11:55 Welcome and Introductions
12:00 Family Law Issues for Non-Family Law Attorneys
Catherine Bailey, Fresh Start Family Law, Raleigh
Shelby Duffy Benton, Benton Family Law, Goldsboro
Heather Williams Forshey, Raleigh Divorce Law Firm, Raleigh
This program provides practitioners with a general overview of the procedures for absolute divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support and property division cases. The presentation is geared towards non-family law attorneys who may be assisting pro se litigants or who are doing family law pro bono work.
A basic framework of the legal issues is provided, including practical tips for issues to cover in a court proceeding.
2:00 Adjourn and Empower Hour
Participants are invited to volunteer in a pro bono "Empower Hour" service hour with the NC Free Legal Answers program, to help answer family law-related questions on the site. Click here for more information and to register.
Thank you for joining us for Family Law Issues for Non-Family Law Attorneys.
This program provides practitioners with a general overview of the procedures for absolute divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support and property division cases.
Catherine R. Bailey is a partner at Fresh Start Family Law in Raleigh. She mediates family law cases and represents family law clients in all aspects of family law, including divorce, domestic violence, child custody, child support, alimony, equitable distribution, separation agreements, adoption, termination of parental rights, and surrogacy. She has a special interest in representing clients involved in military divorces, particularly military pension division. She also has a special skill as a certified mediator in assisting parties reach a resolution of their case without further involvement by the court.
Catherine is a Board Certified Family Law Specialist and a Certified Family Financial Mediator and Certified Superior Court Mediator. She is also member of the Family Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association.
Catherine received her J.D., cum laude, from Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law. She received the Award of Distinction from the North Carolina Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers upon her graduation. After graduation, she served as a law clerk to the Honorable Justice Edward Thomas Brady at the North Carolina Supreme Court before starting work as a private attorney.
Click here for more information about Catherine
Shelby Duffy Benton is a family law attorney at Benton Family Law in Goldsboro. She is a Board-Certified Specialist in Family Law and a Family and Financial Mediator.
Shelby served as the 121st President of the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) for 2015-2016. Prior to being named President of the NCBA she served the Association in several leadership roles: Chair of the Family Law Section; Board of Governors; 4All Committee; Legislative Advisory Committee; Chair of Audit and Finance; and President-Elect. Currently she serves on the Past Presidents Council and as Chair of the Talent Development Committee.
Shelby is a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). She served as the State Bar Counselor for the 8th Judicial District.
Shelby received her B.A. degree from North Carolina State University and her J.D. degree from Campbell University School of Law.
Click here for more information about Shelby.
Chelsea L. DeMoss is a staff attorney at JusticeMatters Inc in Durham. She grew up split between Alaska's mountains and Washington's Puget Sound, and graduated from the University of Washington a B.S. in physiology and a B.A. in psychology (concentrating on early childhood development).
Chelsea spent two years further cultivating her passions for community and justice by traveling and working for NGOs in Lusaka, Zambia before deciding to pursue a J.D. at Duke University. She graduated, cum laude, with a Certificate in Public Interest and Public Service Law.
Chelsea volunteered and externed with JusticeMatters throughout law school and, after a year-long interlude clerking for a federal appellate judge, was thrilled to return to North Carolina to join the JusticeMatters family law team.
Chelsea and her husband Caleb love their lively and diverse apartment complex in Durham, and split their free time between outdoor adventures and curling up by the window with books, fuzzy socks and warm drinks.
Click here for more information about Chelsea
Heather Williams Forshey is the owner of Raleigh Divorce Law Firm in Raleigh. She opened Raleigh Divorce Law Firm in May 2010. She is a Board-Certified Family Law Specialist, is certified as a family financial mediator by the North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission, and is also a Certified Parenting Coordinator.
Heather was selected as a Super Lawyer in 2021 & 2022, an honor given to 5% of attorneys. Over the prior seven consecutive years, she has been named a Rising Star by North Carolina Super Lawyers, an honor given to no more than 2.5% of attorneys who practice family law in N.C.
