Christina C. Van Ness

Seven years ago, I filed for divorce and spent time and lots of money with multiple lawyers who just kept spinning my wheels...I called Christina Van Ness after getting her phone number from the internet, it was the best call I ever made!! First of all, she answered the phone and I didn't have to wa...it 2-3 days for a return phone call... Christina is one of the utmost professional, ethical and fair lawyers I've ever met, she understands family law, she holds strong relationships within the Contra Costa County court system and goes above and beyond for her clients. When I first started working with Christina, I had less than 30% custody of my children, I was paying over $2,000 in child/spousal support and 50% of all daycare and additional add-ons along with the possibility of losing a percentage of my military retirement. Because of Christina's strategic approach, I now have 100% sole legal custody of my children, I have primary custody, I pay no spousal/child support, and she got my ex-wife to sign-off on my military retirement. She's strategic, she's creative in her approach, she's ethical and most importantly she puts herself in your shoes! I have already referred friends and family to Christina Van Ness and I will continue to do so...she's an amazing family law attorney!

Ms. Van Ness helped me with my divorce in 2012 (finalized in May 2013). She never wasted my time, handled my case quickly (any delay was caused by my ex which I expected) and was never more than a text message or a prompt email reply away. Although my divorce was not a scarring experience, like any... other it was unpleasant and highly contentious at times. When I found myself emotionally drained by my ex and the process itself, ready to throw in the towel and give in to my ex's demands, Ms. Van Ness knew exactly how to talk me down and explain I was not making the best decision at that very moment. She always made me feel like I was actively participating in my own case. We often brainstormed strategies together on how to move forward with the negotiations. I work in business and have dealt with other types of attorneys in the past (real estate, probate, bankruptcy) and often times you feel like lawyers are telling you what to do. This lawyer takes the time to educate you on the law, give you her opinion of how to proceed and listen and reason through your own suggestions. It was a collaborative experience and I cannot begin to explain how important that was to me. Divorce is unlike any other type of legal trouble you'll be in because it's closely tied to emotions. My best advice is that you spend a significant amount of time searching for the right divorce attorney. If you are like me (I have 2 kids ages 3 and 7), you will need your divorce attorney in the future as your kids grow up and custody problems/issues arise that you cannot solve amicably with your ex. This is something that had not occurred to me until Ms. Van Ness pointed it out in our initial free consult. I realized then that she was right, she and I were going to have a long term professional relationship because my kids were young enough where it was safe to assume I was going to need her in the future. So, per her recommendation I interviewed others. In fact, I interviewed 5 other attorneys, total of 6 including her, before I came back to retain her because she had given me the confidence I needed to move forward with my decision. To this day I am so glad I was referred to her by a friend of a friend and I sleep well at night knowing she'll be there for me in the future if I need her.