Nicole Michelle Stednitz

Nicole Michelle Stednitz

4.5
Rating: 9.6

Licensed for 12 years

Divorce and separation Lawyer at Torrance, CA
Practice Areas: Divorce & Separation, Child Custody, Child Support, Wills & Living Wills

3620 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 100, Torrance, CA

About Nicole

Biography

Practice Areas

4

Practice Areas

Fees and Rates

Cost

Hourly Rates

$ 350-450 per hour


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Credit Card

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Licenses

Licensed in California for 12 years

State: California

Acquired: 2013

Active

No misconduct found

Location

Torrance Family Law, APC

3620 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 100, Torrance, CA, 90505

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Nicole Michelle Stednitz's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

4.5 /5.0

22 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (22) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.

Showing 1 - 5 of 11 reviews | Family

Posted by anonymous | November 01, 2021 | Hired Attorney | Family

I do not recommend hiring her

I had a very bad experience with Nicole Stednitz. She misrepresented my legal situation in order to get my business. After receiving a favorable order prior to having met her, she told me to file for a trial that took away my favorable orders, costing over $16,000 when she promised it would be under ...$2500 and which I later found out should never have been filed. She also charged hundreds for driving to the courthouse. For example, for one 15-minute hearing she arrived both late and unprepared to, she charged 4.1 hours. In small claims court where she sued to recover all of her inflated billing, she argued the 4.1 hours included her travel time and didn’t dispute the hearing itself took 15 minutes. Unfortunately, the judge awarded her the full amount. I’ve had other family law attorneys and was not prepared for a large percentage of attorney fees to go to traveling as none of my other attorneys charged for their travel, let alone more than the hearing itself. Also, each email costs 20% of her billable hour, even if it is one word. One email I sent had an attachment for which she charged hundreds of dollars for reviewing even though she didn’t seem to be familiar with what I had emailed her. Between emails and transportation, my retainer drained quickly each month and needed replenishing, without seeing any real progress in my case. I disputed her overcharges, didn’t hear from her for over three years until she suddenly sued me in small claims court charging thousands in interest the judge threw out but unfortunately, she got away with a lot I dispute is owed to her. She didn’t seem to care about me or my child and situation, but only about billing unreasonably. I personally regret hiring her and the bad outcome her representation resulted in.

Posted by Aerilyn | February 07, 2020 | Hired Attorney | Family

Move away case

I cannot thank Nicole enough for what she and Stuart have done for my family. They both fought for me and my child. Nicole definitely went above and beyond. She made sure I was heard and made sure I got what I wanted and my child needed. My motion wasn’t an easy case. Thank you Nicole for my child’...s happiness.

Posted by anonymous | October 09, 2019 | Family

Waste of time

This lawyer just wasted our time We were referred to her by a family friend. 2 weeks out for an appt fine we wait. My father in law sees her for a free consult she requests we get the child support payment history we do that within a couple of days and we call her office and Her front staff Claudia... says we need to highlight all the irregularities and I tell her it’s a lot of pages to highlight and offered to put it into an excel sheet for her and email it she says that’s fine. That was sent 2/12/2019 and it is now 3/04/2019 I left 2 VM never heard back from anyone until an email today from Nicole that requested the accounting for child support services? I call her office to see what that is well according to her is the paperwork from child services and she needed the actual papers from child support services Scanned in and sent to her and that’s fine but why not say that since 2/12 when I contacted her and as I explained that to her she said to me she is doing all this as a courtesy (not to sure what she meant by that since at this point all she has done was the first initial consult 30 min and wrote an email) at this point I thought we were providing this info so she could tell us if she would even take the case. We had no problem paying for her services which we don’t even know what that was and well now after that call she says she wouldn’t want to take our case which after the dragging out just for her to tell us that she wouldn’t even take the case that’s for the best but now it’s 3 weeks out and we’re at square one. Honestly I believe the communication was unclear and that is essential in looking for a lawyer. So if that’s important to you just go with someone else

Nicole Stednitz

Replied last October 09, 2019

As to the substance of your comment, ethical rules and the attorney client privilege prevent us from directly addressing your specific concerns in this public forum. Upon review, the author of this post did not meet with Ms. Stednitz and was not a potential client. After Ms. Stednitz provided a free consultation to the author's family member(s), the client did not provide the requested information to evaluate the case. We do invite you, however, to contact us directly at the office if you wish to discuss your concerns.

