family law

Clear answers for Wisconsin families in their hardest transitions.

We help you understand your options, protect what matters, and move forward, whether that takes a negotiated agreement or a courtroom.

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Divorce

You only do this once. We do it year round.

Wisconsin divorce has its own rules: no-fault grounds, a 50/50 community property presumption, a 120-day waiting period. You don't need to master any of it. You need someone who already has, working for you. Here's what we take off your shoulders.

We protect your share

Property divides 50/50 on paper, but what counts as marital, how it's valued, and what offsets are awarded. We fight for the details.

We stabilize things fast

Temporary orders set who stays in the house, where the kids are, and who pays expenses while the case is pending. We move quickly so you're not living in limbo.

We use the waiting period well

The 120 days aren't dead time. We use them to build your financial picture, prepare your custody case, and position you to settle from strength.

We tell you the truth

What's worth fighting for, what isn't, and what it will cost. You'll never be surprised by your own case.

Divorce · The Process

We've walked this road before.
We'll walk it with you.

Filing

The petition starts the case and the 120-day clock.

Temporary orders

Ground rules for the interim: the house, the kids, the bills.

Disclosure

Both sides put their full financial picture on the table.

Negotiation

Agreement or mediation, where most cases resolve.

Settlement or trial

Most sign an agreement. If not, the court decides.

Final judgment

The orders that govern what comes next, done properly.

Custody & Placement

Nothing matters more than your kids. We prepare accordingly.

Wisconsin decides two things separately: legal custody (who makes major decisions) and physical placement (where the children spend their time), both by the children's best interests. That's the framework. What determines your result inside it is preparation.

That's what we do: document your parenting fully and fairly, build the schedule that actually works for your kids' lives, present you as the parent you are, and push back, hard, when the other side plays games with placement.

No attorney can promise an outcome here, and you should be wary of any who does. What we promise is that when the court looks at your case, it sees the strongest honest version of it.

Child Support

The formula is simple. Getting the inputs right is not.

Wisconsin's percentage standard (17% of gross income for one child, 25% for two, 29% for three) sounds automatic. It isn't. The number moves with placement time, and it depends entirely on income being stated honestly, on both sides.

We make sure the income picture is complete: bonuses, side work, self-employment income that doesn't show up on a W-2. We match support to the placement schedule you actually live, and if you're paying, we make sure you're not paying on phantom numbers. Either direction, you get a number that's right, not just fast.

17%

one child

25%

two children

29%

three children

31%

four children

32%

five children

placement adjustments

Maintenance (alimony)

No formula means your lawyer is the variable.

Wisconsin has no maintenance formula. Judges weigh the length of the marriage, each spouse's earning capacity, age and health, contributions to the other's career, the standard of living established during the marriage, and then exercise their discretion. Where the law is discretionary, the quality of the argument is what moves the number.

We build that argument. If you stepped back from a career to raise children or put a spouse through school, we make sure the court sees what that was worth. If you're the one who may pay, we make sure the request is grounded in reality and has an endpoint. Either side of it, you get a case, not a guess.

Modifications

Your order was built for a life you may not be living anymore.

A job loss, a move, a new schedule, a child's changing needs: courts can revisit support and placement when circumstances substantially change. But the standard is real, and placement changes face a higher bar in the first two years after the original order.

Bring us the order and what's changed. We'll tell you honestly whether a court is likely to agree, and if it is, we build the record that gets it done: the documentation, the timing, and the filing. If your ex has stopped following the order, we enforce it too.

How we approach it

Reasonable first. Ready for the alternative.

Most family law cases settle, and that's usually good news: negotiated and mediated agreements tend to protect children, money, and your ability to co-parent afterward better than trials do. We start there, honestly and in good faith.

But a fair agreement takes two reasonable people. When that isn't possible, we're prepared to litigate, thoroughly and well. You don't have to choose between a calm attorney and a strong one.

The 1am Questions

Asked plainly, answered plainly

How long does divorce take in Wisconsin?

At least 120 days by law. Most take six months to a year, depending on how much the two of you can agree on. Contested custody or complex finances take longer.

Who gets the house?

There's no automatic answer. If acquired during the marriage, the house is presumed to be marital property, to be divided 50/50 in value. Whether one of you keeps it usually depends on placement of the kids, who can afford it, and what offsets the other receives.

Can I move away with the kids?

Not freely. Moving more than 100 miles, or out of state, requires notice and usually court approval if the other parent objects. Plan this with counsel before making commitments.

What if my spouse hides assets?

Both parties must disclose everything under oath, and there are real consequences for hiding assets, including the court awarding concealed property to the other spouse. We know where to look and what to ask for.

Do I have to go to court?

Usually just briefly, for temporary orders and/or the final hearing. If you reach agreement, most of the process happens outside a courtroom entirely.

What does it cost?

Honestly: it depends. The biggest driver is conflict, and how much of it needs a lawyer versus a judge to resolve. Stipulated divorces cost a fraction of contested ones. We'll be straight with you about fees at the first meeting and flag anything that could change them.