Walter John Schouten Jr.

I couldn't be more proud to have been represented by Walter. I had consulted with 4 different attorney's before my consultation with him, and Walter was by far more impressive. In fact, He was referred to me by an attorney that I consulted with. This said attorney informed me that I would need a grea...t trial lawyer for my situation. She told me to call Walter. You see, I am a father and 2 weeks before I hired Walter​ I lost a child custody case for my then 6 year old son, even though I won the recommendation from the DRO Evaluator. The firm that was representing me at the time had dropped the ball and didn't recognize the DRO Evaluator as a professional witness.​ This made it easy for the opposing attorney to object to having the evaluation report admitted into evidence. A huge blow to my case. It was the only hope that I had at winning.​ Walter let me know that he would have to convince the judge that the ruling may have been incorrect because important evidence was not heard/seen by the court. Or more simply put, convince the judge that she got it wrong. A very difficult task indeed, but Walter knew that this judge was very technical savvy and she would prefer to make sure that she made the ruling that would serve the child's best interest. He scheduled a court hearing with the judge and both parties. This will be the first time I would witness how well Walter knew his way around the courtroom. As lame as this may sound, I was in awe. Walter explained to the judge why this case should be reopened and the importance of admitting crucial evidence. He assured the judge that it would change the ruling of the case. Then he carried on by citing examples of other cases and explained that the DRO Evaluator was very clear with her recommendation. Keep in mind that the judge has not seen the evaluation report. The opposing attorney tried pushing back but the judge had heard enough. She did not allow for the case to be reopened for new evidence, but she awarded me with a new trial. The opposing attorney asked the judge for an explanation for why she granted a new trial. The judge replied that she needs to hear the crucial evidence. Walter had planted the seed. Next up was my deposition. Now during the original trial I wasn't the best witness. Walter coached me on proper witness etiquette, especially during the cross examination. I wouldn't exactly say that I nailed the depo, but I was much better under his tutelage. I also have to mention that Walter, and his amazing paralegal Vanessa, had collected supplements and discoveries from the school, hospital, and from the opposing side that would help strengthen our argument. He knew what he needed to gather to help my case. I had a new DRO Evaluation a month later, and I won the evaluators recommendation again. This is what I mean about handling your end of the bargain. I don't want to give away any of Walter's trial strategies. But I will say that he had me well prepared for the trial, and he definitely was too. After the closing statements from both sides, the judge said that she will review some of the info and get back to us the next day. I was confident that Walter represented me to the fullest. He put it all out there and didn't leave room for the opposing counsel to pick apart our argument. Walter, thank you so much for taking on my case and going to war for me. I am more than happy with the way that you handled every aspect of my case. Win or lose, I was more than satisfied with the way that you represented me. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn't have changed anything that you did. By the way everyone, we won!