Family law is one of the more difficult practice areas for attorneys. It is emotionally fraught, dealing with separations of couples, tough child custody battles, and dissolutions of family businesses.
Anyone enduring such times of extreme life change needs support. Whether a person is starting divorce proceedings or beginning a marriage with prenuptial financial planning, experienced guidance is imperative. One source of support is a trusted legal advisor. In cases of divorce, alimony and spousal support, child support, child custody, domestic violence, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, the lawyers at Raffaele Puppio in Media have provided people in the greater Philadelphia area community with family law services for more than three decades. The attorneys provide excellent support, including a great degree of emotional intelligence and sensitivity, to families or individuals in need of family law counsel. In addition, the firm can also support those same clients with their real estate, estate planning, and other legal needs.
Raffaele Puppio is one of the largest and most established full-service law firms in Delaware County. The attorneys are known among the Bench and Bar in Delaware County for their legal prowess and success in representing clients. The family law practice is led by managing partner, Michael A. Raffaele. For more than three decades, he has focused his practice on family law with all types of cases, including divorce, equitable distribution of property, alimony, child custody, and child support. Raffaele has been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America and recently was named the Best Lawyers 2017 Lawyer of the Year for family law in the Philadelphia metro area.
Raffaele takes a problem-solving approach to the practice of family law, believing that it is the best way to assist clients and avoid expenses associated with unnecessary litigation. This is particularly important to the high-end clients he typically represents. When asked why clients in need of family law services should retain Raffaele Puppio lawyers, Raffaele says, “One main advantage of working with us is our knowledge of and reputation within the court system. We’ve been here a long time, so we know how to navigate the family court waters very well.”
Raffaele Puppio generally is regarded as the “go-to” law firm in Delaware County, and Raffaele’s understanding of the nuances of the court system there is of great importance to his clients. In the course of his career, he has served the Delaware County Court System as a juvenile court master and custody master. He also was appointed by the president judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County to serve as a judge pro tem in a program adopted to decrease the backlog of family law cases. Raffaele has served on the board of directors of the Delaware County Bar Association and as chairman of the Delaware County Bar Association’s Fee Dispute Committee.
Raffaele is not the only lawyer at Raffaele Puppio who is well regarded by the Bench and Bar of Delaware County. The firm’s family law practice also includes attorneys Kathleen A. Piperno, Robyn E. Musi and Tiffany A. Shoemaker.
“We take a team approach to working with our clients,” says Raffaele. “The collective knowledge, experience and aforethought increases the likelihood of successful outcomes for our clients and allows us to assist them with all of their family law and related legal needs.”
Piperno, a partner at the firm, exclusively practices family law. She has an impressive reputation with Delaware County, being the chairperson of the Delaware County Bar Association Family Law Section in 2012 and the social committee chairperson for the Family Law Section each year since 2007. In addition, she has been appointed as a special master in divorce for the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas from 2010 through the present and a court-appointed child advocate since 2012. Previously, she was a court-appointed attorney for parents involved in dependency actions through Children and Youth Services of Delaware County. She has also spearheaded a mentorship program with the support of the law firm, working with high school and college students who are interested in pursuing a career in the law.
Shoemaker, also a longtime member of the Delaware County Bar Association Family Law Section, represents clients in various stages of family law litigation including legal analysis of high income and complex assets in divorce and support cases. In recent years, she served as director of the Crime Victims Law Project in Media, where she was responsible for directing a nonprofit law project providing free legal services to victims in Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Bucks counties. She prepared and presented trainings to victim advocates and local community organizations regarding project services. Shoemaker also represented clients in protection from abuse, divorce, equitable distribution, custody, adoption, support and paternity cases, from the initial stage of petition or complaint to Superior Court appeal.
Musi has also focused her legal career on domestic law. She is involved in the Delaware County Bar Association, organizing continuing education seminars, and is actively involved in community service with a special interest in children. Musi currently serves as a board member of the Martin Luther King Child Development Center in Camden, N.J., and as an active member of the Red Cross of Delaware County.
Raffaele and his family law team work together to make Raffaele Puppio the “go-to law firm.” They provide competent legal advice and problem-solving strategy, all while considering the emotional impact of family law on their clients.
In addition to family law, Raffaele Puppio serves the legal needs of individuals in need of personal injury, criminal law, real estate, elder law and estate planning services. The attorneys also represent three of the largest school districts in Delaware County, as well as municipalities and businesses, helping to solve legal problems while avoiding future legal issues.
“At Raffaele Puppio, we consider ourselves part of the fabric of the community,” says Raffaele. “We are here to serve our clients no matter the complexity of the case. We are effective at getting to the heart of a problem and not getting bogged down in the process. And we know when and how a case should be settled to get the best possible result for our clients. The bottom line is that we care about our clients.”
Raffaele Puppio
19 W. Third Street
Media, PA 19063
610-891-6710
www.raffaelepuppio.com
Photograph by Jody Robinson