Heather has exclusively practiced North Carolina family law since 2006. In that time, she has earned a reputation for providing knowledgeable, highly skilled legal counsel to clients contemplating divorce or struggling with family law issues, such as custody. Her firm only handles divorce, domestic issues, adoptions, appeals of family law issues, and related matters. She is an experienced litigator and has focused her family law practice on the area of child custody and modifications of child custody.
Heather has been involved in pro bono efforts with the Guardian ad Litem program serving abused and neglected children since 2001, first as a GAL volunteer advocate for children in court proceedings, and currently as an attorney appellate advocate in assigned cases. She worked in family services for the Head Start program before attending law school, where she developed a passion for helping families in crisis that has continued to this day. Heather currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Friends of Wake County Guardian ad Litem Program, which serves the needs of foster children in Wake County.
Heather went to law school at Wake Forest University, where she was on Law Review and a member of the Moot Court Board. Heather was a finalist in the law school's Moot Court oral argument competition during her first year and continued to compete successfully in oral argument competitions during the rest of her law school career.
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Amily K. McCool is the owner and sole practitioner at Scharff Law Firm in Cary. She assists domestic and sexual violence victims by representing them in protective orders and Title IX hearings, defending them in criminal cases so that a criminal record does not act as a barrier to escaping an abusive partner, and representing non-predominant aggressors in criminal defense cases as a primary prevention strategy to help foster economic stability- one of the greatest protective factors for living violence free.
Amiy is an LGBTQ-affirming attorney and understands the additional complications that LGBTQ-identified folks face when interacting with the court system. In addition to expungement, criminal defense and restraining order representation, she assists clients seeking name changes and/or gender identity marker changes and to help explain the process for them through trauma-informed representation.
After law school, Amily worked at the Wake County District Attorney's Office for four years. She specialized in prosecuting domestic violence cases both in district and superior court. She conducted countless trials and built her skills in analyzing and presenting cases to judges and juries.
Amily left prosecution to continue to assist families by serving as a domestic violence attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina in Durham, representing victims of domestic violence in civil matters who otherwise could not afford an attorney. She then worked at the state level for four and a half years as the Legal & Policy Director of the NC Coalition Against Domestic Violence. In that role she trained criminal justice stakeholders including law enforcement, prosecutors, magistrates, clerks, crisis agency advocates, and other allied professionals all across the state. She also worked to improve NC's laws by collaborating with legislators to pass new legislation to assist in strengthening families.
Amily earned her Bachelor's in Psychology from NC State University, her Master of Social Work from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Click here for more information about Amily.
Lynna P. Moen is attorney at law and certified family financial mediator at Moen Legal Counsel in Charlotte. She represent clients in domestic, adoption, estate, appellate, and civil matters in North Carolina District and Superior Court and the North Carolina Court of Appeals. She mediates cases in Family Financial matters in a way that promotes creativity, collaboration and resolution.
Lynna earned her B.A. in International Business from West Virginia University and her J.D. from Charlotte School of Law.
Click here for more information about Lynna.
A special thanks to North Carolina Bar Foundation for support of this CLE program.
Click here to view Forms and CLE Policies, Terms and Conditions.
If paying by check, click here for a printable registration form. Please reference the live webcast program code 182PBP.
Following the CLE program, participants are invited to volunteer in a pro bono "Empower Hour" service hour with the NC Free Legal Answers program, to help answer family law-related questions on the site.
The first ten Empower Hour registrants will receive complimentary tuition to this CLE program, but must first register as a volunteer with the Empower Hour program. Click here to sign up for the Empower Hour and the CLE.
This CLE program is hosted by the NCBA Pro Bono Committee with support from the NC Bar Foundation.
CLE Premier Pass is not accepted for this program (see CLE Premier Pass terms and conditions).