Divorce Litigation Is About Strategy
Successful litigation is not about filing the most motions or creating the most conflict. It is about knowing the facts, understanding the law, identifying the issues that matter, developing the evidence, anticipating the other side's arguments, and being prepared when you walk into the courtroom. At Berlin Melzer Law, strategy begins at the start of the case—not on the eve of trial.
We work with our clients to determine:
What are the most important issues?
What evidence do we need?
What information does the other side control?
Which issues are worth litigating?
Where is expert testimony necessary?
What can realistically be resolved?
What risks should the client understand?
What result are we ultimately trying to achieve?
That strategy guides discovery, negotiations, motion practice, expert involvement, and trial preparation.
High-Asset and Complex Divorce Litigation
Financially sophisticated divorce cases require more than familiarity with basic property division.
Berlin Melzer Law has experience litigating cases involving:
Closely held businesses
Business valuation
Professional practices
Significant marital estates
Marital and non-marital property
Tracing of non-marital assets
Business distributions and retained earnings
Real estate
Investment accounts
Trust and inherited assets
Executive compensation
Stock options and equity compensation
Bonuses and deferred compensation
Complex income
Self-employed spouses
Hidden or disputed assets
Child support and maintenance involving substantial or complicated income
Financial documents do not always tell their story on their face. In complex cases, we work to understand where the money came from, where it went, who controls it, how an asset should be characterized, what it is worth, and how the financial evidence affects the legal issues before the court.
Business Valuation and Business-Owner Divorce
A closely held business can become one of the most heavily contested assets in a divorce. Questions may arise regarding the value of the company, ownership interests, goodwill, compensation, distributions, retained earnings, business expenses, loans, cash flow, and whether some or all of the business is marital or non-marital property. Berlin Melzer Law has substantial experience with the intersection of family law, business valuation, and complex financial evidence. When appropriate, we work with business valuation professionals, forensic accountants, financial experts, vocational experts, and other specialists. Our attorneys understand that hiring an expert is only part of the process. Effective litigation counsel must understand the expert's analysis well enough to present it, challenge it, cross-examine the opposing expert, and explain complicated financial concepts clearly to the court.
Discovery and Financial Investigation
Litigation is often won or lost long before trial.
Discovery allows attorneys to obtain the documents, testimony, and information necessary to understand the complete financial and factual picture.
Depending on the case, discovery may include:
Written interrogatories
Requests to produce documents
Subpoenas
Depositions
Business and accounting records
Tax returns and financial statements
Bank and investment records
Employment and compensation records
Electronic evidence
Expert discovery
Third-party records
In financially complicated cases, our attorneys focus on obtaining the information necessary to understand the marital estate and the parties' actual financial circumstances—not simply collecting documents for the sake of collecting them.
Depositions
A deposition is more than an opportunity to ask questions.
It can be used to obtain admissions, test credibility, preserve testimony, identify weaknesses in an opposing position, develop evidence for trial, and evaluate whether settlement is possible.
Berlin Melzer Law prepares carefully for depositions involving parties, business owners, financial professionals, experts, and other important witnesses.
Just as importantly, we prepare our own clients to understand the process and what to expect before they testify.
Expert Witnesses
Some family law disputes cannot be effectively presented without expert analysis.
Depending on the issues, experts may assist with:
Business valuation
Forensic accounting
Income and cash-flow analysis
Tracing of marital and non-marital property
Real estate valuation
Vocational evaluations
Parenting and mental health issues
Other specialized financial or family issues
We work closely with experts when their knowledge can help develop or explain the evidence. We also understand how to analyze and challenge the methodology, assumptions, opinions, and conclusions offered by an opposing expert.
Contested Parenting Litigation
Financial issues are not the only matters that require sophisticated litigation.
Berlin Melzer Law represents parents in contested cases involving allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time and custody, including matters involving:
Significant parenting-time disputes
Decision-making authority
Relocation
School disputes
Modification of parenting arrangements
Enforcement proceedings
Allegations affecting a child's welfare
Guardians ad Litem
Child representatives
Mental health professionals and evaluators
Other complex parenting issues
Parenting litigation requires strong advocacy together with careful judgment.
The goal is not simply to win an argument in court. The decisions made during a parenting case can affect children and families for years.
Motions, Hearings and Trials
Not every contested case proceeds directly to trial. Family law litigation can involve temporary relief, discovery disputes, evidentiary hearings, enforcement proceedings, pretrial motions, settlement conferences, and other hearings before a final trial occurs.
Our attorneys represent clients throughout the litigation process—from the initial strategy and discovery through motions, evidentiary hearings, expert testimony, trial, and post-decree proceedings. We prepare with the understanding that a case may ultimately need to be tried, while continuously evaluating opportunities for an appropriate resolution.
Settlement Is Part of Good Litigation Strategy
Being prepared to litigate does not mean refusing to negotiate.
In fact, strong trial preparation can create better opportunities for settlement.
Rebecca Berlin Melzer is both an experienced family law litigator and trained in mediation and collaborative law. That combination informs our approach to contested cases. We continually evaluate whether an issue should be resolved or litigated.
When a reasonable agreement protects our client's interests, settlement can provide certainty, reduce expense, and allow the family greater control over the outcome. When it does not, we are prepared to proceed.
Changing Counsel During a Contested Divorce
Sometimes a client begins a divorce with one attorney and later realizes that the case requires a different approach. You are not required to remain with the attorney who started your case.
Clients may seek new litigation counsel because a case has become significantly more complicated, substantial assets or business interests are involved, trial is approaching, communication has deteriorated, or they simply believe they need a different strategy.
Berlin Melzer Law evaluates appropriate cases in which a client is considering changing attorneys during an ongoing Illinois divorce or family law case. We review where the case stands, upcoming deadlines and court dates, discovery, financial and parenting issues, and the work that may be required to move the matter forward.
Litigation Counsel Throughout Chicagoland
Berlin Melzer Law represents clients in contested divorce and family law matters throughout the Chicago area, including:
Cook County • Lake County • DuPage County • Will County
Our attorneys handle matters in Chicago and throughout the North Shore and surrounding suburbs, including Wilmette, Evanston, Winnetka, Glencoe, Glenview, Northbrook, Highland Park, Deerfield, Lake Forest, Libertyville, Arlington Heights, Park Ridge, Oak Park, Hinsdale, Burr Ridge, Naperville, Wheaton, Downers Grove, Joliet, Plainfield, New Lenox, Frankfort, and surrounding communities.
Why Choose Berlin Melzer Law for Divorce Litigation?
Berlin Melzer Law is a boutique Illinois family law firm built to handle sophisticated family law matters while providing clients with individualized attention.
Our litigation approach combines:
Extensive Illinois family law experience
Courtroom and trial experience
Complex financial divorce experience
Business valuation and financial analysis
Strategic discovery
Experience working with expert witnesses
Contested parenting experience
Mediation and collaborative-law training
Strategic use of technology
Personalized representation
A team approach to complex litigation
We believe clients should understand not only what we are doing in their case, but why we are doing it.