Corporations Code section 16403, depends on their partnership agreement.” Whether a spouse has a gambling addiction, or are investing in the stock or commodities markets, or they are following the latest wave of bitcoiners, Kamgar gives you a chance at recovering your money.

At the Family Law Firm of Walzer Melcher LLP , we’d like to remind those who are married and who are making financial agreements, that a marriage is a partnership, and if you breach the partnership agreement by violating its actual or implied terms, you will be held responsible for what you lose.