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Marital
and Family Lawyer
Uses Creative Methods to Settle
For
Jane Estreicher, expectations were set high early on. She
attended the most academic girls’ prep school in the
Philadelphia area where “they produced capable,
competitive women who almost all acquired higher
education” says Jane.
After
earning a B.A. in psychology, she considered law school. But
the time just wasn’t right, given a debilitating back
injury she had sustained from a fall. Still, during her time
of rehabilitation she went to graduate school and earned a
master’s degree in management at Florida International
University in Miami. Then finally it was the right time for
law school.
From
the beginning, Jane was active in the family law section of
the Florida Bar Association and traveled widely around the
state, which is how she ultimately met her husband and now
law partner, Michael Hastings, who had moved to Florida from
California to attend Florida State University and then
Stetson University. The firm Jane and Michael created from
their respective experience and common law interests, now
has state-wide recognition for its involvement in several
Florida Bar Committee activities centered on major issues,
including marital law legislation, continuing education and
editorials. Jane has been a member of the Florida Bar since
1979 and is the former chair of the Florida Bar Family Law
Section. Michael has been a member of the Florida Bar since
1969 and recently served as president of the Florida Chapter
of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.
Jane
says her interest has moved toward divorce and family
matters over the years. As a young lawyer, she was taught by
male mentors to take a very aggressive trial approach –
and approach that did not stick with Jane. “I found that
approach is not always an appropriate or viable way of
solving domestic disputes, particularly when children are
involved,” she says. “I’ve also learned over the years
that you get more with sugar than vinegar.
“Lawyers
need to be more solution-oriented by using experts or
parenting coordinators, mediators, or any creative methods
to settle matters and keep cases out of court. It is always
cheaper to settle. Unfortunately, settlement does not always
occur because emotions preclude rational decision-making,”
Jane says.
The firm specializes in marital
and family law, including custody and related appeals. Both
attorneys are committed to avoid litigation whenever
possible by using alternative methods of dispute resolution
such as mediation and collaborative family law. They also
remain committed to keeping the cost of litigation to a
minimum for their clients.
Jane
Estreicher
Law Offices of Hastings &
Estreicher, P.A.
600 1st Avenue
North
St. Petersburg, FL 33701
(727) 895-3600
hastingslawfirm@gate.net
www.martialfamilylaw.com |
