MATTHEW LOFTUS, ESQUIRE
Attorney At Law
Family Law
Family law involves the most important aspects of your life: your loved ones. Whether it's your children, grandchildren, or spouse, it's a struggle to find balance and understanding when life breaks down. The emotion involved can be overwhelming, and you need an attorney who will not only fight for your rights, but also help you maintain your sanity.
Child Custody
Your kids come before everything else. But somtimes the relationship that gave them to you falls apart. It's a huge change, and it will have an impact on the children. The goal is to make that impact small and not harmful. Figuring out how both parents will remain involved in their lives can be complicated. Sometimes you can figure out how to create a schedule on your own, sometimes you can't. When you can't, or when the other parent becomes unreasonable, you need a master or judge to make the decisions for you.
I can help you create an agreement that works for you and the children. I can also represent you in court when that isn't a possibility. I can be reasonable, but I can also be aggressive in making sure your rights are protected. And I make sure you always know what's going on both in court and out. When the other parent decides they're not following the court order I can help enforce it through the court. I've represented mothers and fathers, and resolved each case the way the client wanted.
Adoption
Adding a member to your family should be easy and exciting. When you want to make that addition through an agency or as a step-parent I can walk you through the process in an easy and stres-free manner. I make sure all the paperwork is filled out and filed correctly, that all the rules are met, and that the court has everything it needs to schedule an adoption hearing. You can focus on car seats and home renovations.
Grandparents' Rights
As of 2010, according to the US Census over 2 million children were living in the care of their grandparents. Over 7 million were living with their grandparents, even if they weren't the primary caretakers. That number has and continues to grow each year. When necessary, grandparents should be able to play a role in the lives of their grandchildren, especially when it is the best for those children. Pennsylvania has made it easier for grandparents to petition the court for a role in their grandchildren's lives. I can tell you whether you have grounds to make that request, and if you do I can assist you through the court process in acquiring court-ordered visitation or physical custody. I've gotten grandparents up to fifty-fifty custody of their grandchildren and work to ensure the children receive the best opportunity available to them when their parents aren't up to the task.
Divorce
The end of a marriage is extremely emotional. There can be hurt feelings, contempt, and even borderline hatred. Unfortunately it's also the time period when you're supposed to decide rationally how to divide your property. What you don't need is an attorney fanning the flames and turning the process into a legal war. Because in the end, when the divorce proceeding drags on, the only people gaining anything are the lawyers. Think of your assets as a pie, and the longer it takes to resolve, the smaller that pie will be in the end. You need someone trying to resolve your divorce quickly and efficiently, without unnecessary court intervention and skyrocketing legal fees. But when that is your spouse's strategy, you also need someone who will stop the games, not join in them. In the end, I make sure every client in a divorce gets what they are entitled to, regardless of how the other person decides to act.