Shawna Woods Attorney, Managing Partner

Catering to Diverse Families

Finding out what is important to someone – not just based on their background and culture – is something we take pride in at the Atlanta Divorce Law Group. For example, one of the things I’ve learned from working with clients who are either first generation immigrants or came here directly from their country of origin often have issues, such as dowry, that are very important to address. This isn’t something we think about here in the States very often. So listening to people and understanding what is important to them can go a long way in finding creative solutions to diverse family matters. 

My Favorite HAPPILY EVER AFTER DIVORCE ® Story

There was a client in a custody battle many years ago, and the parties had been in and out of court for years. His older son was 14 and could decide he wanted to live with dad, but he also had a younger daughter who was only eight, and she had lived with mom her whole life. 

They had divorced when she was a year old, but mom didn’t want dad involved. She wouldn’t even let the kids go to extracurricular activities because she knew dad could go, so she was really limiting their growth because she had too much hatred for dad. But it was still a hard battle because my client’s child was an eight-year-old little girl, and most men simply don’t get custody of little girls. 

For about a year and a half, we worked together to prove to the court why it was in her best interest to live with dad, and we won. It was very exciting. 

One of the reasons I’d say this is a success story is that two years ago, he invited me to that little girl’s high school graduation. He reaches out to me at least once a year to let me know how his kids are doing. This makes everything I do worth it. Making a difference in someone else’s life so they can have a happier, healthy childhood makes my school loans worth it.