Kathy A Minella

PRO

Kathy A Minella

4.5
Rating: 10.0

Licensed for 15 years

Divorce and separation Lawyer at San Diego, CA
Practice Areas: Divorce & Separation, Child Custody, Domestic Violence, Adoption

1450 Frazee Road, Ste. 305, San Diego, CA

Virtual Consultation Available

Free Consultation

About Kathy

Biography

Your personal Certified Family Law Specialist. Schedule a free consultation today!

Practice Areas

4

Practice Areas

Divorce and Separation 50%

50%
Child Custody 25%

25%
Domestic Violence 20%

20%
Adoption 5%

5%

Fees and Rates

Cost

Free Consultation

$0 first 30 minutes

Retainer

Always


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Credit Card

Awards

Client's Choice
Client's Choice
2016 2013
AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating

Licenses

Licensed in California for 15 years

State: California

Acquired: 2010

Active

No misconduct found

Location

Minella Law Group, APC

1450 Frazee Road, Ste. 305, San Diego, CA, 92108

minellalawgroup.com/services/san-diego-divorce-attorneys/

Online Presence

Other places you can find Kathy online.

Kathy A Minella's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

4.5 /5.0

30 Client Reviews

Showing 1 - 1 of 1 review | Identity Theft

Posted by Lindy | May 06, 2015 | Identity Theft

Child support, custody and more!

I hired Kathy while at the tail end of my 1 yr deployment to Afghanistan. My ex wife had opened credit cards in my name, mistated income causing me to pay over $600 extra a month for over 4yrs and used my career as leverage to keep me as a financial crutch. Keeping in mind as father, I have my chil...dren 50% of the time (2 weeks a month including weekends). After hiring Kathy she quickly reassured me of my rights as a parent and everytime my ex tried to pull from me monetarily or just acting out of spite, she quickly found a subject matter expert in Family Law on my side. Not only did Kathy protect me from the nuances of my ex wife, she assisted me even further when our case took a surprising turn. When going after my ex wife for fraudulent credit cards while I was deployed, my ex wife decided to secretly file for bankruptcy while I was in Afghanistan to wash her hands of the illegal activity in which she used my personal information for her financial gain. I had been a victim as a co signer to my ex wife's Discover Financial Services student loan for $15,000, an American Express Card for $8000 and a Citibank account I had never opened. Before court, my ex wife tried every trick in the book to justify keeping her child support above California guidelines in such a manner that she filed for full custody to increase her custody split once she knew support would be adjusted to the correct parameters. My ex wife wanted to say that the distance of me living in Murrietta to their school (Poway) was too far and that it would benefit my children to only see me every other weekend when in fact their school is on my way to work (Miramar) and it was a seamless transition. When my day finally came in court, Kathy had every thing she needed in evidence, laws, consistent untruths of my ex in such that her lawyer had no grounds to even fight back. Kathy covered every base painting the picture of my ex wife's character in in court. In the end, I retained 50% custody, a specific schedule covering every day of the year, tax exemptions for children, child support lowered to California guideline support of $1048 (vice $1500) and then a $250 sanction against my ex for fraudulent actions further lowering my support to a total to $800 a month. She also worked with me as costs started to rise due to the complexity of the case and the actions taken by my ex. Kathy and her assistant Edenia kept me as calm as can be despite this long process and it was the best money I could have ever spent...a piece of mind as I sit here this evening packing my children's lunches for school :) I highly recommend Kathy and her services to anyone...ESPECIALLY MILITARY!

See All Client Reviews

Kathy A Minella's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Kathy
Koryn Kathryn Sheppard headshot
Koryn Sheppard

Family lawyer | May 14

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Kathy is a fighter, no question about it. She's incredibly tough and always a strong advocate for her clients. Kathy does not back down. She's well-informed on the law and on the facts of her cases. Kathy is also open to out of court settlements and we've successfully settled some high conflict, high emotion matters."

Maria Yurevna Taylor headshot
Maria Taylor

Family lawyer | Nov 01

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Kathy is a very good, hard working attorney. I endorse this lawyer."

