Top 5 Power Skills for New Family Law Paralegals

Agenda / Content Covered

1. Understanding the Role of a Family Law Paralegal
2. Power Skill #1: Client Intake and Communication
   1. Getting to Know the Client
   2. Learning the Facts of the Case
   3. Easing the Client's Tensions, Trauma-Informed Communication
   4. Utilizing Text and Email Communications
   5. How Social Media Can Affect Communication
   6. Explaining Divorce Options
   7. Getting Clients to Respond to Financial Affidavit Requests
3. Power Skill #2: Financial Analysis
   1. Determining Value
   2. Tracing Hidden and Undisclosed Assets
   3. Useful Tax Basics (Analyzing Tax Returns for Hidden Assets and Income)
   4. Understanding Family Business Structures and Pass-Through Entities

4. Power Skill #3: Assisting with Custody Arrangements
   1. Sole Legal Custody and Joint Legal Custody: Understanding the Client's Options
   2. Drafting Parenting Plans (with Samples and Checklists)
   3. Calculating Time Shared Between Parents
   4. Child Support and Spousal Support Calculations
   5. Reaching Out to Child Representatives
5. Power Skill #4: Computer Know-How
   1. Scheduling Appointments and Hearings
   2. Assisting Clients with Discovery Requests
   3. Reviewing and Drafting Correspondence from/to Other Attorneys
   4. Managing Cybersecurity Issues
6. Power Skill #5: Office Organization
   1. Event Tracking
   2. Billing and Collection Techniques
   3. Trust Management
   4. Virtual Family Court Hearing Preparation

COURTNEY L. HANNA is president/principal of Joseph & Joseph Co., LPA. Ms. Hanna has extensive experience in complex domestic/family law cases involving child support, custody, and division of assets and liabilities, as well as intricate real estate and litigation matters. Ms. Hanna is a member of the Ohio State Bar Association and Columbus Bar Association, as well as the chairperson for the 2019-2020 year of the Real Property Committee of the Columbus Bar Association. In 2019, Ms. Hanna was selected for inclusion into the Trademark Women of Distinction. Ms. Hanna is a frequent speaker at continuing legal education seminars and also serves as a mentor to new lawyers in the Lawyer-to-Lawyer Mentoring Program through the Ohio Supreme Court. Ms. Hanna was recently accepted into the Ohio Women's Bar Foundation Leadership Institute Class of 2019-2020. Ms. Hanna received her B.S. degree from Miami University and her J.D. degree from Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

TIFANNE E.E. WOLTER is an attorney with Henningson & Snoxell Ltd. She has practiced family law exclusively for more than a decade. Ms. Wolter has assisted a wide array of clients with divorce, custody, paternity, child support, third party custody, parenting time, and domestic abuse matters. She is trained in collaborative divorce and mediation, and upon graduating from law school, she obtained a certificate in dispute resolution from Hamline University School of Law. After earning her Juris Doctorate degree, Ms. Wolter worked for Legal Aid and helped victims of domestic abuse and low income clients with family law issues. She is the past chairperson and representative to the Assembly for the Minnesota State Bar Association (Family Law Section). Ms. Wolter has been involved with the Family Law Section for many years. Previously, she was the vice chairperson and chairperson of publications. She earned her B.A. degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota; and her J.D. degree from Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota.