Lori L. Guzzo

I have had the privilege of working with Lori as my attorney since 2005. She handled a major matter for me that concluded several years ago, and she has overseen other matters I have had with her firm as well. The expertise and knowledge Lori provides to her clients is distinctive, and in my opinio...n, incomparable in the current legal/financial market. Lori’s integrity speaks to the person she is to her family, her friends, her colleagues and especially to her clients. It is never “business as usual” with her. She is personally involved with all aspects of her client’s cases assuring they receive dedicated customer service and quality, comprehensive representation. Working creatively and with efficiency is Lori’s trademark. She is a knowledgeable and effective negotiator. Her ability to listen is key to her leadership both within and outside of her office. She delivers the best outcome because she is willing to consider other individuals’ priorities, concerns and suggestions. Respect from and collaboration with varied industry experts – financial planners, business management experts, investment firms, accountants, expert witnesses, etc. – are keys to Lori’s success. However, it is Lori’s unique ability and personal hard work that effectively uses the information provided by these individuals to create a strategy that meets even the most challenging of situations. Her resourcefulness in finding the most appropriate expert for each circumstance assures not only a quality outcome, but effective cost control on behalf of her client. Lori has been invaluable to me in both my professional and personal life. She has been able to assist me numerous times in negotiating through the complexity associated with an ever changing legal environment. For me, working with Lori is not the best choice I could make… it is the ONLY choice for me to make.

Lori’s a little more expensive than some divorce attorneys ($375/hr), but well worth it. I’ve often found that lawyers who cost more per hour, end up costing a lot less in the end. She’s one of those. Over the course of several contested divorces and custody battles, I’ve used 5 different divorc...e attorneys and Lori’s by far the most effective at getting what's fair and moving you past what's likely to be the most difficult period of your life. I was referred to Lori by high-powered women in the Seattle investment community. They represent many high-net-worth individuals and were concerned about me. They had watched too many of their customers, both male (like me) and female, get decimated as the result of poor legal representation. I like Lori for many reasons, especially because she’s one of the creators of a small new movement in family law call “collaborative divorce”. The purpose of this practice is to do the deal ... get the divorce over with ASAP … for the sake of the children (especially) as well as the adults. Lori doesn’t believe in profiting by empowering her client to believe he/she is in the right when they’re not. That does nothing but extend the painful, destructive divorce process interminably ... at the expense of the client's emotions and cash. Knowing her reputation as a powerful peacemaker, I invited Lori to criticize any demand I felt like making that was unreasonable in her eyes. She did so in a compassionate way. She headed off behavior on my part that wasn’t conducive to settlement by explaining _why_ certain details of my approach wouldn’t work best. She sometimes based her opinions on experience and sometimes on a description of how I would be perceived if I didn’t change myself for the better — i.e. it's usually not a good idea to place fault in a divorce -- you chose him/her afterall, and both parties are hurting no matter how it appears. In my mind, I learned that the only fault in the process is when a client hangs on to anger, blame and revengeful thinking — thinking that many other divorce attorneys simply encourage. And yet, Lori also fights like hell for you in a compelling and effective way, at just the right moments and by picking the most important points to get out of the way first. She’ll do what it takes even if she has to get down into the trenches to become your warrior. She’s busy so I’d suggest getting on her calendar soon.