Nathaniel Z Conley headshot
Nathaniel Conley

Divorce and separation lawyer | Jul 28

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"Kathy is a very down to earth person and a great family law attorney who fights hard for her clients."

Paul Adam Swiller headshot
Paul Swiller

Child custody lawyer | Feb 10

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I highly endorse Ms. Minella. She is a knowledgeable and well-respected attorney who is a great choice for anyone seeking legal representation."

Ryan Thomas Mardock headshot
Ryan Mardock

Family lawyer | Sep 16

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I have had the pleasure of knowing Kathy Minella for several years now. She is competent, caring, responsible, and an extraordinarily talented attorney. She is a zealous advocate for her clients. I consider her not only colleague, but also a friend. I often receive calls from individuals needing representation pertaining to family law and adoption issues. I never hesitate to refer them to Kathy. I strongly endorse her."

Ekaterina L Powell headshot
Ekaterina Powell

Family lawyer | Jun 11

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. Very knowledgeable attorney."

Shannon Briawn Miles headshot
Shannon Miles

Unknown lawyer | Sep 25

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Nicole Elizabeth Boros headshot
Nicole Boros

Alimony lawyer | Sep 11

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. Kathy is very experienced in her area of law and is committed to providing superior service to her clients."

Milda Uogintaite Goeriz headshot
Milda Goeriz

Divorce and separation lawyer | Jun 05

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"Kathy is an excellent family law attorney. Extremely knowledgeable, effective in the courtroom and dedicated to her clients."

Ari S. Mor headshot
Ari Mor

Unknown lawyer | May 29

Relationship: Friend

"I have known Ms. Minella for over 7 years. Ms. Minella is hard working, represents all of her clients zealously- with the utmost attention to detail. No task is too great for Ms. Minella. She will move mountains for her clients. I endorse this lawyer."

Debra Vaniman Crawford headshot
Debra Crawford

Divorce and separation lawyer | Mar 18

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Kristen Gonzales Roberts headshot
Kristen Roberts

Divorce and separation lawyer | Dec 19

Relationship: Co-worker

"I endorse this lawyer."

Habib Hasbini headshot
Habib Hasbini

Unknown lawyer | Sep 19

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

View All Endorsements
Elizabeth A. Lefiti headshot
Elizabeth Lefiti

Family lawyer

Maria Yurevna Taylor headshot
Maria Taylor

Family lawyer

Ryan Thomas Mardock headshot
Ryan Mardock

Criminal defense lawyer

Shannon Briawn Miles headshot
Shannon Miles

Family lawyer

Habib Hasbini headshot
Habib Hasbini

Litigation lawyer

Kristen Gonzales Roberts headshot
Kristen Roberts

Litigation lawyer

Experience

Rating:  10.0 (Superb)

Honors

2025

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2024

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2023

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

2020

Rising Star, Super Lawyers

2019

Rising Star, Super Lawyers

2017

Certified Specialist - Family Law, State Bar of California

2015

Best Lawyers, San Diego Business Journal

2012

Jack Berman Service selection, The California State Bar

Work Experience

2014 - Present

President and Founding Attorney, Minella Law Group, APC

2012 - Present

Adjunct Professor, Ashford University

2011 - 2014

Attorney, San Diego Law Firm

2010 - 2011

Associate, Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP

Associations

2014 - Present

Big Brother Big Sister

Big Sister

2013 - Present

SDFLBA

Member

2010 - Present

San Diego County Bar Association, Family Law Section

Member

2010 - Present

State Bar of California

Member

Sample of Legal Cases

Respond to Appeal

Trial court affirmed, appeal denied

Step Parent Adoption

Win

Move Away

Opposition Successful

See More Legal Cases

Education

2009

California Western School of Law

JD - Juris Doctor

2003

Columbia College

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Speaking Engagements

2011

Domestic Violence Class

Family and Domestic Violence

Publications

Languages

English

Spanish

Activity

Avvo Rating

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  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
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Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution