Family law attorney sacramento

1. About Us
You don’t have to be alone. This office can help in these areas.
DIVORCE
LEGAL SEPARATION
CHILD CUSTODY & SUPPORT
VISITATION
SPOUSAL SUPPORT
Mention this web site, and you may be qualified for a 10% discount in attorney's fees.
The Law Office of Hope C. Elder has been offering quality family law attorney services to the
metropolitan areas of Sacramento and other parts of Northern California for over two decades,
helping families through some of the most difficult and tasking circumstances imaginable. Hope C.
Elder is a family law attorney who empathizes with her clients as they work to resolve family issues.
Divorce, child support, child custody, spousal support, visitation rights, wills and trusts, and
adoption are her specialty. These areas tend to bring out the sensitivities and emotions from clients,
especially when children are involved. Our family law attorney is well-experienced in helping both
parties understand the value of getting what is in the child’s best interests and working toward that
goal.

2. Practice Areas
Sacramento Area Divorce Attorney
Understanding that divorce is one of the hardest tribulations that people have to face, Hope C. Elder
has spent over twenty years of her legal career working directly with clients as their divorce attorney.
She has helped them transition through these types of emotionally and financially tolling situations.
Often, when a couple has reached the point where they both mutually agree to file for a divorce, the
situation can be very tense and contentious. This is all the more reason it should be handled with
great care and the knowledge that comes with Hope’s experience in this field.
Many times people find it difficult to communicate without letting their emotions get the best of
them, which can make divorce proceedings even harder to deal with. As an experienced divorce
attorney, Hope C. Elder knows how to work with her clients in an interpersonal and compassionate
way. She enables the process to flow much smoother towards a resolution while always keeping the
best interests of the client in mind.
The Law Office of Hope C. Elder offers divorce attorney services that take on the full range of issues
that come with this difficult situation. These include:
Child Custody and Visitation Rights: When it comes to settling a divorce and children are involved,
reaching agreement on custody and visitation rights can be an arduous and often overwhelming
aspect of the process. Maintaining an open and efficient line of communication between parties,
Hope will help you settle this with you and your children’s best interests in mind.
Child Support: Another important aspect of settling a divorce when children are involved is deciding
who will be fiscally responsible for the day to day needs of the child, and what amount the will be
responsible for contributing.
Spousal Support: This will help determine the amount of money to be sent to the recipient for them
to maintain an independent lifestyle outside of the marriage. Dealing with financial issues during a
divorce is yet another challenging aspect that requires the expertise and experience that Hope has
spent over 20 years assisting her clients with in order to resolve this and move forward in their lives.
Distribution of Property: Community property issues often end up in court, since divorcing couples
tend to disagree on the items that need to be distributed between them. Like any of the other aspects
of the divorce, expert mediation and presentation in the court setting will provide the client with
the best possible outcome.

3. Modification of Orders: Changes in circumstances such as drastic changes in income, relocation, or
other issues may require divorced couples to decide to revisit prior custody and support orders to
modify them.
Post-divorce Disputes: If you have already completed the dissolution process, but other issues arise
such as the need to enforce orders for custody, support, or distribution of property, the case might
need to come back to court in order to reach resolution.
For an experienced and qualified divorce lawyer in Sacramento, as well as Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt,
Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills, Roseville, Placer County, or El Dorado County, contact the Law
Office of Hope C. Elder today and start working toward bringing a close to this difficult chapter of
your life.
Sacramento Area Child Support Attorney
One of the most difficult parts of a divorce involving children is the issue of determining child
support payments. Hope C. Elder has over twenty years of experience as a qualified child support
attorney. She has helped clients determine what the monthly payments will be to cover the general
costs of the necessities for raising the child or children.
Child support payments are determined using a specific formula and are established to be received
by the custodial parent, or the parent who will be taking care of the child most of the time. However,
in some cases a court can rule for both parents to contribute. For most cases, the child support
payments are to continue until the child is 18 years old. There are other extenuating factors that can
reduce or increase the amount of time that the payments are scheduled for. This is part of the
process that your child support attorney, Hope C. Elder, will help you determine and establish.
A child support attorney will help you understand the guidelines and the mathematical formula that
determines the amount of money that will be part of the settlement. Although it is a standardized
formula, there are times when the amount that is determined is considerably unfair, which your
child support attorney will help you be able to modify. Also, it is worth mentioning that in some
cases the parents may come to agree upon a different amount of the payments as well. Hope will
help negotiate and establish an agreement that will be in her client’s and their children’s best
interests.
When determining the amount of the child support payments, the court will investigate the net
disposable income of both parents, the custody agreement, tax liabilities, amount of children who
will be receiving support, and more. These figures can be complicated, as they can involve anything
from costs of the child extracurricular activities to travel expenses incurred by the parent who needs
to travel to visit the child. Again, when it comes to determining the final amount that will be owed
each month, it is highly advisable to ensure that your child support attorney has the knowledge and
experience necessary to make these figures work out to accurate and appropriate amounts.
Another area of child support that Hope C. Elder can help you with is when there are necessary
changes that need to be made to modify the amount of the monthly payment. Even though a
settlement may have already been reached after the dissolution of the marriage, there are several
factors that may require the parents to revisit the amount owed. Some of these factors may include

4. increase or decrease in income, loss of employment, changes in the healthcare costs of the child, or
incarceration of one of the parents.
When dealing with matters that involve children, it is vital that you contact and enlist a qualified
child support attorney who knows how to garner the best and fairest outcome possible. With over
20 years of experience in the field as a child support attorney, the Law Office of Hope C. Elder is on
standby to help you find a resolution.
If you live in Sacramento, as well as Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills,
Roseville, Placer County, El Dorado County, and you are seeking the help of a child support
attorney, contact Hope C. Elder today.
Sacramento Area Visitation Rights Attorney
Family law matters involving children are some of the most strenuous circumstances. You want
what is best for your child or children, and so does your ex-spouse. However, your idea of what is
best for your child might be very different from what your ex-spouse feels is best for them, which
makes the issue of confronting visitation rights so very difficult. With the help of a qualified and
well-experienced visitation rights attorney, you can help present your case for what you believe is
best. At the Law Office of Hope C. Elder, you will find someone who has twenty years of experience
dealing with custody cases involving visitation rights.
As your Sacramento visitation rights attorney, Hope will guide you with her personalized and
efficient representation to help you maintain a meaningful and constant role in the upbringing of
your children. In California family law courts, it is often a more effective measure to enter with an
agreed upon visitation schedule. Your visitation rights attorney can help you work to set up a
productive schedule for you and your ex-spouse. If that, however, does not prove successful, which
is often the case as divorcing parents are not always on terms that allow for easy agreement on this
matter, the judge may set the schedule themselves or require that your visitation rights lawyer work
with you in a mediation process.
In the state of California, the area of visitation rights is very important as the best interests of the
child are always paramount to the decision process. Public policy is such that contact between the
child and both parents is mandatory following dissolution of marriage. The court works to make
sure visitation rights are workable and that the child receives everything that they need. To that
extent, it is not uncommon for psychological evaluations, witness testimonials, social worker
investigations, and, if the child is above the age of 12 years old, their opinion as to who they prefer
to spend time with to be called into the overall determination process. If the marriage is being
dissolved for reasons such as infidelity or domestic violence, some parents stand to face harsher
scrutiny and hinder their ability to make decisions.
When a divorce occurs, one parent is typically awarded custodial rights, meaning that the child or
children spend most of their time living with them. As mentioned, if the impetus of the divorce was
misconduct on the part of one parent, there is a greater possibility they will not be favored to gain
custodial rights. They will then be the party awarded visitation rights, to keep in line with the policy
to keep the child in continuing communication with both parents. Whether you are the custodial
parent or the parent being granted visitation rights, you will want to ensure that your rights and the

5. rights of your family are well-protected. Hope C. Elder is a visitation rights attorney with the
experience and skill set you need to help you fight for and protect your rights as a parent.
If you live in Sacramento, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills, Roseville, Placer
County, or El Dorado County and you are seeking the service of a qualified visitation rights attorney,
contact the Law Office of Hope C. Elder today and fight for the rights that you and your child
deserve!
Sacramento Area Probate Attorney
When a person passes away, a legal process takes place known as probate. This process involves
several important factors that help resolve matters concerning the will and distribution of assets
that belong to the estate of the deceased. Generally, if the person had taken necessary measures to
avoid confusion or delay in these types matters while they were alive, such as establishment of a will
or trust, these processes can begin without having to enter probate. However, in many instances,
wills are not established, as death can be sudden and unexpected, and probate becomes a necessity.
In these instances, it is vital to contact a probate attorney at the Law Office of Hope C. Elder so that
you can ensure proper and efficient application of this process.
Probate typically involves proving to the court that the will, if there is one available, is indeed valid.
Also, the property needs to be identified and taken inventory of, as well as receive an appraisal.
Once this information is gathered, any outstanding debts or taxes owed by the estate of the deceased
are first paid off prior to determining how the assets will be distributed amongst the appropriate
parties. This is also applicable in cases where a will is not present.
In cases where a will has been established, a person called the executor is in charge of filing
paperwork with the court. If a will has not been set, the judge will appoint someone known as the
administrator, whose is likely to be the closest kin or greatest inheritor of the assets of the deceased.
After the will has been verified, the court must receive an inventory of the property, debts, assets,
and heirs of the estate. Once these processes have been accomplished, the family members and
creditors are informed. Since family matters may not always be amicable, especially in cases where
there might be contention over who receives certain amounts of money or articles in the estate, it is
imperative to hire an experienced and well-qualified probate attorney like Hope who can make
these issues as clear and fair as possible to the involved parties. This part of the process can take a
long time.
Dealing directly with probate can be a very stressful process. Aside from having to manage the grief
of losing a loved one, there are many stressors such as dealing with creditors, appraising the assets,
selling assets to pay off creditors, handling miscommunications or disputes between inheritors,
dealing with the court system, and the fact that it takes time. If you are in a situation where you
believe a probate process is imminent, and you are interested in having it move along and resolve
quickly, it is advisable to enlist probate attorney Hope C. Elder. She can help you with her over 20
years of experience in the field. Not only does she empathize with those who have suffered the loss
of someone they hold dear, but she can use her expertise to make a tough process come to a quick
and fair resolution.

6. If you are a resident of Sacramento, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills,
Roseville, Placer County, or El Dorado County, and you are interested in hiring the services of a
probate attorney, please contact the Law Office of Hope C. Elder today and take the first step among
many towards efficiently settling the probate process.
Sacramento Area Wills and Trust Attorney
Death is not something we ever really want to anticipate or think about. It is discomforting, we all
fear it, we all know it will come someday, but we tend to think it might happen at some distant point
in the future and put off planning for it. The best way to protect your family when you die is to leave
your assets in order so that they will not have to deal with the burden of going into probate once
you are no longer here. By hiring a wills and trust attorney, you will be guaranteeing yourself the
peace of mind that your family will be well protected when your time comes, whether it is tomorrow
or in 80 years. If you live in Sacramento, and you are interested in hiring a qualified and experienced
wills and trust attorney, contact the Law Office of Hope C. Elder today and find out how you can
arrange for your family’s future peace of mind to be preserved as well.
A will is a document that is presented to the court following your death to validate your instructions
on how to distribute your property and assets. As your wills and trust attorney, Hope will help you
set up and confirm your will by formally writing it out and having it signed by two witnesses who
will be there to ensure that you are indeed the person who wrote and signed the will. It is imperative
to note that unless the strict legal guidelines of the state are adhered to in the formulation of your
will, it will render your will invalid. You must do what is required by law, which is another reason
getting a qualified wills and trust attorney on your side is so important to establishing your will.
A trust is a legal device that allows you to manage your assets while you are still alive and also allows
your property to be distributed accordingly following your death. These instruments are established
by writing out an agreement or declaration that appoints a trustee to administer the assets in the
trust and it also contains information as to how it is to be managed and distributed following the
death of the owner. If you are planning on leaving everything ready for your family, such as setting
up an organized method of distributing inheritance to your children, then you need to have someone
like Hope as your wills and trust attorney in order to ensure proper and efficient planning and
implementation.
Hope C. Elder has over twenty years of experience working in the area of securing wills and trusts
for her clients. She will use her experience as an effective tool in comprehending your goals and
putting them into the formal and confirmed documentation necessary to ensure they are carried
out successfully following your passing. A well-established trust will allow your family to grieve
when that time does come, and it will spare them from the tribulations of having to handle any
problems that may arise from non-existent or poorly issued trusts.
If you live in Sacramento, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills, Roseville, Placer
County, or El Dorado County and you are interested in enlisting the quality services of an
experienced wills and trust attorney, contact the Law Office of Hope C. Elder today and start making
those vital plans to protect your family for when the inevitable does occur.

