This program is eligible for 6 hours of CLE credit in 60-minute states. In 50-minute states, this program is eligible for 7.2 hours of CLE credit. Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules.
Overview
Do you practice family law in Bucks, Chester, Delaware or Montgomery County? If so, this course is a must for you.
Navigating Across Counties — What Adventure Lies Before You?
Nearly all family lawyers are bound to experience going into uncharted county waters at some point in their careers. If you have already been adventurous enough to accept that challenge, then you know how vastly different the procedures can be from one county to the next.
Spotlighting Practice in Four Southeastern Pennsylvania Counties
Get a general overview of practice within each county and pick up valuable tips and hints from those who have played this strategic game — and won!
Effectively Represent Your Client
Receive valuable information (electronically) — complete with relevant contacts and phone numbers, a guide to local rules, and a wealth of sample forms that will undoubtedly be one of your most frequently referenced manuals!
Faculty
Michael E. Bertin, Esq.
Mr. Bertin is a partner at the law firm of Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP, where he is the Co-Chair of the Family Law Department. Mr. Bertin is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) and is the President of the Pennsylvania Chapter. He is listed in The Best Lawyers In America. Mr. Bertin was named the 2021 Lawyer of the Year for Family Law for Philadelphia and eastern counties of Pennsylvania by The Best Lawyers In America. Mr. Bertin is co-author of the bookPennsylvania Child Custody Law, Practice, and Procedure. Mr. Bertin received a 2011 PBA Special Achievement Award for his contributions and work with the PBA Family Law Section to enact the new Custody Act. He is a member of the Pennsylvania Joint State Government Commission Domestic Relations Advisory Committee. Mr. Bertin is a former Chair of the Family Law Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and former member of its Executive Committee and Council (the governing bodies of the Section). He is a former chair and member of the Procedural Rules Committee, Legislative Committee, and Program Committee of the Family Law Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. He is a former Chair of the Family Law Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association and currently the co-chair of its Custody Committee. Mr. Bertin is also a former member of the Board of Governors of the Philadelphia Bar Association. Mr. Bertin is a Zone One Delegate of the Pennsylvania Bar Association House of Delegates. Mr. Bertin is listed as a “Pennsylvania Super Lawyer” by Philadelphia Magazine and Law and Politics Magazine. He was also selected as one of the 2018 Makers of the Main Line by Philadelphia Magazine.He is also listed as one of the Greater Philadelphia Region’s Ten Leaders in Divorce Law by the Ten Leaders Cooperative.Mr. Bertin was also selected as a “2007 Lawyer on the Fast Track” by The Legal Intelligencer and Pennsylvania Law Weekly. Mr. Bertin is a frequent lecturer, moderator, and author on family law topics. He has presented over 85 lectures nationally and statewide. He has authored over 135 legal articles. He is the family law columnist for The Legal Intelligencer. His articles have also appeared in the Pennsylvania Law Weekly; The Philadelphia Lawyer; Family Lawyer Magazine; Pennsylvania Family Lawyer; and PBI and American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers course materials. Mr. Bertin is the course planner and moderator of the recurring PBI program: Family Law in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, & Montgomery Counties. Mr. Bertin is a member of the Family Law Advisory Council for the Volunteers for Indigent Program and Philadelphia Law Works, the Doris Jonas Freed American Inn Of Court, and the Family Law Section of the Montgomery Bar Association. Mr. Bertin is a former member of the Nicholas J. Cipriani Family Law American Inn Of Court. He received his B.A. cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh and his J.D. from Temple University School of Law, where he was the recipient of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyer’s Eric D. Turner Award.Mr. Bertin, a 1991 graduate of Upper Dublin High School, is to be inducted into the Upper Dublin High School Alumni Hall of Fame in April 2025.
Lynn A. Snyder, Esq.
Ms. Snyder is a family law attorney with more than thirty years of experience in public service and private practice. She currently serves as an Equitable Distribution Hearing Officer in Montgomery County. Previously Ms. Snyder was a private practitioner and served as a Family Court Hearing Officer in Chester County, where she resolved hundreds of complex equitable distribution, support and custody cases; authored seminal cases; and presided over cases of first Impression. Prior to being appointed a Hearing Officer, she honed her litigation skills as a Deputy District Attorney in the Chester County District Attorney’s Office. Certified in Good Shepherd Divorce and Custody Mediation, Ms. Snyder has presented at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Chester County Bar Association and Montgomery County Bar Association continuing legal education programs. She has volunteered with Access to Justice and been involved with the Doris Jonas Freed Inn of Court. Ms. Snyder received her J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law and her B.A. from Ursinus College. She is a member of the Pennsylvania bar and admitted to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Edward T. Lawlor, Jr., Esq.
Mr. Lawlor is an equitable distribution hearing officer in Delaware County and has served in that capacity for nearly 15 years. As a practicing attorney for more than 40 years, he has specialized in commercial litigation and business transactions. He obtained his Basic Mediation certification from the University of Delaware, and he received his complex mediation training at Harvard Law School. He has trained as an arbitrator with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. He is a graduate of Boston College, and received his JD from Widener University, with an LLM in taxation from Temple University. In addition to his legal practice, Mr. Lawlor is a business owner and a licensed Pennsylvania real estate broker.
Kathleen A. O’Connor, Esq.
