Lisa did a great job with my case. I am a newly divorced father of three great kids and my ex and I were not having an amicable split. From our very first meeting, Lisa understood my situation and, more importantly, she understood my ex and the way my ex thinks. Because I was in a custody fight, L...isa advised me not to move out of my apartment until the judge said I could. I ended up living almost another year with my ex while also taking her to court. Lisa understood what was at stake for me and gave me great advice on how to deal with my ex while still living with her, as well as what strategy I should use in dealing with her when she got confrontational.
In our first meeting, Lisa also took the time to describe to me the judges we might face in court, their personal tendencies, how I might fare before each and how she gets along with each in court. I thought this was very insightful and it shows how much thought Lisa puts into her work.
Lisa is very sharp and very tough in a deposition. She conducted two eight-hour depositions of my ex, and through both she was focused and persistent. She never let my ex, who can be very evasive and confrontational, off the hook. She never backed down and she made it very clear to both my ex and her attorney that Lisa was in charge of the deposition. Also, at the end of the second deposition, it was discovered that my ex had altered documents that had been submitted to the court. And after my ex was forced to confess what she had done, Lisa asked her if she had come to the deposition intending to tell the truth. And my ex answered "No". This was really quick thinking and a great question on Lisa's part and my ex's answer was devastating to her case.
Lisa was very honest with me. Throughout our year-long court case, Lisa explained the different strategies and discussed the financial implications of each, vis-a-vis her fees and the possible outcomes. She also managed my costs extremely well. Lisa is very efficient with her time and always informed me up front of any possible added costs (whether they were consults with one of her Firm's senior partners, or weighing the cost of a court reporter from the Pearl River area vs. the cost of a court reporter from Manhattan).
Lisa's knowledge of the court and the judge we faced was far superior to my ex's attorney's knowledge of the same. Lisa knew when to talk and when to be quiet. She knew what this judge wanted to hear and she knew how to say it. Every time we were in court, the judge had issues with my ex and with my ex's attorney. And whenever the judge ordered us out of the room to meet, Lisa, in the heat of the moment, gave me great advice about what to acknowledge to my ex and what not to acknowledge.
In the end, my not moving out was the best thing I could have done. Because my kids are older, the judge immediately put my ex on the hook for having all this time to get a job and doing more to support herself and our family and for failing to do anything.
Lisa got me the custody arrangement I wanted. She got me a financial outcome better than what either of us thought I would get in the end. Her fees were fair especially relative to what a Manhattan attorney might have charged me. All in all, Lisa Zeiderman was well worth the investment.
Lastly, I have referred several friends and acquaintences to Lisa and each has retained her and is happy with her work.