Kathy A. Polias

I hired Kathy Polias in 2014 for a paternity proceeding asking for a civilly registered parentage judgment and DNA test because it was required for recognition in the country I lived with my son. Kathy made a private stipulation of support deviating below CSSA that is not even enforceable in NY Stat...e and obtained a common law order of filiation that is also not considered valid by NYS. The nonjudicial orders were not confirmed by a judge, I was not even joined or served with the documents. My son has had no right to child protective services in the 9 years I have been requesting them, CPS does not afford credibility to unregistered parentage orders. Kathy believes she did her job and says she can’t provide more assistance when I asked her to obtain confirmation from a judge. She believes common law documents of filiation that are never confirmed by a judge are valid. She believes orders of support after order of filiation can be unregistered and enforced in private meetings with no state or judicial oversight. she deems to believe that children born out of wedlock are not entitled to have civil rights in civil records. She appeared at the first fearing but the case was never overseen or confirmed by a judge, so technically there was no parentage trial. I was not joined and Paternity requires personal appearances or both parties to execute a single signed original document to meet requirements for the software to permit a stipulation to be transmitted. A family court judge could’ve issued an order, but since 2014 UCCJEA, paternity is a custody proceeding so support for a child born out of wedlock requires a judge to confirm and electronically transmit final judgment then refer matter of support back to a magistrate after the electronic record has been established in the state. Kathy believes magistrates can be vested with power of a judge to make final judgments when custody is disputed. The software does not follow common law precedent so no orders establishing my son’s rights have ever reached the state officials. The birth certificate says father unknown, after 9 years trying to obtain enforcement of the deals Kathy made.

As usual, most people do not have contact with the judicial system unless it is an emergency because it is costly, complexity, time, unfamiliar laws and procedures. I was being overwhelmed dealing with a mother with Alzheimer's disease. I tried many options to acquire reasonable legal advice. For... example, I tried a family member, who was unreasonably expensive. Legal Aid could not help me. I could not get a pro bono attorney. Plus, there are very few attorneys in the elder care field. It is not profitable and the odds are not great. A friend recommend Ms. Kathy A. Polias. Although it was elder care law was not her field of expertise, she decided to assist me. It gave me a sense of relief because I was acting in the best interests of my mother. Even though it was an expensive and time consuming process, we succeeded and I became my mother's legal guardian. I was able to make critical medical and legal decisions regarding my mother until the end of her life. Recently, Ms. Polias helped me become administrator of my mother's estate. Ms. Polias has been empathetic, cost conscious, professional, serious, polite, and extremely talented. She has great expertise in immigration and matrimonial fields. She has represented clients before federal and state courts, which is very reassuring. She has been in several parts of the country to represent her clients. Her success rate is impressive. She is very realistic with the probabilities of success and failure. If she cannot do it, she will recommend other colleagues from other legal areas. She goes the extra mile for her clients. She gets an A+ and five (5) stars from me. Sincerely, Rudolpho A. Donawa

Looked her up prior and saw her reviews were really good! I had a consultation with Kathy and conjured up the nerve to tell her my whole life story. The meeting seemed really promising as she said she would follow up on particulars with my case, and I offered her to inquire any monetary fees that w...ould be included. I ended texting and calling her several times after to simply be ignored; as a teen seeking a lawyer— genuinely confused and hurt by her actions....would not recommend as communication was at an all time low.

After 6 years of custody and divorce litigation Kathy represented me. At the time I was representing myself after my previous lawyer had bankrupted me. Kathy was very cost contious and did an amazing job. She prepared for a financial trial and brokered a settlement. She is organized, thorough , and m...ost importantly highly ethical.