Michael Evans

Family Law Attorney

Michael Evans, a family law attorney with over thirty years’ experience, is certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Matrimonial Law attorney. He has represented clients in various complex cases including divorces with high net-worth marital estates, custody disputes, including international custody matters, adoptions, annulments, alimony, child support, child removal and child relocation (including international relocation). Michael’s extensive litigation practice has focused on matters involving grandparent visitation, cohabitation, palimony, post-judgment modification and domestic violence. He has successfully handled matters at both the trial level and in extensive appellate practice.

Michael counsels clients in a variety of areas and has successfully negotiated, drafted and when necessary, sought enforcement or the setting aside of premarital and reconciliation agreements, separation and custody and parenting time agreements. Of special note is his significant experience in handling the complex issues surrounding children with special needs. The Superior Court of New Jersey appointed Michael to protect the interests of minors during matrimonial litigation. He has served on the Passaic County Superior Court Early Settlement Matrimonial Panel since 2003 and as a mediator in divorce cases. Michael has also served as a Parent Advisor for the New Jersey Catastrophic Illness in Children Relief Fund.

 

Personal

Michael’s unique life experiences have greatly shaped his development as a master strategist who is tactical and deliberate, demonstrating incredible perseverance, while simultaneously being patient, sensitive and empathetic to a client’s needs and goals. Michael, his wife Theresa, and their children reside in Clifton, NJ where Michael previously was elected a Commissioner for the Board of Education. True visionaries, he and Theresa were integral in the planning and completion of seven outdoor classrooms for the Clifton Public Schools well before the advent of COVID-19 and social distancing.

The family was featured in an article by North Jersey Media Group detailing the struggles of their eldest daughter Kristin who suffered with Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa from birth until she succumbed in 2011. Most recently, Michael’s wife endured a year and a half long hospitalization and is currently regaining her strength through intensive physical therapy.

Michael and Theresa are planning to author a book about her harrowing, life-threatening medical ordeal following routine surgery in August 2019, which resulted in her hospitalization for 556 consecutive days. When her recovery is complete, the family hopes to resume their international travels having visited 32 countries to date, thereby providing a well-rounded, multicultural experience for their children.

Education

• J.D., California Western School of Law-1990
• B.A., Seton Hall University-1988

Bar Admissions

• State of New Jersey, 1991
• U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey, 1991

Professional Associations, Memberships, and Awards

• Passaic County Bar Association
• Bergen County Bar Association
• New Jersey State Bar Association-Family Law Section
• American Academy for Certified Financial Litigators
• American Institute of Family Law Attorneys -Client Satisfaction Award
• Justice Robert L. Clifford American Inns of Court

Reported Decisions

• Slawinski v. Nicholas, 448 N.J. Super. 25 (App. Div. 2016) (successfully represented grandparent as court ruled that the parent may not unilaterally terminate consent order for grandparent visitation absent showing changed circumstances and that changing the order wouldn’t harm the child)