Locations

Assisting residents in Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo and Solano counties with offices in San Ramon and San Mateo.

New Office Location

Please note our San Ramon office will relocate on the week of December 15, 2008 to our new location:

Law Offices of Mark Ressa, Esq.
5000 Executive Parkway, Suite 305
San Ramon, CA 94583

Law Offices of Jason J. Elter, Esq.
5000 Executive Parkway, Suite 305
San Ramon, CA 94583

Contact Info

If you have an emergency and need assistance immediately, you may email us at info@BayAreaDivorce.com or call our office at +1 925-328-0103. We usually respond to emails no later than the end of the business day, often sooner. You can also contact us by filling out the initial consultation form.

Mailing Address — Please note we are moving our main San Ramon office December 2008. Please call for directions.

• Mark Ressa, Attorney at Law

  Bishop Ranch

  One Annabel Lane, Suite 215
  San Ramon, CA 94583
  +1 925-328-0103
  info@BayAreaDivorce.com

• Jason J. Elter, Attorney at Law

  Bishop Ranch

  One Annabel Lane, Suite 215
  San Ramon, CA 94583
  +1 925-328-0547
  info@BayAreaDivorce.com

Free Initial Consultation

During the initial consultation, whether by telephone, email or in-person office appointment, we can answer your most pressing family law questions that may include the following.

• Do I need a lawyer?
• I've just been served with divorce papers, what do I do next?
• What are the phases of a divorce and how long will it take?

• What about custody and visitation of our children?
• How much support can I expect to receive or pay?
• What are the factors determining who continues to live in the family residence?

Some of the answers to these questions can be found in our FAQ section.

If you would like to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your family law situation, please fill out our consultation request form and a representative will usually contact you within 24 hours.

Available Family Law Services

Bay Area Divorce™ attorneys Mark Ressa, Esq. and Jason J. Elter, Esq. practice exclusively in the area of family law. Without limitation that includes:

• "Unbundled" legal services
• Adoptions
• Alimony and family support
• Annulment
• Business valuations
• Child custody
• Child support
• Collaborative law
• Custody evaluations
• Divorce or dissolution of marriage
• Divorces involving professional practices

• DV or domestic violence proceedings
• Grandparents rights
• Guardianship
• House and business valuations
• Interstate custody disputes
• Juvenile dependency hearings
• Legal separation
• Legal services for family law matters
• Marital settlement agreements
• Mediation
• Negotiated divorce settlements

• Paternity
• Property divisions
• Residential exclusions
• Spousal support
• Stay-away orders; support wage assignments
• Stipulated judgments
• TRO's or temporary restraining orders
• Uncontested divorces
• Visitation and time-share
• Vocational evaluations

Attorney Bios

Mark Ressa, Esq.

Mark Ressa received his B.A. in 1975 from Oakland University (Rochester, Michigan) and his J.D. in 1979 from Whittier College, School of Law (Los Angeles, California). He was admitted to the California and Federal Bar in 1979. He limits his practice exclusively to family law matters including complex litigation, spousal and child support, paternity, high conflict custody disputes and domestic violence. His office is located in San Ramon and practices primarily in the Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Solano.

He is a member of the Family Law Executive Committee of the California State Bar (2008-2011), Editor of the Family Law Section's eNews (2008-2009) and Vice-Chair for the Family Law Section's Online Continuing Education (2008-2009). Prior to his appointment to FLEXCOM, he served as Chair (2006-2008) and Vice-Chair (2005-2006) of the State Bar Family Law Section’s Bay Area Regional Standing Committee, formerly known as Financial Issues North. He is a member of the state and local bar associations.

Mr. Ressa created and marketed the first Windows™ based child / spousal support calculation program to be certified for court use by the California Judicial Council; i.e., SupportPro™ from 1994 to 1998. He served with other software providers, including family law luminaries Steve Adams and Garrett Dailey, to advise the California Judicial Council on the standards to be applied for the use of software in courtrooms. Mr. Ressa co-founded Legal dot Net in 1995, internationally recognized as one of the first leading web sites to serve the needs of legal consumers as well as legal professionals.

He has lectured to various bar associations, including Inns of Court, the Orange County Bar Association, and the Orange County Women Lawyers Association. Recently he has lectured for the State Bar’s Section Education Institute.

Mr. Ressa is an avid cyclist, motorsports fan and teaches elementary school children chess. He resides in the East Bay community of Danville with his wife and their two wonderful young sons.

Jason J. Elter, Esq.

Jason J. Elter received his B.A. in 1994 from Oberlin College, Oberlin Ohio, and his J.D. in 1997 from Vermont Law School. He was admitted to practice law in 1998 and is licensed to practice both in the State and Federal Courts of California, New York, and Colorado. His office is located in San Ramon, CA, and practices primarily in the Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, and Santa Clara, as well interstate disputes between California, New York and/or Colorado.

Mr. Elter practices exclusively family law and has extensive litigation experience in highly contested custody cases as well as complex property and support issues. The firm also handles contested adoptions and guardianships. As balance to the highly contentious side of Mr. Elter’s practice, the firm also offers services in the area of mediation, collaborative law and uncontested adoptions and guardianships.

Mr. Elter is a member of the California State Bar, New York State Bar, Colorado State Bar, and American Bar Association. Mr. Elter also serves on the Board of Directors for the Alameda County Family Law Association and is a member of the Eastern Alameda County Bar Association. Mr. Elter has also been active in the Earl Warren Inns of Court, Alameda County State Bar, and Contra Costa County State Bar.

Testimonials

Real Clients, Real Comments

Thank you so much for your excellent work! In your telephone conference with opposing counsel you made more progress than what we had so far [with my previous attorney]. This is my first positive news on this case and the first agreement. Congratulations!

Appreciate your work greatly.

Got the blood test back [and] I have a son, yea!!!!! [She] is going to bring him to [state] for a week during x-mas, everything couldn't be better.

Thank you so much for your representation today. I feel good about how the DV [domestic violence] part went. I felt safe having you in court with me today. I appreciate your thoroughness, wits and all the effort and time you put in to prepare for this hearing.

Thanks for all you did yesterday. I was very impressed with your presentation. ...I'm happy that I will be able to spend the holidays with [my] children.

I appreciate everything you have done for me in this case, thank you very, very much.

It's good knowing that I have a knowledgeable, thinking, dedicated, "good hearted" attorney on my side.

I am really glad you are representing me on this. You have my confidence and thanks for being ready today... I am glad to hear that you are confident about the outcome of this lengthy and tiresome process.

Mark, I have no words to tell you how much I appreciated your work.

From the relative of a client, "I just wanted to thank you very much for all of your support throughout the year and the good fight you put [up] for [name and] to give her dignity in the process.

From co-counsel in an international custody dispute, "Just read your letter. Great stuff!!! I really like it because I can hear your fist thumping on the table and you saying “…Look here, Mr. [name]…”. Yeah… I really like the assertiveness...