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FAMILY LAW

When a family is in the throes of change, the qualities of the attorneys who represent them become crucial. Moss & Barnett’s Family Law group offers a unique blend of honesty, objectivity, discretion and compassion, combined with the years of experience needed to bring a common sense perspective to the proceeding. In addition, the family law attorneys at Moss & Barnett have earned national reputations for their contributions to developing and interpreting Minnesota family law.

We educate and advise our clients, helping them make clear, rational decisions in the face of sensitive personal issues. Our advice unites our own expertise with the resources of a broad spectrum of other professionals. These might include:

Other Moss & Barnett attorneys with expertise in business, trusts and estates, tax law and employee benefits
Accountants with expertise in business valuations and family finance
Therapists
Mediators or arbitrators

Our clients are involved throughout the process, for this is the key to creating an acceptable solution and to avoiding unnecessary litigation. We are dedicated to using Alternative Dispute Resolution, but we are also prepared to zealously litigate whenever that is in the client’s best interest.

A substantial part of our family law practice involves cases with:

Businesses
Professional practices
Intellectual property
Complex spousal maintenance and asset valuation issues, including identifying marital and non-marital property.

Among the services provided by Moss & Barnett’s family law attorneys are the following:

Negotiating and drafting premarital and post-marital agreements
Assisting clients through dissolution proceedings, seeking resolution through early settlement and litigating, if necessary
Helping clients resolve custody and related issues
Advising clients concerning the impact of family law matters on businesses, professional practices, non-marital property, intellectual property and other complex financial arrangements
Consulting with clients regarding asset protection, including protecting all income-producing assets and activities
Representing clients on appeals
Advising clients regarding modification of existing court orders
Mediating disputes as neutral intermediaries

Ultimately, the Moss & Barnett Family Law group seeks to guide clients through difficult personal matters so they will do the right thing for themselves, their family members, their business or professional relationships, and all others affected by the matter. We help our clients take the high road while dealing with some of life’s most difficult and disruptive family law matters.

Attorneys in this Area

Susan C. Rhode (Co-Chair)	Edward L. Winer (Co-Chair)	Shannon M. Bixby	Kim R. Bonuomo
Jana Aune Deach	Ben M. Henschel	James J. Vedder	Richelle M. Wahi

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Case Summaries

Family Law

[03/11] Schaar v. Lehigh Valley Health Servs., Inc.
In plaintiff's suit against her former employer for violation of the FMLA, summary judgment in favor employer is vacated and remanded as an employee may satisfy her burden of proving three days of incapacitation through a combination of expert medical and lay testimony. Here, when expert medical opinion of a doctor that plaintiff was incapacitated for two days because of her illness is combined with plaintiff's lay testimony that she was incapacitated for two additional days, it necessarily follows that a material issue of fact exists as to whether plaintiff suffered from a serious health condition.

[03/05] People v. Warwick
Conviction of defendant of child abuse and neglect and jury's true finding on the enhancement that she personally inflicted great bodily injury on her child is affirmed as, when she gave birth to her son in her bedroom and concealed the birth causing severe injuries, defendant inflicted great bodily injury on her child.

[03/05] Doe v. S. Carolina Dep't of Soc. Servs.
In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 action brought by a minor child and her adoptive parents against defendant, an Adoption Specialist with the South Carolina Department of Social Services (SCDSS), alleging violations of their substantive due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment and state law claims against SCDSS under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act (SCTCA), judgment is affirmed in part, vacated in part, and remanded where: 1) when a state involuntarily removes a child from her home, thereby taking the child into its custody and care, the state has taken an affirmative act to restrain the child's liberty, triggering the protections of the Due Process Clause and imposing "some responsibility for the child's safety and general well being"; 2) because it would not have been apparent to a reasonable social worker in defendant's position that her actions violated the Fourteenth Amendment, she is entitled to qualified immunity; 3) prospective adoptive parents have no substantive due process right to the disclosure of a child's history of sexual abuse; and 4) district court's grant of defendants' motion for summary judgment on the state law claims for gross negligence against SCDSS is vacated and remanded for consideration of the applicability of section 15-78-60(25).

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4800 WELLS FARGO CENTER | 90 South Seventh Street | Minneapolis, MN 55402-4129
P: 612-877-5000 F: 612-877-5999 Contact us

FAMILY LAW

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Case Summaries

Family Law