Education

• Seton Hall University Law School, J.D., magna cum laude
• La Sorbonne - Paris 4, Masters, with honors
• University of McGill, B.A., with first class honors

Admitted

• Licensed in the State of New Jersey
• NJ Superior Court and Federal District Court

Professional Memberships

• New Jersey State Bar Association
• New Jersey Association for Justice
• Bergen County Bar Association
• The LGBT Bar Association of Greater New York
• The National LGBT Bar Association

Pro Bono

Assisting new mothers living in a New Jersey women’s pregnancy shelter with child support, custody disputes, municipal court charges, expungements, etc.

Languages

French & English

Career Profile

Intern to Honorable Walter F. Timpone, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey

Third-Year Student Attorney, The Center for Social Justice, Family Law Clinic, offering pro bono services for individuals needing restraining orders, divorces, custody and visitation orders, and adoptions

Biography

Our firm is a local NJ family-run office.  We have been dedicated to giving each of our clients personal attention and unequaled access to our attorneys since Kate started practicing law in 1983 and founded her own firm in 1994.  When I joined the firm, I came on as Kate’s law clerk in 2006, working alongside my aunt, Katherine G. Houghton, and my grandmother, Angela Houghton, bookkeeper, along with the paralegal staff.  Kate mentored my love for the law and passion for advocacy, and, while continuing as her summer law clerk for many years, I decided to leave teaching and committed to earning a law degree at Seton Hall University School of Law.  I proudly joined the firm as an associate attorney in 2019, joining associate, Kelly Castor, Esq. who has been with the firm since approximately 2009.  Together we all handle a broad range of civil matters throughout north and central New Jersey, including Bergen, Passaic, Morris, Sussex, Essex, Hudson, Monmouth, Middlesex, Ocean, Union, Somerset, Warren, Hunterdon, and Mercer counties.

In personal injury, our firm gives unparalleled personal attention to our clients, even making house calls.  Many of our clients suffer from limited mobility due to a car accident, work accident, fall down, or product liability. We regularly meet injured individuals in their homes or the hospital.  We work diligently to conduct early investigations to support our injured clients.   Video taped evidence may exist and conditions that caused or contributed to your accident may change quickly, so it is imperative to act to preserve evidence as early as possible.  Generally, state agencies purge 911 recordings within weeks, not months.  Certain claims require notice to appropriate government entities within 90 days of the accident or claims can be barred.  Accordingly, we are dedicated to meeting you as soon as possible to make sure that your rights are fully protected and that evidence essential to proving your claim is preserved.

In family law, matters develop quickly and frequently need immediate attention, often because children are involved.  We work with you one-on-one and tenaciously advocate for you and your children. We explain all legal procedures and what to expect during the course of your action.  We handle divorces, spousal support, child support, parenting time disputes, grandparent visitation, prenuptial agreements, restraining orders/domestic violence, adoptions, guardian-ships and psychological parenting petitions. Family matters often involve the most difficult conflicts our client will experience in their life. We work assiduously to bring them to a fair resolution as soon as possible, with the least amount of expense as possible under the given circumstances.

In estate law, we advise clients how to pass on assets to loved ones using trusts, wills, life insurance, and other documents.   In the event probate is necessary we assist our clients in navigating the process allowing the client to participate and do their own leg work as much or as little as they want to the extent they are able, allowing them to save significant costs and fees, again if they want.  In many cases probate can be avoided with careful estate planning where advisable.  We handle a broad range of related matters arising from transferring and disposing of estate assets, including home sales, title transfers (car and real estate), business transfers, stock liquidations or transfers, retirement and non retirement assets and evictions.  We also handle will contests and litigation arising out of abuses by a power of attorney.

To schedule a free half-hour consultation with me, email me directly at [email protected] or call 201-587-1414.

Recent searchable cases:  J.A.M. v. M.L.S., No. A-4466-17T3, 2019 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1367, at *1 (App. Div. June 14, 2019)(arguing successfully as a third-year law student on behalf of a minor victim that the appellate panel should uphold a final restraining order against a domestic violence abuser who sought to attack the Order on First Amendment grounds).