Total Credits: 3.0 CLE, 3.0 Family Law Specialization
All family law attorneys should attend this virtual advanced level course. This year's course covers numerous topics including updates on paternity law, UCCJEA, and child support guidelines as well as new rule changes. We will also hear from the family law bench at Pima County Superior Court.
Updates from the Bar
AdvancedFamilyLaw2021Manual.pdf (5 MB) | 187 Pages | Available after Purchase |
Spousal Maintenance When You Are Middle Class and Over 50.pdf (185 KB) | 6 Pages | Available after Purchase |
QUESTIONS FROM ADVANCED FAMILY LAW CLE.pdf (122 KB) | 4 Pages | Available after Purchase |
Honorable John J. Assini (Jack) practiced law beginning in 1994 and was in private practice, handling family law matters until he was appointed to the bench as a Commissioner for the Pima County Superior Court in March of 2015. He is currently doing a family law trial rotation. He received his BA from the University of Arizona in Elementary Education, taught 1st grade for four years, could not find a rich wife, so he returned to University of Arizona for his J.D. degree. Jack is the Past Chair of the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona, a current board member for AZ- AFCC (Arizona- Association of Family and Conciliation Courts) and currently continues to be a member at large with the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona. Jack was frequently appointed as a Parenting Coordinator for high conflict family law matters, and as an attorney or best interest attorney for children. Jack also practiced in the area of collaborative law and was a member of the Southern Arizona Collaborative Law Group. As a Judge Pro Tem, Jack participated in hundreds of successful settlement conferences and mediations and continues to bring that style and technique to the bench.
Laura Belleau is a shareholder in the law firm of Karp & Weiss, P.C. where she limits her practice to family law cases, concentrating on those involving complex financial and children's issues. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), and currently serves as the National President Elect and will serve as the National President in 2024/25. She is a past President of Arizona's Chapter of AAML and has previously served as the both the National and Arizona Chapter Treasurer. She is a Diplomate in the American College of Family Trial Lawyers, a select group of the top 100 family trial lawyers from across the country known for excellence in family law trial practice. She is certified as a Family Law Specialist by the State of Arizona's Board of Legal Specialization. She serves on the State Bar's Family Law Executive Council, served on both the Supreme Court's Child Support Guidelines Review Committee and Spousal Maintenance Guidelines Committee, and will serve on the Supreme Court’s Parenting Time Guide Workgroup. She is a current member of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), and a past-president of Arizona's chapter. She is a Judge Pro Tempore for the Arizona Superior Court, Pima County, volunteers as child’s counsel/court appointed advisor in complex parenting time cases and frequently speaks and writes on family law topics.
Keith Berkshire is a certified specialist in Family Law, and a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, at the Berkshire Law Office, PLLC. Keith practices in all areas of family law, with a focus on complex litigation. Keith has a significant appellate practice with more published Family Law Opinions than another other attorney in Arizona, including 33 Opinions at the Arizona Court of Appeals and Arizona Supreme Court. Keith is the author of the Family Law section of the Arizona Appellate Handbook, and his Opinions include major cases such as Saba v. Khoury, Volk v. Brame, McLaughlin v. Jones, Woyton v. Ward, Gonzalez-Gunter v. Gunter, and Barron v. Barron. Keith also successfully litigated the case Howell v. Howell, 137 S. Ct. 1400 (2017) at the Supreme Court of the United States. Keith was a member of the Arizona Supreme Court Task Force on the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure, which restyled and rewrote the Family Law Rules in 2018; he previously served on the Family Law Practice and Procedure Committee of the State Bar of Arizona, the Civil Rules Committee, as well as the State Bar of Arizona’s Family Law Section Executive Committee. Keith was also a member of the Court Procedures Workgroup for the Domestic Relations Committee of the State Legislature as part of the 2013 changes to the custody statutes, and has authored numerous other family law rules and statutes. Keith is AV rated by Martindale Hubbell since 2012, is listed in Best Lawyers in America, and has been in the Super Lawyers Listing since 2012, including a selection as one of the Top 50 Lawyers in Arizona in all areas of practice, in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Keith was also named Family Law Lawyer of the Year in Phoenix by Best Lawyers for 2022. Keith is a frequent lecturer at CLEs on all areas of family law and appellate practice, and has served as an expert witness on variously family law issues.
