Perhaps the trial court decision about divorce, alimony, child custody, visitation, child support, property division and monetary award, or other family law issue is confusing or unfavorable to you and you're not sure about your rights. Or maybe your adversary has filed an appeal and you're not sure what your next step should be. John Weaver understands the procedural and substantive aspects of Maryland appellate practice, and the time-sensitive nature of filing and pursuing appeals. 

        John Weaver has a passion for oral and written client advocacy. He has handled more than fifty appeals, and he has written the associated appellate briefs and argued cases before the Appellate Court of Maryland and Supreme Court of Maryland about significant family law issues (e.g., divorce grounds; alimony - pendente lite, rehabilitative, indefinite; monetary award; business valuation; marital debt; child custody, child custody relocation; child custody modification; child support; child support modification; voluntary impoverishment; attorneys' fees; "Crawford Credits" - contribution; common law marriage; responsibilities of Best Interest Attorney; comity and marriage validity; contempt; expert witnesses and discovery violation sanctions; limitations; jurisdiction; sufficiency of pleadings) resulting in several reported appellate decisions: Lasko v. Lasko, 245 Md. App. 70 (2020) (sufficiency of a request for division of retirement benefits in a pleading); Santo v. Santo, 448 Md. 620 (2016) (Joint legal custody: allocation of tie-breaking decision-making authority); Tshiani v. Tshiani, 466 Md. 255 (2013) (comity, proof of valid marriage); Das v. Das, 133 Md. App. 1 (2000) (divorce grounds; default); Guarino v. Guarino, 112 Md. App. 1 (1996) (pendente lite alimony; initial attorneys' fees); Rogers v. Rogers, 80 Md. App. 575 (1989) (marital property, indefinite alimony, marital debt, attorneys fees); and Young v. Mayne Realty Co., Inc., 48 Md. App. 662, 429 A.2d 296 (1981) (limitations, meritorious defense). Since leaving the Family Magistrate's Office in 2007, John Weaver has successfully briefed and argued numerous family law cases before the Appellate Court of Maryland and Supreme Court of Maryland. 

        Bethesda Magazine biennial TOP ATTORNEYS issue recognized John Weaver as one of the "Top Attorneys" in Appellate practice in 2019, 2021, and 2023.

        John Weaver will bring his experience to bear to advise you about your rights, provide practical and realistic counsel about your appeal alternative, and zealously advocate your case. He can provide a range of servies to meet your appellate needs.

* Full Service Appeals. At Law Office of John S. Weaver we provide dynamic comprehensive appellate services from start-to-finish in pursuing or defending your appeal. We also can tailor the firm's appellate services to meet various needs of attorneys.

* Co-Counsel. John Weaver can collaborate with busy trial counsel to research, review the record, identify the issues to appeal, draft the brief, and/or argue the case before the appellate court.

* Consulting. Perhaps trial counsel wants to be hands-on but seeks guidance on the process. John Weaver can act as a consultant, providing assistance meeting procedural requirements, refining your arguments and editing your brief, and helping prepare you for oral argument.

*Ghost-writing. Often trial counsel does not have the time to draft an appellate brief, but still wants to have their name attached to it and maintain the relationship with their client and perhaps present oral argument. Ghost-writing can provide research and writing services to meet the needs.

*Appellate Solutions. Contact John Weaver to discuss how Law Office of John S. Weaver can assist you in your family law appeal.