Vivian Lynn Goetzel Holley

Vivian Lynn Goetzel Holley

5.0
Rating: 9.7

Licensed for 47 years

Mediation Lawyer at San Francisco, CA
Practice Areas: Mediation, Divorce & Separation, Family ... +2 more

2135 Lombard Street, San Francisco, CA

About Vivian

Biography

Practice Areas

Fees and Rates

Cost

Hourly Rates

$ 400-400 per hour


Payment Methods

  • Check
  • Credit Card

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Licenses

Licensed in California for 47 years

State: California

Acquired: 1978

Inactive

No misconduct found

Location

Law & Mediation Offices of Vivian L. Holley

2135 Lombard Street, San Francisco, CA, 94123

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Vivian Lynn Goetzel Holley's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

5.0 /5.0

3 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (3) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.
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Practice Areas

Showing 1 - 2 of 2 reviews | General Knowledge

Posted by Yana | March 06, 2013 | Divorce & Separation

Super Mediator

Vivian Holley is perfect for anyone who needs guidance, representation, or mediation regarding any steps in a divorce process. Divorces can be very painful and difficult. Vivian Holley is the perfect lawyer to assist you and help you. She is very professional, offers perfect information, looks after ...her client's best interest. As a mediator she is absolutely stellar! I give her 100% positive rating, and she is worth every dollar she charges for her services.She helped me bring myy divorce to an end in just 3 mediation sessions, which all other lawyers failed to accomplish. What I like the most about her is that she does exactly what her client wants her to do for them. In a divorce case that's crucial.

Posted by Roger Solin | July 11, 2011 | Divorce & Separation

Great SF Mediation & Divorce Attorney

After separating, I entered into mediation with my ex-spouse to settle our marriage in what I hoped would be an amicable and fair ending. When the mediator suggested we also consider what the law in the matter was, and that it didn't serve my ex's interests, it became clear that mediation was not g...oing to work. I realized I needed a lawyer and a friend recommended Vivian Holley. I liked that Vivian specialized in mediation and also "Collaborative Law", rather than litigation, so that we could end our marriage as painlessly, harmoniously and inexpensively as possible. I wanted to make sure she was not just "ok" but "really good", so I interviewed many of SF's top divorce attorneys and an internationally known mediator who said Vivian is very good. It was a good thing, because my ex hired a high powered SF divorce attorney (from a firm that the SF attorneys told me, "You go to this lawyer if you want to give your ex a hard time... They just wear you down and don't care about how they get the result.."). As it turned out, Vivian's interpretation of the law was accurate and my ex's was not (surrounding "Separate Property" claims). My ex's lawyer feigned to cooperate but did not with the intent to wear me down. Vivian had me pull together all my records documenting the facts and when I filed a motion with the court, my ex backed down and she fired her lawyer and agreed to hire a collaborative lawyer (that Vivian identified) to represent her and Vivian representing me - out of court. While the process was painful, we ultimately resolved the situation and did so without expensive litigation. My ex's attorney made the incorrect assumption that just because Vivian prefers to collaborate, that she would buckle. Vivian did not buckle and, I believe me and my family were better off because of her knowledge of the law and how she advised and handled me and, indirectly, my ex.

See All Client Reviews

Vivian Lynn Goetzel Holley's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Vivian
Leslie Ellen Shear headshot
Leslie Shear

Mediation lawyer | Aug 24

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I have known Vivian as a colleague and fellow officer of the Association of Certified Family Law Specialists since the early 1990's. I am impressed with her insight, skills, and dedication to helping people find wise solutions to family law disputes. I'm pleased to endorse her as a mediator and as a family lawyer."

Gordon Yukinori Yamamoto headshot
Gordon Yamamoto

Family lawyer | Jul 25

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer. I have had the good fortune to work with Ms. Holley on several legal cases. And there is nothing more reassuring than to know you are in the hands of top-flight professional. I have had a chance to observe her professional demeanor, her skill, her articulateness, and the depth of her legal knowledge. I have further benefited from her creativity and proficiency in attacking a legal issue and help preparing for a case. I, as one professional to another, can wholeheartedly endorse her without hesitation."

View All Endorsements
Leslie Ellen Shear headshot
Leslie Shear

Child custody lawyer

Gordon Yukinori Yamamoto headshot
Gordon Yamamoto

Business lawyer

Experience

Rating:  9.7 (Superb)

Honors

2018

BV, Martindale-Hubbell

2011

Hall of Fame Award For Lifetime Achievment, Association of Family Law Specialists

2006

Super Lawyer, Northern California Super Lawyers

Work Experience

1984 - Present

Judge Pro Tempore, San Francisco Superior Court

1978 - Present

Principal, Mediation & Law Offices of Vivian L. Holley

Associations

1983 - Present

San Francisco Bar Association (BAS F) Family Law Section

Chairperson 1983, Executive Committee

1994 - 1997

American Arbitration Association (AM)

Co-Founder

1989 - 2011

Association of Certified Family Law Specialists (ACFLS)

Board Member, President in 2000

Sample of Legal Cases

Marriage of Chan

won

Woods v Superior Court (Jones)

won

See More Legal Cases

Education

1978

University of San Francisco School of Law

JD - Juris Doctor

1969

Stanford University

JD - Juris Doctor

Speaking Engagements

N/A

University of San Francisco School of Law American Inn of Court

Ethics In Collaborative Practice and Mediation

Publications

2009

Association of Certified Family Law Specialists Newsletter "Men Are Victims Of Domestic Violence, Too"

Languages

German

English

Activity

Avvo Rating

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