Deborah Annette Carder

Debbie is incredible. All told, my process took 8 months. I came to Debbie after my ex-wife filed for divorce behind my back while we were in mediation. She was also threatening to take our child back to CA. Debbie's initial consult immediately won me over. She was familiar with cases like mine an...d was very very easy to talk to. She's an absolute legal expert, but also great with clients. She took the time to explain things to me fully without making me feel dumb or scared. I told her upfront that I had to be budget-conscious, so I didn't contact her a lot unless I needed to. She made sure to contact me with all of the essentials without adding in unnecessary interactions. She is one hundred percent an advocate for couples/soon to be exes to work out as much as possible between themselves to save themselves heartache and money (my ex and I ended up going back to mediation while each retaining our own lawyers), but she's no fool. And she won't let her clients be, either. I'm very meek and I don't do a great job with money/going after what's rightfully mine. Debbie was there to fight on my behalf. While she always deferred to my choice in the end, she pushed me further than I would have done alone to protect myself and my child. I would not have been able to accomplish the agreements without her. And she did so with warmth, collaboration, and even a little humor from time to time. She is a perfect attorney for someone who may be a little overwhelmed or scared like I was. She is great for someone who isn't super confident/doesn't stand up well for themselves. She always made sure I understood what was happening, treated me with compassion and respect, and it made me feel so secure. I knew I would be okay and my son would be okay in the end because Debbie knows exactly what she's doing. The day of the in-person prove up in court, she was even supportive of my ex while she waited for her attorney to arrive, and helped make sure everything ran smoothly that day. I would hands down recommend Debbie. She's very smart, has a lot of case law and history/precedent that she refers to, and she's just overall very pleasant to be around. PLUS I didn't go into debt. She's the kind of attorney you almost hope you need again because she's that great. I will be forever grateful for her work with me. She saved us!

Debbie is a savvy, highly skilled attorney who never once steered me wrong throughout my divorce and contested custody case. She was very responsive to my inquiries and always told me the truth, whether I wanted to hear it or not. Divorce involves overwhelming turmoil, and Debbie always remained leve...l headed and focused on strategy and best outcomes. She was empathetic yet she didn’t coddle, which is exactly what I needed. She is very honest about whether pursuing certain actions are cost effective and is not motivated by billable hours. She truly wants the best for her clients and their families. I trust her implicitly and recommend her to anyone going through a divorce and/or custody dispute.

Divorce is a very difficult time and getting referrals for the right divorce attorneys can be difficult. You cannot go wrong with Debbie Carder or Tim Daw. They make a great team. My experience with them spans from 2003 to 2013. What I have learned is that you want a very good, focused divorce at...torney. SDF has about 40 divorce attorneys and that provides Debbie Carder an ability to ask questions of others in her firm when some unusual issues or approaches emerged. I also tell everyone that the high billing rates that SDF charges is worth it because you save money by getting the right answer the first time and access to insight on judges and opposing consul that is invaluable. The large number of cases this team has under its belt gives them real insight into possible outcomes and, thus, strategies to employ. Debbie works very closely with Tim Daw. Tim is one of the 4 or 5 full equity partners in SDF. I worked with Tim much more in the first go around back in 2003-2005. They work great together, covering when necessary for each other, and figuring out who is best for different issues, judges, opposing attorneys etc. It was worth the money and reassuring to bounce our complicated issues and approach off Tim, too. Even after the divorce is final, you will likely have questions pop up or need a pre-nup if you remarry - Debbie has been helpful to me on all those fronts as well. I referred a PwC partner to Debbie and Tim, and he has thanked me on a number of occasions for the referral. Over the last 18months, my ex has filed 9 different motions, legal actions of some kind in our last legal battle. Debbie and Tim won every one of them. We recently inked a final settlement!! A few other points : 1. Debbie is an outstanding writer - I mean VERY good! 2. Debbie does care about her clients’ costs and does not unnecessarily run up legal bills 3. She works most weekends and nights, so my concerns were addressed promptly 4. Even if I did not like it, she would tell me her professional legal opinion in a very calm experienced way (believe me I did some yelling and screaming as the cases dragged out due to crazy legal stuff). She is unbelievably professional and quality-oriented. She just tells it like it is based on her experience. 5. She is expensive to use in this way, but she could probably double for a divorce therapist when you just need to vent and have no one else to talk to or who wants to listen anymore! 6. Tim/Debbie understands complex financial matters. 7. Debbie will bring in an expert from another office and even another firm when needed. The client focus and willingness to do the right thing reminds me of my years at Arthur Andersen and the global teamwork we used.