Agenda / Content Covered

10:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time

1. Challenge 1: Finding Evidence From Social Media, Texts and More
   10:00 - 11:00, Tifanne E.E. Wolter
   
   1. What to Look for and Where to Find it
   2. Social Media Sites and Apps to Search
   3. What to do if an Account's Been Closed or Content is Deleted
   4. Drafting Subpoenas to Get Information From Social Media Sites
   5. Tips for Collecting Text Message Evidence
   6. Smartphone/Tablet Discovery
   7. Preservation and Spoliation Considerations
2. Challenge 2: Locating Hidden Assets and Forensic Accounting Skills for Paralegals
   11:15 - 12:15, Tifanne E.E. Wolter
   
   1. Essential Documents to Obtain (With Checklist)
   2. Electronic Information Resources and Discovery Tools
   3. Analyzing Tax Returns for Hidden Assets/Income
   4. Individual Financial Records Analysis and Review
   5. Spotting Red Flags with Business Divorce: Identifying Red Flags
   6. Examining Estate, Gift, and Inheritance Tax Returns for Gifts or Bequests
3. Challenge 3: QDROs and Other Retirement Orders
   12:45 - 1:45, Lisa M. Elliott
   
   1. Types of Retirement Benefits and How They are Divided
   2. Collecting and Analyzing Retirement Information
   3. Key Terms in the Decree and Separation Agreements
   4. Where to go with the Final Product
   5. Review of Sample Forms
4. Challenge 4: Understanding Tax Issues
   1:45 - 2:45, Terrence J. Benshoof
   
   1. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act - What You Need to Know
   2. Filing Status of Divorcing Parties
   3. Reviewing Tax Forms - What Paralegals Should Look for
   4. Reviewing Corporate/Partnership Tax Returns
   5. How Spousal and Child Support Impacts Taxes
5. Challenge 5: Family Law Trial Prep
   3:00 - 4:00, Lisa M. Elliott
   
   1. Pre-Trial Motions Practice and Trial Preparation
   2. Family Court Procedures
   3. Trial Notebooks
   4. Witness and Exhibit Preparation
   5. Final Divorce Decree
6. Challenge 6: Ethical Considerations for Family Law Paralegals
   4:00 - 5:00, Terrence J. Benshoof
   
   1. HIPAA and Privacy Issues - Confidentiality, Attorney/Client Privilege
   2. Avoiding UPL
   3. Billing: What is or is Not Billable?
   4. Electronic Spoliation and Remedies
   5. Handling Clients Who Don't Respond or are Hiding Assets
   6. Working with Difficult/Emotional Clients

Accreditation Details:

TERRENCE J. BENSHOOF is an attorney in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. He has more than 40 years of experience in a variety of family and business law areas. In his legal career, Mr. Benshoof has served as assistant general counsel of Trailer Train Company, a $600 million rail car leasing company, where he focused on multi-state tax matters, corporate law and personal injury litigation. He is the past editor-in-chief of the DuPage County Bar Association's Brief, its legal topic publication, and is a member of the association's Board of Directors. As a practitioner, Mr. Benshoof has focused in the area family law on matters involving divorce actions involving military spouses, military pay and benefit issues, retired pay division, and application of the Service Members Civil Relief Act. He has lectured on these topics to the Chicago, DuPage County and Will County bar associations in Illinois. Mr. Benshoof also practices in the area of general taxation, business tax planning, trusts and estates, real estate, and commercial litigation. A retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve, Judge Advocate General's Corps, he has served as general counsel for a 75,000 member not-for-profit military association, and has served on its Board of Directors for five years. Mr. Benshoof is currently the referendary general (Chief Judge of the Tribunal) of the Knights Templar International. He earned his J.D. and LL.M. degrees from DePaul University.

LISA M. ELLIOTT has been a shareholder at Elliott Law Offices, P.A., in Minneapolis, Minnesota since 1995. She graduated from Regis University in Denver, Colorado and the University of Minnesota Law School. Ms. Elliott has more than 25 years of experience specializing in family law and product liability defense work and is licensed in Minnesota, Colorado and South Dakota. In her family practice, Ms. Elliott handles all aspects of marriage dissolution and paternity cases, including those with complex financial issues and parenting issues such as parental alienation. Ms. Elliott’s product liability defense practice includes demonstrated success with complex asbestos cases and has allowed her to become a known specialist in this discipline. She strives to ease the challenges of litigation for her clients and also recognizes that creative alternatives to trial are most times preferable and necessary to resolve difficult disputes. Ms. Elliott has been named to Super Lawyers for the past five years.

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.