The Family Lawyer
Official Publication of the Atlanta Bar Association Family Law Section
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 Save the Date!
Mark your calendars for the following Family Law Section Events
Details are subject to change. Check your emails and the Atlanta Bar Association website for updates.
Family Law Section Breakfast
"A View from the Bench"
Date: 04/09/2015
Time: 7:30 AM-9:00 AM
Location: Buckhead Club
Section Members:
$18 in advance, $25 at the door
Non-Section Members:
$25 in advance, $30 at the door
Family Law Section Fundraiser
"Second Annual Brews for Tunes Fundraiser"
Date: 04/29/2015
Time: 6:00 PM-9:00 PM
Location: Monday Night Brewing
Pricing: $40 in advance/ $50 at the door
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Honorable Phillip C. Smith Speaks at January Family Law Breakfast By William A. Alexander, Esq., Boyd Collar Nolen & Tuggle, LLC
On January 9, 2015, the Honorable Phillip C. Smith of the Superior Court of Forsyth County spoke to the Atlanta Bar Family Law Section. Judge Smith was appointed to the bench on January 3, 2013 to assist with a quickly growing docket. Judge Smith came to the Superior Court bench with twenty years of trial experience in private practice and previous experience as a judge in both state and juvenile courts. With this extensive experience, Judge Smith provided the following tips and insight regarding domestic practice and his courtroom:
Scheduling
Judge Smith has two domestic calendars, one for short hearings, i.e., those that will last ninety minutes or less, and one for more involved cases-typically those involving custody issues. However, if you are going to try and get on the "short hearings" calendar, make sure ninety minutes is really all that you will need because Judge Smith will not be shy about cutting you off once you have surpassed your time limit.
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Honorable Gregory A. Adams Speaks at February Family Law Breakfast By William A. Alexander, Esq., Boyd Collar Nolen & Tuggle, LLC
On February 12, 2015, the Honorable Gregory A. Adams of the Superior Court of DeKalb County spoke to the Atlanta Bar Family Law Section. Judge Adams has been on the bench since 2005 and previously served as a Juvenile Court Judge for ten years prior to moving to the Superior Court.
At any given time, Judge Adams has 1,000 or so open cases on his docket, 500 of which are domestic cases. Thus, most of Judge Adams's time is spent on his domestic case load. Judge Adams wants to do what he can to make the courthouse and his courtroom more efficient. However, above all else, Judge Adams's dedication is to achieving the right result for the parties and the parties' children.
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Justice Keith R. Blackwell Speaks at March Family Law Breakfast By K. Jeanette Holmes, Esq., Boyd Collar Nolen & Tuggle, LLC
On March 12, 2015, Justice Keith R. Blackwell of the Supreme Court of Georgia spoke to the Atlanta Bar Family Law Section at the monthly Family Law Section Breakfast. Justice Blackwell is a "double dawg," earning his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Georgia. After graduating from law school, Justice Blackwell clerked for the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He then worked in private practice before being appointed as a judge on the Court of Appeals of Georgia before being appointed to the Supreme Court in 2012. Due to his experiences on both the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court, Justice Blackwell was able to share a unique perspective with the Atlanta Bar family law practitioners.
Justice Blackwell sympathized with the frustration attorneys often experience after receiving a short (perhaps one sentence) order from the appellate courts. While it may be discouraging to receive a "Rule 36" Order from the Court of Appeals or a "Rule 59" Order from the Supreme Court after hours of hard work on a case, Justice Blackwell offered a "behind-the-scenes" look at why these orders are often issued.
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Zero in on Discounts for Lack of Marketability in Family LawBy Mark A. Dayman, CPA/ABV/CFF, ABAR, CVA
Business appraisal is a mixing bowl of art and science.
I recently attended a financial conference for family law professionals. One can easily observe expanding complexity in financial matters in family law. A significant driver is the increased sophistication of experts, lawyers, and triers of fact. Another driver of course is the increasing complexity of people's financial affairs when viewed in relation to state statute and emerging case law.
Sophistication has not been lost on Discounts for Lack of Marketability (DLOM)! As a general concept, appraisal professionals have increasingly identified two broad concepts in DLOM - a lack of liquidity (including the general absence of a ready market), and a transactional cost. Although DLOM was historically more art than science, we now have tools that directly aid in the quantification of the discount.
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Case Law Update
Stephanie L. Wilson, Esq., and Corey A. Aitken, Esq., Stern & Edlin, P.C. Evans v. Sangster
A14A2110 and A15A0079
February 3, 2015
Mother and Father of the minor child, C.S., divorced in 2010, when the child was 2 years-old. The parties' separation agreement allowed for "reasonable" paternal grandparent visitation in the event of Father's death during the minority of the child. After the parties' divorce, Father's parents (the child's paternal grandparents) regularly visited with the minor child. However, upon Father's death from cancer in 2012, Mother resisted the paternal grandparents' efforts to continue regular visitation with the child. Consequently, the paternal grandparents sought the advice of counsel, and with the assistance of counsel, were successful in entering an agreement with Mother, which set forth a regular visitation schedule. Thereafter, the paternal grandparents filed a petition, seeking court-ordered grandparent visitation, which prompted Mother to cease grandparent visitation altogether.
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2014-2015 Section Board of Directors
Newsletter Editor
Emily S. Yu
Chair
Gary P. Graham
Vice Chair/Chair-Elect
Louis J. Tesser
Secretary
Hannibal Heredia
Treasurer
Rachel Miller
Immediate Past Chair
Eileen Thomas
Members at Large
Rebecca Crumrine Rieder
Melinda (Mindy) C. Pillow
J. Ashley Sawyer
Eileen J. Shuman
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The Section Thanks its Annual Sponsors
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