Honorable Randi Burnett has served as a commissioner of the Superior Court in Pima County since April 2021 and is currently assigned to the family law bench. Prior to joining the bench, Randi was a partner at Waterfall, Economidis, Caldwell, Hanshaw & Villamana, P.C. for several years and then spent her last two years of practice at The McCarthy Law Firm. Her family law practice included a broad range of family law matters including divorce, legal separation, same-sex issues, multi-state jurisdictional issues, high conflict custody issues, grandparent visitation, minor child guardianships, child support, spousal maintenance, paternity, and appellate matters. Randi has presented at multiple legal seminars on numerous topics, including complex financial issues, ethical issues, high conflict custody concerns, and the unique concerns involving autistic children in custody matters. Outside of work, Randi enjoys traveling and spending time outdoors with her husband and two children.
Erin K. Fox is a partner with McNorton Fox PLLC in Tucson, Arizona. She is a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and is certified as a Family Law Specialist by the State Bar of Arizona. Erin has been selected for inclusion in the Best Lawyers in America for family law every year since 2021.
Erin serves as a judge pro tempore for Pima County Superior Court. She is certified to act as Best Interests Attorney for children and Court Appointed Advisor. Erin also acts as a mediator to assist parties in resolving family law disputes without resorting to litigation.
Erin has been recognized numerous times for her volunteer work with Step Up for Justice and Southern Arizona Legal Aid and was honored as one of Tucson’s “40 Under 40” by the Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Erin is the incoming chair of the Family Law Section of the Pima County Bar Association.
Governor Doug Ducey appointed Alan Goodwin to Division 2 of the Arizona Superior Court in Pima County in February of 2020. Judge Goodwin has served on the Family Law Bench since April of 2020. Prior to his bench appointment, Judge Goodwin served as the Special Victims Bureau Chief in the Pima County Attorney's Office, leading a team that prosecuted cases involving child homicide, child physical abuse, child sexual abuse, internet crimes against children, sexual assault, and domestic violence. In 2016, he received the Arizona Felony Prosecutor of the Year Award and the Arizona State Bar Michael C. Cudahy Criminal Justice Award. Before coming to Pima County, Judge Goodwin worked for the State of Alaska Department of Law, worked in private practice, and served as an active duty Judge Advocate in the U.S. Air Force. Currently, Judge Goodwin is a colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, serving as a Military Judge on the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. Judge Goodwin graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1998.
David Horowitz has significant experience in all child-related issues, including step-parent adoption, grandparents' rights, parenting coordination, same-sex parenting, and guardianship/conservatorship. His practice also offers guidance with prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements, complex divorce (including business valuation and complex custody and child support issues), collaborative divorce, mediation, arbitration, and court-appointed special master services. He is also a respected mediator in family law disputes and serves as a judge pro tem for the Maricopa County Superior Court. David is a Certified Family Law Specialist (Arizona Board of Legal Specialization) and a Super Lawyers honoree. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, serves on the Academy's board of governors, and chairs its Mediation Committee. He is the current chair of the State Bar of Arizona's Board of Legal Specialization Family Law Advisory Commission and an officer of the State Bar's Family Law Executive Council. David teaches Family Law and Legal Studies at Phoenix College and has been an adjunct faculty member at the Phoenix School of Law and Arizona Summit Law School. He has been practicing in Arizona for over 30 years. He received his B.S.B.A. in Business Economics (1987) from the University of Arizona Eller College of Management and his J.D. (1990) from the University of Arizona College of Law.
Honorable Cynthia T. Kuhn was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in 2016. Judge Kuhn began her judicial career, first on the civil bench in 2016, rotated in 2018 to a hybrid civil-probate assignment, and then presided over family law cases from 2020 - 2022. Judge Kuhn now serves on the civil bench.
Before her judicial appointment, Judge Kuhn maintained a civil litigation practice, including environmental, commercial, employment, and personal injury matters. Judge Kuhn also served as an Assistant Attorney General in the liability management section, defending state agencies and their employees in civil litigation.
Before starting her legal career, Judge Kuhn taught elementary school for more than three years. Judge Kuhn graduated from the University of Arizona—now the James E. Rogers College of Law—magna cum laude in 1986, where she was a member of the Arizona Law Review.
Judge Kuhn served on the “Committee on Mental Health and the Justice System” and “State Bar Civil Practice and Procedure Committee.” Judge Kuhn currently co-chairs the new judge orientation program for all Arizona general jurisdiction judicial officers.
Judge Kuhn absolutely enjoys every day serving the community as a judicial officer and, despite her prior experience in civil litigation, she finds she learns something new every day through her Superior Court civil caseload.
Honorable Greg Sakall was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in 2017. He is currently assigned to the Civil Bench. After law school, Judge Sakall clerked for U.S. District Judges William D. Browning and Cindy K. Jorgenson. From 2004 to 2017, he was in private practice. He has also been an adjunct associate professor and is a guest lecturer at the James E. Rogers College of Law.
Education: Hillsdale College (B.A., summa cum laude, double major in Spanish & History); University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (J.D., summa cum laude).
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