Divorce Involving Domestic Abuse

• Applicant: Ms. Chia
• Country/Region: Taiwan, China
• Applying for: Divorce
• Case Type: Family Counsel
• Challenges:
  • The case involved a powerful and wealthy family
  • Domestic violence was an issue
  • Finding a divorce attorney because many had declined her case because of her husbands’ family status

BACKGROUND

Ms. Chia had come to America as a young girl and married into a powerful and wealthy family and thought she had her happily-ever-after, but it turns out she was wrong. It started with her feeling very much alone and oppressed by her husband. Her marriage then became a prison, rather than a collaborative relationship of friendship and love. She was also suffering from domestic violence and was often unable to leave her home, forced into the role of an obedient wife rather than living on her terms. This was not the life she imagined she would have here in America. Ms. Chia was not happy in her marriage anymore and wanted to divorce her husband (and his family), but the feat seemed impossible. Most of her family was still in Taiwan so she had no emotional support in America. She felt like she was stuck in a nightmare and could not escape it. She needed help from an attorney that could help her obtain a divorce; however, the only problem was that all the divorce attorneys she contacted declined her case because of her husband’s family status. She thought that she was never going to escape this nightmare until she reached out to Tsang & Associates. Though Tsang & Associates does not normally handle divorce cases, this case was an exception because of her family relationship with the firm.

KEYS TO SUCCESS

We were able to provide family counsel for Ms. Chia by first finding the best attorney we could at a good rate. We then went to strategically plan on what Ms. Chia needed to document her situation so she would have a case to present, and we spent countless hours going over every single document that she could include in her case. We then went to work on helping her settle assets and the custody situation for the couple’s children. We provided personal and phone consultations to discuss domestic abuse issues, her lack of freedoms, and how she could separate from a family that made her suffer. We made sure Ms. Chia was well prepped with all the necessary documents to ensure her success against her husband’s family.

OUTCOME

We provided additional mediation due to the complex nature of this case and were able to obtain a settlement because of the extra consulting time. Ms. Chia reached a settlement with her husband, including joint legal and physical custody, as well as child and spousal support. We were delighted to help our client and were happy to put in the additional effort, as Ms. Chia had little agency because of her strained relationship with her husband and his family. We were also happy to help her leave an abusive situation so she could begin a new, independent life.