7. Counties Served
Sacramento County
Yolo County
Placer County
El Dorado County

8. Payment Plan
Our attorney understands the struggles one must endure during a divorce, such as wealth reduction,
increased living expenses, mounting debts, etc.
Therefore, this office has structured various flexible and customized payment plans for different
individuals. Our sliding scale provides affordable monthly payments for:
► Low-income Family
► Disabled Individuals
► Retired or Unemployed Individuals
► Recently Single Parents The stress and
strain of a recent separation can be
unbearable for single parents.
Do-it-yourself
You can be a “Pro Per” litigant and represent yourself, if your financial resource becomes too
prohibitive for you to pay a sizable retainer fee.
If you wish to do it yourself but are too busy to attend the FREE legal clinic (offered
by either the county or the Superior Court where you reside), then perhaps this
office can help you with all paperwork (WEEKEND service is available).
You only need to bring in the necessary documents, such as your pay stubs,
documents of your debts and/or assets, then our attorney will discuss your situation
and will advise you of the required first steps in your divorce proceeding.
Following the initial consultation, our well-trained and well-educated staff will type
up all the required court forms, declarations, etc., while you wait in the office. After
all the paperwork is prepared, our attorney will review everything to ensure all was
done professionally, and conforms to the court’s standards and procedures.
This office can help you in many ways:

9. ● If you wish to file your own divorce petition.
This office can help you prepare:
(1) Your Divorce Petition;
(2) Your I&E Statement;
(3) Your Summons; and
(4) Your UCCJA form (if you have children).
● If you believe that the judge’s ORDER or RULING against you is wrong or unfair.
This office can help you prepare:
(1) Your MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION;
(2) Your OBJECTION; and/or
(3) Your APPEAL.
●If you believe that the opposing party ignores the judge’s ORDER or RULING and refuses to comply with
the order.
This office can help you prepare:
(1) Your CONTEMPT OF COURT MOTION; and/or
(2) Your request for SANCTION against the other party.
* Call our office to schedule a consultation on weekend.
** A fee of $40 will be charged for the initial consultation fee.
*** Price includes filing your paperwork with the court clerk on your behalf so you need not take a day off from
work. You represent yourself as a “Pro Per” litigant. You must pay the court fees yourself. You may qualify
for the fee waiver if your income is below the federal guideline.

10. Resources
Did you know?
► If your income is below the federal guideline, then you are entitled to a fee waiver. A fee waiver
means that you do not have to pay the court fees.
► If you believe that the judge made an error in your divorce judgment, custody ruling, visitation
ruling, then you can appeal his decision and/or ruling.
► You can represent yourself in a litigation. You are a “pro per” litigant, which is short for “propriety
persona,” ▬ Latin for “for oneself,” usually applied to a person who represents himself/herself in a
lawsuit rather than have an attorney.
► You can ask the court or the judge to reconsider his ruling, modify the child support order, and/or
child visitation order if the circumstances of your situation has changed since the last
judgment/order/ruling. Changed circumstances may include but are not limited to unemployment,
completing court-ordered classes, former spouses move away, etc.
► You can ask the court or the judge to sanction (punish with monetary penalty) the opposing party if
the opposing party intentionally frustrates the divorce settlement by stonewalling, delaying and/or
refusing to accept/sign/return any court documents.
Contact Us
2755 Cottage Way, Suite 10
Sacramento, CA 95825
Tel.: (916) 483-1520 | Fax: (916) 483-1728