Practice Overview

Eliana Weissman is an associate in the firm's Family Law and Litigation Groups, and focuses her practice on all aspects of family law.  Ms. Weissman handles such issues as custody, visitation, support, property division, and restraining orders.

Ms. Weissman’s clients benefit from her training and experience as a Rhode Island state certified mediator.  She has the unique ability to use her collaborative skills to guide her clients toward amicable resolutions, and also is skilled in litigating issues that cannot be resolved without the court’s assistance.

Background

Shortly after relocating to the Bay Area, Ms. Weissman volunteered for the Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center and East Palo Alto Community Legal Services.  She briefly served as a law clerk for The Hon. Socrates P. Manoukian in Santa Clara County Superior Court prior to joining a small Santa Clara law firm where she focused primarily on family law.  In addition to her family law experience, Ms. Weissman has handled both criminal law matters and a number of civil litigation matters involving such issues as assault, battery, negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress, loss of consortium, and embezzlement.

Representative Experience

• Second-chaired a trial involving custody and visitation

• Prosecuted and defended numerous domestic violence and civil harassment restraining orders and personal conduct stipulations

• Successfully established California as the home state of a child removed from the state by a parent without consent

• Negotiated a variety of settlement agreements

• Successfully prosecuted a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction in a dissolution of marriage matter

• Represented petitioner in a demand for DNA testing to establish paternity of a child

Professional Activities and Admissions