Posted by Vesna | December 28, 2018 | Hired Attorney | Family

High recommend Ms. Stednitz

Ms. Stednitz helped me with my post dissolution issue. My ex and his attorney were very difficult to deal with. Ms. Stednitz remained calmed and focused on our final goal. She guided me through the process and I am glad I listened to her advice. The issue went to the court and judge ruled in my favor... on several matters.

Posted by anonymous | June 22, 2018 | Hired Attorney | Family

So helpful

I found Nicole to be very helpful, timely, friendly, and understanding. She was very accommodating and we were able to accomplish tasks even when I was overseas. Nicole checked in with me on a regular basis, providing updates, making sure the process moved along, giving suggestions and options when...ever needed. She always explained everything clearly. I really appreciated all she did on my behalf and would recommend her to anyone needing a family lawyer.

See All Client Reviews

Nicole Michelle Stednitz's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Nicole
Lisa Victoria Houlé headshot
Lisa Houlé

Family lawyer | Feb 18

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Nicole was opposing counsel on a very contentious domestic violence restraining order case which went to a full hearing in court. She an excellent family law attorney who represents her clients with professionalism and integrity. She is a dedicated advocate both in and outside the courtroom. As a testament to her abilities, I have referred cases to her since then."

Stephen K Chen headshot
Stephen Chen

Divorce and separation lawyer | Jul 13

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Nicole was opposing counsel on one of my cases. She stepped in for a previous opposing counsel who did not do a good job on the case in terms of moving the case towards an efficient resolution. Once Nicole subbed in, we were able to move the case towards a fair and efficient settlement for both sides. I look forward to working with her again in the future."

Lawrence Holden Davis headshot
Lawrence Davis

Family lawyer | Oct 05

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I worked with Nicole on a particularly difficult guardianship matter. She handled all aspects of the case extremely well and efficiently. The client and I both were impressed with Nicole's performance. I highly recommend her."

Davis Robert Zellmer headshot
Davis Zellmer

Divorce and separation lawyer | Oct 02

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. She has been a great attorney for both myself and my clients. She is extremely professional and stays up to date on changes in the law, which makes her an extremely knowledgable and qualified attorney."

View All Endorsements
Lisa Victoria Houlé headshot
Lisa Houlé

Domestic violence lawyer

Stephen K Chen headshot
Stephen Chen

Family lawyer

Davis Robert Zellmer headshot
Davis Zellmer

Estate planning lawyer

Lawrence Holden Davis headshot
Lawrence Davis

Probate lawyer

Experience

Rating:  9.6 (Superb)

Work Experience

2011 - 2011

Judicial Extern, United States District Court, Oregon

Associations

2018 - Present

A Better Divorce

2017 - Present

Los Angeles Collaborative Family Law Association

2013 - Present

South Bay Bar Association

Family Law Chair

Education

2012

University of Oregon

JD - Juris Doctor

N/A

Univ of California at Los Angeles

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Speaking Engagements

2017

Civil Lawsuits Basics

Presenting Evidence at Trial

2017

Civil Lawsuits Basics

Preparing for Trial

2017

Civil Lawsuits Basics

Getting Parties or Witnesses to Answer Questions in Person

2016

Civil Lawsuits Basics

Getting Documents From Parties or Witnesses

2015

Second Saturdays Second Saturdays

2014

Los Angeles Law Library

Child Custody 101

Publications

2013

Oregon Law Review Ending Family Trauma Without Compensation

Languages

English

Activity

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