Prior to working with Sarah after a relationship break up, I had been unsure of my rights and this was incredibly troubling and unsettling (to say the least!). I was being given advice from people with good intentions but not necessarily qualified legal knowledge so I knew I needed to do something more about this. Emotions were high and a real sense of helplessness and foreboding was clouding my judgement and well being.
After meeting Sarah, I had a direction that we were going to work towards. We had a thorough chat which outlayed details about what our relationship had entailed and where this left me. Our separation was not simple as there was a Family Trust among all the other things, so we had a lot of toing and froing as Sarah communicated with the lawyer representing my Ex.
Some curve balls were thrown my way and Sarah had a very concise and constructive response to any of my questions. We tried to negotiate at a pre court arrangement with a Judge and we were offered a cheeky payout deal. Sarah stood up for me. Even after the Judge suggested it would be easier to take it than to go to Court, Sarah argued that the law stated this and that, and settling well below was not an option for us. And it was the ‘us’ term that I felt. We were doing this together.
Standing our ground and knowing what my rights were was a real game changer. I was also encouraged to weigh up the emotional cost of this all. Sarah took a lot of that strain off my shoulders by being very ‘matter of fact’ with me. This is an incredibly taxing journey to go on, and understanding that neither myself or Ex were going to get exactly what we wanted was important to remember. We settled out of court and it was a huge relief!
Moving on, I have a new home, a new life and the weight and pressure has been lifted. Sarah showed me skills about how to safeguard myself and I now have some life experience to share with anyone who may think that the relationship they are in is as good as it will ever get! My advice is that if this voice is saying this to you, then life is better when you are out!
Sarah welcomed support from my whānau as some meetings we had were going to be very thorough and I thought I might need another set of ears to help me remember what had been said.
Sarah was well organised, she was professional and I felt completely confident with her advice and knowledge she shared.
If anyone is needing guidance, advice or a fabulous lawyer, I highly recommend Sarah.
Philippa J, Auckland.