Sparks, O. C. Rusty

“The complex maze of an emotionally-charged family law or probate litigation matter requires the guidance of an experienced, well-respected lawyer, who cares about his clients, and effectively advocates and negotiates to advance their well-informed objectives and achieve their desired goals.”

Jeffrey Soilson is a graduate of Columbia University, (B.A., 1994), and Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, (J.D., 1997).

Mr. Soilson has been ranked at the highest level of legal ability, "AV", in the Martindale - Hubbell Law Directory. He has received the rating of "SUPERB" by Avvo, a website that provides lawyer ratings and other legal resources. He has also been recognized as a "Massachusetts' Rising Star" in the area of Family Law in an annual list published in Boston Magazine.

Mr. Soilson represents clients in a broad range of family law and probate litigation matters.  His areas of focus include divorce, custody, child support, alimony, removal, paternity, contempt, modification, abuse prevention, adoption and the negotiating and drafting of premarital and postnuptial agreements. He also acts as a mediator of divorce cases. In the probate litigation arena, Mr. Soilson represents clients in will contests, trust and estate disputes, and contested guardianship and conservatorship proceedings.  In recent engagements, Mr. Soilson:

• obtained a favorable custody and visitation judgment for a client in a paternity action;

• secured child support, alimony, and college expenses for a client from an overseas defendant by attaching inherited assets held in a Massachusetts trust;

• secured a significant six-figure settlement for a client whose family members had misappropriated funds from a family trust;

• obtained a divorce judgment awarding a client substantial ongoing support and a disparate division of marital assets as a result of gifted and inherited assets from the client’s parents received during the marriage; and

• modified a divorce judgment to terminate a client’s alimony obligations as a result of a material change in the parties’ financial circumstances.

Mr. Soilson is an author and frequent speaker on family law topics.  For instance, he is a Contributing Author of Massachusetts Divorce Law Practice Manual (MCLE, Inc.; 2008) and a Co-author, “Premarital Agreements”, Massachusetts Divorce Law Practice Manual (MCLE, Inc.; 2008).  He was a faculty member at 2012 MCLE and Stafford seminars on Divorce Law Prenuptial Agreements and Probate Litigation. In 2011, he presented a lecture at seminar titled, “Social Media and First Amendment in Family Law Cases” at the Boston Bar Association. He also spoke at Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education Seminar titled, “Trying Divorce Cases” on October 22, 2009.

Mr. Soilson is a Certified Divorce Mediator and trained in Conciliation and Parenting Coordination. He is a member of the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation, Academy of Professional Family Mediators, Massachusetts Association of Guardians ad Litem, and Association of Family and Conciliation Courts.  Mr. Soilson is also a member of the Family Law and Probate Law Sections of the Massachusetts Bar Association, and of the Family Law Section and Fiduciary Litigation Subcommittee of the Trust & Estates Section of the Boston Bar Association.  Mr. Soilson was a past member of the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Plymouth, the Board of Trustees of the Bay Farm Montessori Academy, and the Finance and Advisory Committee for the Town of Plymouth.  He has been a frequent contributor of pro bono services to the community through the Lawyer of the Day program in the Plymouth County Probate and Family Court, and the Women's Bar Foundation’s Family Law Project for Battered Women. Mr. Soilson also served as Co-Chair of the Pro Bono Committee of the Boston Bar Association's Family Law Section Steering Committee.

During law school, Mr. Soilson clerked for the Israeli Supreme Court and advised the Israeli Justices on family law issues adjudicated in the United States. Mr. Soilson served in the United States Navy and through a selective Naval Intelligence program received a Russian Certificate from the Defense Language Institute in 1989. He is conversational in Russian and Hebrew.

Client Recommendations:

“I was referred to Attorney Soilson by friends when my divorce was already underway with another attorney who had marginalized my case, treated me with total disregard and gave me poor advice. [Mr. Soilson] spent over an hour on the phone with me as I sobbed uncontrollably in a parking lot. In that time he had a better grasp of my case and my priorities than my other lawyer had in over 6 months. Mr. Soilson was kind, knowledgeable, wise, considerate, honest, honorable, and supportive. The divorce was nasty and contested; the opposing counsel (and client) consistently took the “low road”. Mr. Soilson was my champion from beginning to end. He never waivered and the first impression I had of him never changed. He is a fine lawyer and you will be in the best of hands. He is a credit to his firm and I will always be grateful to him.”

“I worked with Jeff now for a couple of years and on numerous projects.  He is an excellent attorney with tremendous resources available to him. Jeff is open and honest about how to approach things, and his approach is a collaborative one to try and work effectively with the opposing side to reach an amicable agreement. He can be tough when he needs to be, but is very effective at establishing relationships and credibility early on in the process, to move things along more quickly. I highly recommend Jeff as an attorney.”

“Jeff was asked to defend my partner’s alimony case in the 11th hour. To most this would be a disadvantage, but he jumped right in and was well prepared by the court dates. He was completely available to her by e-mail or telephone, and never left her with any ‘vague’ information to be misinterpreted. He was always very quick to respond to messages or e-mails.  He's extremely knowledgeable and was able to identify issues partner was not aware of. When it came to the final court date, he was a notable match for our foes. We were completely impressed with how Jeff conducted himself.”

“I had a very difficult situation with my aunt’s Estate. Jeffrey Soilson was recommended by a friend in Florida and he took on a case that I thought was pretty much hopeless, but Jeffrey Soilson was able to finalize the case to everyone's satisfaction. He kept me up to date with everything that was going on, answered calls and e-mails promptly, copied me on all correspondence and guided me. Most important, I came to trust him and his advice. I would not hesitate to recommend Jeff Soilson.”

Mr. Soilson is admitted to the Massachusetts, Florida and New York bars, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Tax Court.