Demetra Pontisakos
I provide family law solutions tailored to your individual needs. My office on Route One in Topsfield provides comfortable meeting space with plenty of free parking. I have practiced in the Massachusetts courts since 1986 and in the New Hampshire courts since 2004. My practice areas include divorce, division of assets, alimony, child support, child custody matters, guardianship matters, grandparent visitation, prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements, and interstate jurisdictional conflicts. I am trained and experienced in using a variety of techniques toward the resolution of family law conflicts, including traditional client representation, negotiation, litigation, collaborative law practice and mediation. I also provide services as a Parenting Coordinator to assist parents with the resolution of custodial and co-parenting conflicts outside of the court process. I am certified by the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court as a Category V Parenting Coordinator. I am trained and certified as a family law arbitrator by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.
I am licensed to practice in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York. I am a fellow of the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. I am a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Essex County Bar Association, the New Hampshire Bar Association, the Salem Bar Association, the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council and the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation. I serve as a volunteer conciliator for the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court through the Essex County Bar Association. I have served as a lecturer and a speaker on family law topics, including the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education programs, Cutting Edge Issues in Northern Massachusetts Family Law (2015), Practicing Family Law on the Border of Massachusetts and New Hampshire (2017-program chair), and The Family Lawyer's Discovery Toolkit (2018).
- New England Law | Boston
- J.D. | Law
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- Union College
- B.A.
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- Practicing Family Law on the Border of Massachusetts and New Hampshire
- Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education
- Practicing with Professionalism, Lynn, MA
- Greater Lynn Bar Association
- This program is required by the Supreme Judicial Court for all new attorneys in Massachusetts. I present on this panel twice per year. We discuss the practical realities of practicing law and maintaining civility and professionalism.
- The Family Lawyer's Discovery Toolkit, Boston, MA
- Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education
- We teach new lawyers the various methods of conducting discovery in divorce and family law matters, with an emphasis on the rules and the practical application of the tools and techniques available. We discuss efforts to reduce conflict and efforts to reduce the expense related to discovery techniques and discovery disputes.
- Experts on Trial: Evidentiary Rules Regarding Experts, 27th Annual Family Law Conference, Falmouth, MA
- Massachusetts Bar Association
- We delved into the laws related to the admissibility of medical records and police records at the trial of a family law matter. We developed several hypothetical situations that regularly occur at trial, and presented our arguments to a panel of experienced family court judges. We then opened the discussion to conference attendees.
- Practicing Family Law on the Border of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, Boston, MA
- Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education
- I am licensed to practice law in both Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and I regularly handled family law and divorce matters in both states. This seminar was conceived by me and produced as the result of my professional interest in the similarities and differences in the practice of family law in the neighboring states.
- Cutting Edge Issues in Northern Massachusetts Family Law, Andover, MA
- Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education
- Parenting Coordinator
- Massachusetts Probate & Family Court
- Family Law Arbitrator
- American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
- Mediator - MGL c. 233, s.23C
- North Shore Community Mediation
- Super Lawyers
- Thompson Reuters
- Massachusetts State Bar # 547102
- Member
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- American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
- Fellow
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- Activities: Board of Governors, 2011 - 2019. Certified by the Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers as a Family Law Arbitrator.
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- New York State Bar # 4165254
- Member
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- Massachusetts
- Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers
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- New Hampshire
- New Hampshire Bar Association
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- New York
- New York State Office of Court Administration
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Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
Fees and retainers are discussed at our initial consultation.
- Divorce
- Collaborative Law, Contested Divorce, Military Divorce, Property Division, Same Sex Divorce, Spousal Support & Alimony, Uncontested Divorce
- Family Law
- Adoption, Child Custody, Child Support, Father's Rights, Guardianship & Conservatorship, Paternity, Prenups & Marital Agreements, Restraining Orders, Same Sex Family Law
- Arbitration & Mediation
- Business Arbitration, Consumer Arbitration, Family Arbitration
- Mediation
- Arbitration
- Certified Parenting Coordinator