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Make no doubt about it – if you’re simply hiring a guardian ad-litem in an effort to look like the better parent, this can backfire on you. It is very difficult to pull the proverbial wool over the eyes of a GAL. If the court appoints a GAL, make sure that you listen to your attorney and to the GAL. The job of the GAL is to represent the best interest of your children.

According to public court files, Louise Iacono filed for divorce against her husband, Ludovico, in Superior Court in Connecticut in 2010 (Case No. FST FA 10-401974S). The defendant was represented by Broder & Orland. In this highly contentious divorce, there was one minor child. The former married couple had a parenting plan filed in their divorce that discussed shared parenting time.

On October 4, 2011, Broder & Orland filed a motion to hold the plaintiff in contempt. It was alleged that Mrs. Iacono had violated the parenting plan and “intentionally” caused harm to the defendant’s relationship with the minor child (paragraph 6, Defendant’s Motion for Contempt Re: Parenting Plan, Pendente Lite).

The one and only claim listed is that Mrs. Iacono “refused to facilitate the Defendant’s parenting time…” Yet, there was no explanation of what she allegedly did that was so serious that it would cause serious harm.

Broder & Orland also asked the court to order Mrs. Iacono to pay the costs of the motion and reasonable attorney fees (on top of an order to the plaintiff to enforce the parenting time).

Was all of that necessary?  Maybe, but on the face of the motion it appears as an attempt to exhaust the other side over a trivial legal issue, although the intentions could have been routine legal maneuvering.

Broder & Orland Previously Faced Serious Accusations in Court

Further investigation by our research team revealed that Broder & Orland was sued in July 2015 by a former client who alleged legal malpractice, invasion of privacy, negligence, business interference, and made claims of slander and libel.

The complaint alleges that an attorney for Broder & Orland released privileged information to a third-party without the consent of their former client, continuously contacted the former client and even attempted to pressure the former client's father-in-law (a pastor), and discussed privileged information with members of a church without the consent of the former client.

These serious allegations, including the violation of attorney-client privilege, caused "extreme financial, reputational, and emotional harm" according to the complaint.

The Divorce Industrial Complex

Lawyers make billions of dollars annually off of divorces, and families are left broken.