Katie VanDeusen

Katie was introduced to me by a friend and she immediately responded and was available for an initial consultation. When I first talked to her face to face, she was very approachable and made me feel at ease. She explained to me what a default divorce proceeding was. But eventually I was able to get... a hold of my ex and we proceeded with an uncontested divorce. Katie and her staff were right on the dot with regards to sending correspondence to my ex and getting all the forms signed by him, and in less than four months we were done. It took me years before I filed for divorce because of the fear of retaliation and stressful court hearings. Katie made it as smooth as possible and got it done quickly.

We won a child support/custody case that lasted over a year. Katie had very good knowledge and intuition during the whole case. We had to deal with a difficult opposing counsel claiming false allegations and demanding as much money as she can. Katie was able to layout and let me weigh the potentia...l options during each step. With her help, I felt we were ready and had a good grasp at all times during the case. My goal was to have a part in my daughter's life and have my rights protected as a father. Unfortunately the mother did not want me to be any part of my daughter's life. I was stuck when my baby was born because the mom didn't want me contacting her or anything. Katie listened to my situation and helped me come up with a game plan. We started the case and I was able to see my daughter for the first time. On the other hand, it was clear parenting and financials were going to be going to be a struggle to finalize with opposing council. Attorney fees are expensive in general and Katie let me take initiative on certain parts of the case that would save on costs. At moments I felt I needed to compromise a lot to see my daughter, but Katie was able to keep my belief in check and advise me the realistic options we have. With this advice, I was able to decide how much I wanted to compromise in effort to finish the case faster, yet hold our ground to protect my rights. With patience and good help from Katie, I felt we finally won when the case closed. I am satisfied with the finalized parenting agreement.

Katie was able to help me with my case which had several years of taxes and child support payments with ease. She took the time to explain the calculations, my options and gave terrific legal advice. Her friendly and professional demeanor eased my anxiety and made what would've been a painful process..., a learning one with positive results.

Going through a divorce is devastating and stressful. The legalities are extremely important but emotionally it seems less important than trying to find a sense of normalcy. I interviewed several attorneys prior to selecting Katie Galanes. Having Katie as my legal advisor enable me to start healin...g knowing she was looking out for my best interest. She has a way of explaining the unknown in terms that I could understand and make decisions on. I will be forever thankful that she got me through the legal side of divorce. She was able to do this in a way that made me feel she cared for my well-being and financial future.