A lifelong Delaware resident with more than 25 years of experience practicing family law, Carl W. Heckert is a respected and long-time practitioner of divorce litigation and mediation. His family law practice includes divorce, property division, custody, child support, alimony, protection from abuse, as well as grandparent and stepparent’s rights. He is also a Certified Family Law Mediator in Delaware following the state’s inaugural certification program by the Family Court of the State of Delaware as well as the Delaware State Bar Association.
Child Custody and Visitation
With offices in Chester County, Pennsylvania and Wilmington, Delaware, the divorce lawyer and family law practice at Gawthrop Greenwood provides support across state lines for the major life changes of our clients. Our experienced attorneys provide legal counsel for individuals in anticipation of marriage, adoption, divorce, support, child custody and other personal matters that require vigilance.
Adoption
As new families form, we provide representation for clients through the adoption process, including international adoptions, step-parent adoptions and adult adoptions.
Premarital Agreement
Guardianship
The Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD) is a medical power of appointment and a living will. The medical power of appointment portion of the AHCD allows you to name a person or persons to make medical decisions for you if you are not able to make them yourself. The living will portion of the AHCD allows you to express your wishes about medical treatments, such as a feeding tube, that you either would or would not want used in the event of a terminal illness or if you are permanently unconscious. With an AHCD, you put in place a system to allow your loved ones to make health decisions for you in accordance with your wishes, and it avoids the need for a court-monitored guardianship.
Spousal Support
With 15 years of litigation experience in the Chester County Court system, Kelly practices in Family Law and is a member of the Pennsylvania Council of Mediators. She handles all aspects of family law including pre- and post-nuptial planning, divorce, equitable distribution, alimony, child custody, property settlement, and related litigation and mediation.
Child Abuse
Ellen has served as a municipal solicitor to a multitude of elected officials, advising townships and planning commissions on scope of authority, drafting ordinances and resolutions and representing municipalities in land use and zoning matters in the Court of Common Pleas. As solicitor for the Department of Children, Youth and Families in Chester County, she represented the agency in dependency and other matters in the Court of Common Pleas and defended indications of child abuse before the Bureau of Hearings and Appeals.
Ellen also has a depth of experience representing clients in criminal matters. She began her career clerking in the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia for Major Trials in the Criminal Division. She then served more than a decade as Assistant Public Defender in the Chester County Public Defender’s office, engaging in more than 20 trials including nine felony jury trials. She has briefed and argued appeals before the Pennsylvania Superior Court.
DUI/DWI
Driving under the influence is consistently one of Pennsylvania’s most common crimes, for which tens of thousands of drivers are arrested every year. In order to combat drunk driving, the Pennsylvania legislature has enacted a series of mandatory minimum sentences based on the amount of alcohol found to be in drivers’ blood within two hours of a DUI arrest. As a result, a conviction for a first offense DUI can include a mandatory minimum sentence of as much as seventy-two hours in jail, a maximum sentence of six months incarceration, and as much as a year of license suspension.
Traffic Violations
Students who are cited for underage possession of alcohol often assume that the charge is a minor one because it comes in the form of a citation, which appears similar to a traffic ticket. What the citation doesn’t explain, however, is that conviction for underage possession of alcohol will result in an automatic 90-day license suspension. Second and subsequent offenses can result in even longer suspensions. Certain professions – like teaching in certain school districts – also treat even a single conviction for underage possession of alcohol as a disqualifying offense. Once the student’s license is restored, moreover, the conviction can also increase the cost of insuring the student-driver’s car.
Robbery
Felonies are the most serious non-homicide crimes in Pennsylvania. Convictions for felonies can result in a sentence as long as twenty years in jail, and can include serious collateral consequences, like the forfeiture of a pension, the loss of a driver’s license or disqualification for employment. Conviction for a felony also disqualifies the defendant from purchasing, owning or possessing firearms. Aggravated assault (including certain accidents that occur while driving under the influence), possession with intent to deliver, burglary and robbery can all be felonies.
Burglary
Theft
Misdemeanors
Main Line Today in 2022. She joined Gawthrop Greenwood in June 2021 after working in private practice at a civil litigation law firm where she focused on civil rights defense, employment law and general civil litigation. Prior to that, Nehra clerked with the Delaware Attorney General’s Office, where she worked in both the Criminal and Family Divisions and represented the state at misdemeanor hearings in the Court of Common Pleas. She also worked as a paralegal and then law clerk for a civil defense firm in Wilmington, DE.
Drug Crimes
Misdemeanors are more serious crimes than summary offenses, but not as serious as felony crimes. Convictions for misdemeanors can result in a sentence as long as five years in jail, and many misdemeanor offenses – like drug possession – can result in license suspension. Citizens of other countries, even those here legally, may be deported if convicted of certain misdemeanors, and most misdemeanors will result in the loss of the right to purchase firearms. Examples of misdemeanors include most theft offenses, simple drug possession, and simple assault. Unlike summary offenses (which are handled entirely in local magisterial district courts), misdemeanor offenses only begin in the magisterial district courts with a preliminary hearing; after the preliminary hearing, misdemeanors are tried in the Court of Common Pleas.
Assault
What is the difference between simple assault and aggravated assault? What’s involved in a police investigation, from interviewing witnesses to gathering medical documentation? What is bail based on, and who sets it?
Homicide
Before entering private practice, Kelly made sure every voice was heard as an attorney at the Chester County Public Defender’s Office. She handled all aspects of felony and misdemeanor cases from the preliminary hearing to trial and through all stages of state appellate review. She also served as first chair for numerous jury trials, including first-degree homicide and more than 15 other felony trials.
