With more than a decade spent exclusively practicing family law, I have repeatedly witnessed the emotional and financial devastation that often results from interaction with the family court system. As a legal professional engaged in that system, I recognized that to better serve my clients I had to “be the change I wished to see” in the practice of family law. I pursued training Collaborative Family Law, Mediation and Legal Coaching, and opened Hoppe Family Law + Mediation to offer families in transition alternatives to traditional high conflict, high cost, lawyer-led, dispute resolution methods.
I have a B.Sc. (Hons) in Psychology and my LL.B. from the University of Western Ontario. I was the recipient of several academic awards, including the CCH Canadian Limited Award for the Student with the Highest Standing in Advanced Family Law. However, more than my academic accolades, I am proud of the fact that I financed my post-secondary education through working in Steel manufacturing – a nod to my Hamilton area roots.
Prior to attending Law School, I worked as Child Therapist for youth with special needs and as a Social Services Caseworker, administering Ontario Works Benefits. After the completion of my legal studies, I articled at a large full-service Bay Street firm, where I gained extensive knowledge of tax and corporate matters that I continue to apply to my family law practice today.
Since my Call to the Ontario Bar in 2007, I have practiced family law exclusively. I have successfully represented clients in family law court cases, private mediation and arbitration processes, and in lawyer-to-lawyer negotiations. I am experienced in all aspects of family law, including high-conflict parenting, complex property, and child and spousal support disputes.
Despite consistently obtaining favourable outcomes for my clients in court, over time I began to recognize the extreme emotional and financial costs to parties in traditional lawyer-led adversarial dispute methods. No one was “winning”, and I knew there had to be a better way to offer my legal expertise to families in transition. My practice now focuses on Collaborative Family Law and Mediation.
In offering legal services, I strive to combine your expertise on your family with my knowledge of the law. The end goal is always to achieve time efficient, cost-effective, lasting resolutions to your family law issues – allowing the entire family to move forward with certainty and peace.
3380 South Service Rd., Suite 111
Burlington, ON L7N 3J5
T: (289) 768-7505
F: (289) 348-1568
www.hoppefamilylaw.com