Ashley Donovan

I was referred to Ashley by a DV hotline. Because I didn't work and my husband controlled the money, she said she could file to have my legal fees taken from the savings account. She said she could file for temporary spousal maintenance. None of these things happened. She wasn't prepared for thes...e things at the first hearing, and never scheduled another hearing for them. I also had issues with her keeping phone appointments. For one appointment, she called to say she was stuck in traffic and would call in 30 minutes. Another time her paralegal set up a phone appointment for 4:00 the following day; Ashley never phoned. I received no response for one week. Ashley set up a time to meet me 30 minutes before court and never showed, and was 10 minutes late for the court hearing. At this hearing the judge wanted to move forward with the Temporary Orders but Ashley said she was not prepared for that, yet I had been told she would ask for the TO at this hearing. On another day, I had a 4:00 phone appointment scheduled, and her paralegal called earlier to confirm the appointment. At 4:00 I received no phone call. I called the office at 4:04 and left a voicemail. I continued to call and no one answered. I'd taken off work to make this appointment. Her paralegal later said I hadn't given them the correct phone number, but the paralegal had successfully called me that morning to confirm the appointment. After an in-office appointment, I asked the paralegal if she needed to copy my tax documents I'd brought with me. She said 'no', but later in the week stated she needed them ASAP. I lived 30 minutes from their office and have 3 young girls; it's not easy for me, and would've been more convenient if she'd taken them from me when I was there and asked. On January 9 Ashley notified my spouse's attorney that she had her baby early and this would delay the drafting of the divorce decree. On January 24 and February 8, my spouse's attorney e-mailed Ashley for an update and received 'no substantive response.' He finally received a response February 14. There were several more communication issues both with his attorney and with me; I often did not know what was happening with my case, or had to re-e-mail questions after a week of no response. I also couldn't get their file-sharing program to work, & her paralegal's response was: it worked before so I need to try again. The decree stated 'No Signifiant Domestic Violence has occurred, even though DV did occur and I was referred to her by the DV hotline. I asked to have that language change; she changed it in the decree but left it in the Parenting Plan. As an ESL DV survivor, I'd wanted spousal maintenance so I could go back to school for more English lessons and to learn a trade. While married, my husband didn't allow me to go to school and rarely let me work; when he did, he only let me be a cashier at the Dollar Store. I received no spousal maintenance; I'm responsible for 20% of my children's expenses even though my husband has moved overseas and never has my girls. I feel that there was no consideration for the difficulties I had and would have as a DV survivor. I received no money from the savings account. I received child support, permission to move to another state, and majority custody, and that's it. I didn't feel Ashley had my and my children's best interest in mind; I feel she let my spouse's attorney 'win'; and I felt that it didn't matter that I asked for Spousal Maintenance so I could afford English classes and trade school classes. I felt she was very hard on me; she often asked me why I didn't have a job, and said the judge would ask me this. The judge never asked. I felt she didn't understand my situation: I took care of my young daughters, and if my husband told me to work at the Dollar Store, then I worked. I did what he told me. He made 6 figures. I would not refer a DV survivor to her. I am left struggling to survive.

I hired Ashley Donovan as my family law attorney to assist me with a modification to a parenting plan involving my two young children. Aside from some needed changes to the plan, it was also imperative that the court be made aware of my ex- spouse’s unwillingness to co-parent, their harassing and ill...-mannered behavior toward me, etc. When I met with Ashley I explained to her my concerns and made her aware of my expectations. She listened and cared about what I had to say and worked with me on my case for the next several months. Ashley kept me informed during the process and we spoke regularly on the phone or in person as needed. She was very organized and thorough. When it came down to the day of trial, Ashley's true colors really shined through! I was very proud to see how she addressed my ex on the stand and caught him in several lies during cross examination. She really thought out how she would present my case in court and was very prepared. My ex was represented by an attorney as well who had a very aggressive and nasty demeanor. Ashley helped prepare me for what to expect during cross examination and I made it through with confidence. Once the judge made their ruling, it was obvious they saw the true issues at hand and my ex was exposed. The judged ruled in my favor and the changes I requested were granted. In addition, I also was awarded child support that I was not expecting. Aside from the great results in court, for the first time in years I have a huge weight lifted from my shoulders. My constant worries are gone and I can now look forward to a brighter future with my children because justice was served. If you are looking for a professional and composed attorney that provides results in court, Ashley is your gal! - 5 STARS ***** & Highly recommended!

Ashley Donovan is a professional family-law attorney who is easy to work with, knowledgeable, and direct. She represented us in a timely manner, with research into our concerns, and an honest appraisal of our situation. Ashley kept us informed on negotiations and readily offered advice on how to proc...eed. We found her fees to be reasonable for today's market.

When I asked for Ms. Donovan's help in simple wage garnishment and child support modification for my ex-husband who was in arrears, she incorrectly got my case classified as 4D (a person who has taken state aid in the past). This resulted in a huge bureaucratic nightmare with the State and DES. Thi...s incorrect classification required a second trial that cost me an additional six months without support and 10K in legal fees. It is 18 months later and I'm still in court trying to get an accurate arrears total for my ex. Ashley also didn't return phone calls and openly admitted she was overwhelmed by my case. She forgot to get my ex-husband (who is an attorney himself) served for mediation. She also sent me another client's court correspondence for three months, and despite multiple phone calls (and ‘return to sender’) it finally took me contacting her other client via Facebook and letting him about it before the simple address correction was made. Ashley left the firm she was representing me at and her senior partner inherited me as a client. Two months later she joined the firm that was representing my ex-husband.