Geyer v. Ingersoll Publications Co.: Insolvency Shifts Directors’ Burden from Shareholders to Creditors, The Delaware Journal of Corporate Law, Volume 19, 1994
Mergers and Acquisitions
Our mergers and acquisitions team works closely with other attorneys in the firm to provide clients with an integrated response that is customized to the client’s needs. Depending on the transaction, we may engage the firm’s experience in tax, real estate (including title insurance and lease issues), regulatory compliance and collateral security issues. We also collaborate as part of a transaction team with one or more of a client’s other advisors.
Business Disputes
Gawthrop Greenwood attorney Lauren A. Nehra was recently admitted to the Delaware Bar. Nehra, pictured here with movant Seth Yeager, a partner at Reger, Rizzo & Darnall, is a member of Gawthrop Greenwood’s Litigation Department and specializes in matters including contract disputes, landlord/tenant cases and Chancery Court litigation.
Business Transactions
Stephen J. Olsen is a member of Gawthrop Greenwood’s Trusts & Estates Department, practicing in the areas of Estate, Trust Administration, Estate Planning Taxation, and Business Transactions. He is also one of the few Pennsylvania attorneys in private practice with a wide breadth of experience supporting the legal needs of medical marijuana operators.
Limited Liability Companies
Construction Contracts
Named “Female Business Leader of the Year” by the Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry, Sandra L. Knapp practices in the fields of Business Law, Commercial Transactions, Admiralty/Maritime Law, Real Estate Law, and Banking and Finance. She represents clients in a broad range of transactional and general corporate matters, including asset-based lending transactions, mergers and acquisitions, marine finance and vessel documentation, U.S.-based joint ventures for international companies, real estate, sale-leaseback transactions, construction contracts, leases and charters. She is frequently involved in multimillion-dollar financing and acquisition transactions for companies both nationally and internationally. In addition to financing matters, Sandy advises on maritime transportation regulatory matters, particularly on the coastwise trade of the United States and citizenship requirements. She has practiced in the Philadelphia area for over 30 years, representing clients throughout the United States and abroad.
Stephen has a diverse litigation background with extensive trial experience and more than 50 trials to verdict in State and Federal Courts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He has represented Fortune 500 companies, mid-sized companies, small businesses, contractors and individuals in a variety of litigation matters including contractual disputes, employment issues, construction defect/injuries and other matters.
A lifelong resident of Chester County, Pennsylvania as it has transformed from a rural community to a thriving residential and commercial corridor, Holly has practiced with real estate law firm Landis & Setzler, PC since her admission to the Bar in 1988. She was the principal owner of the firm located in West Chester until it merged with Gawthrop Greenwood in 2023.
Construction Litigation
Stephen has taught classes on Indemnity in Construction Contracts, and Bad Faith in Insurance Coverage. He has also written various published articles, including...
Real Estate Transactions
Permitting and land use approvals are among the primary challenges facing businesses and residents in our region, according to a recent survey. A land development attorney at Gawthrop Greenwood is able to navigate the challenges of submitting land use applications, securing approvals and interacting with regulatory bodies as you develop your investment. From real estate transactions to financing and development, the attorneys at Gawthrop Greenwood employ an integrated approach through every stage of the real estate life cycle.
Eminent Domain
Easement
Land Use and Zoning
As an attorney in Gawthrop Greenwood’s Government Law Department, Koopman helps private citizens, developers and elected officials achieve the vision they have for their homes and communities as they navigate increasingly complex land use and development regulations. As a former President of West Chester Borough Council, she draws on her professional experience as both a public servant — and an attorney representing private and public clients — to assist with identifying goals and creating a successful strategy to achieve them.
Lauren A. Nehra is a dedicated litigation attorney who takes great pride in providing superior client service as she practices in matters including contract disputes, landlord/tenant cases, personal injury and Orphans’ Court matters (guardianships, will contests). A recent client describes Lauren as a lawyer who “exceeded our expectations and has gone out of her way to help us.” Licensed to practice in both Pennsylvania and Delaware, Lauren prioritizes listening to her clients and working hard to protect and advance their interests.
J. Stoddard Hayes, Jr., (“Tod”) represents individuals with significant wealth in their estate planning and trust and estate administration matters. He concentrates his practice in succession planning for businesses and farms, as well as matters involving complex generation-skipping transfers. He lectures regularly to professional groups on tax and estate planning topics, including conservation easements, planning for family business owners, and the tax aspects of charitable giving techniques.
Wills
In addition to her regular practice, Mary Ann is a trained mediator and has successfully mediated cases in Pennsylvania and Delaware for family law disputes and estate matters. Representative cases include divorce matters involving family businesses, custody relocation, grandparent rights, will contests, guardianships and challenges to accountings.
Trusts
Tod serves the community as Treasurer of the Sophia G. Coxe Charitable Trust Fund, Inc., of Drifton, Pennsylvania. 2014 marked the end of his long term serving as a Board Member of the Chester County Community Foundation of West Chester, Pennsylvania.
Power of Attorney
If you’re uncomfortable with the idea of a living will (and a surprising number of young people are), consider the Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA), which allows you to appoint someone else to make legal and financial decisions on your behalf. The person that you appoint is called your agent. The DPOA is only effective while you are alive, and it gives your loved ones the power to make decisions on your behalf and to ensure that you continue to receive the care that you need. A DPOA can be effective immediately, or it can become effective upon your incapacity. Young adults often make the DPOA effective upon their incapacity since it is unlikely to be needed except in the case of incapacity. Like the AHCD, a DPOA avoids the need for a court-monitored guardianship.
During law school, he served in the Federal Tax Clinic representing low-income taxpayers before the IRS and Tax Court and participated in the VITA tax preparation program for low-income taxpayers. He received his undergraduate degree in economics, with honors, from Lycoming College, where he was a member of the scholars program.