Ms. O’Connor is a partner with the Media, Delaware County law firm of Sweeney & Neary, LLP, and she has practiced family law for over 18 years. Throughout her career with Sweeney & Neary, she has zealously and confidently represented her clients in all areas of family law, including, divorce, equitable distribution, support, child custody, grandparent custody rights, protection from abuse, and preparation of pre and post nuptial agreements. She is a court-appointed Parent Coordinator in Delaware County, and she has been appointed as a Guardian Ad Litem in high conflict custody matters. Ms. O’Connor is an active member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Family Law Section and the Delaware County Bar Association. For the PBA, she served as Co-Chair of the Family Law Section’s Rules Committee for 4 years, and she currently serves as a Council member. For the DCBA, she is a former Chairperson of the Family Law Section, and she currently serves as the Family Law Section’s Local Rules Committee Co-Chair. Ms. O’Connor is a frequent lecturer for both the DCBA and PBA/PBI on family law matters. Ms. O’Connor has been recognized as a “Pennsylvania Super Lawyer” each year since 2020; as a“Best Lawyer in America for Family Law”; and as a “Top Lawyer” in Family Law by Main Line Today Magazine and the Delaware County Daily Times. She earned B.A.s in Psychology and Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland College Park, and she earned her J.D. from the Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law.
Matthew B. Garry, Esq.
Mr. Garry is a full-time Family Law Master for Bucks County, with 20 years of experience in the Master’s Office. Prior to that, he was a family law attorney with the law firm of Williams, Schildt and MacMinn (later Williams, Schildt and Donovan) in Doylestown. Mr. Garry attended Franklin & Marshall College and Villanova School of Law.
Michael C. Rovito, Esq.
Mr. Rovito is a partner at the West Chester firm of MacElree Harvey, Ltd., where he is a member of the Family Law Practice and Litigation Groups. He currently serves as a council member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Family Law Section, where he is also a member of the Leadership Development Program and Legislative Committee. Mr. Rovito is also co-chair of the Chester County Bar Association’s Family Law Section, and member of the Doris Jonas Freed Inn of Court. He earned his B.S. from the Pennsylvania State University and his J.D. from the Widener University Commonwealth Law School.
Robert J. Salzer, Esq.
Robert J. Salzer, a partner at Williams Family Law, focuses his practice on financially complex, high net worth family law matters including alimony/spousal support, divorce, equitable distribution, marital agreements, child support, child custody and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. For those cases that cannot be resolved by agreement, Mr. Salzer’s effective litigation skills serve his clients well. Mr. Salzer is a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), an honor reserved solely for skilled negotiators and experienced litigators who represent individuals in all facets of family law. There are just 1,600 AAML fellows nationwide. He is a co-author of “Stress-Free Divorce,” a book designed to help anyone considering or in the midst of a divorce identify and overcome common obstacles to as smooth a resolution as possible. An experienced trial attorney, Mr. Salzer also handles criminal matters, especially those related to driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Prior to joining Williams Family Law, Mr. Salzer served as deputy district attorney for the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, where he served as a chief of the Homicide by Vehicle Unit for a number of years. In that role, he was regularly interviewed by a variety of media outlets in the Philadelphia region, including several daily newspapers and Philadelphia news stations. Previously, he served as a law clerk for the Honorable Robert J. Mellon of the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas. An experienced trial attorney, Mr. Salzer has conducted presentations across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania regarding techniques to improve cross examination, particularly as it relates to expert witnesses. Mr. Salzer’s community work includes assisting military veterans with legal needs as part of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Lawyers Saluting Veterans Program, which is coordinated through the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. After earning a Bachelor of Arts in English Writing from the University of Pittsburgh, Mr. Salzer went on to earn a Juris Doctor from The Catholic University Columbus School of Law. In 2016, he earned his LL.M in Taxation from Boston University School of Law. In addition to his legal career, Mr. Salzer is a car enthusiast and an avid traveler. He is a devoted sports fan and baseball and ice hockey competitor.
Lauren M. Berke, MA
Lauren Berke is the Director of Bucks County Domestic Relations. She started her career in Domestic Relations in 2014 as a Conference Officer at Lehigh County. Lauren moved to Bucks County in 2017 and continued as a Domestic Relations Officer before being promoted to Team Supervisor in 2021 and Director in early 2023. She is a member of the Domestic Relations Association of Pennsylvania (DRAP), National Child Support Engagement Association (NCSEA), Eastern Regional Interstate Child Support Association (ERICSA), and the American Management Association (AMA). Lauren received her B.S.B.A. from Bloomsburg University and her M.A. from DeSales University.
Elizabeth J. Billies, Esq.
Ms. Billies is a Partner at Dischell, Bartle & Dooley, PC, in Lansdale and concentrates her practices in all aspects of family law. Prior to her current position, she was law clerk for the Honorable Susan Devlin Scott of the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, the former President Judge and Administrative Judge of Family Court. She has contributed articles to the Pennsylvania Family Lawyer and has presented on various family law topics at the Pennsylvania Bar Association, PBI as well as on family law related podcasts and webinars. You can also find her writings on her blog, The Divorce Lawyer Life. Ms. Billies received her B.A. from University of Wisconsin-Madison and her J.D. from Villanova University School of Law.

Need help navigating your CLE requirements?
You have a lot on your plate. We’ll help you stay on top of your compliance — in PA and beyond.