Reviews

Christopher Melcher is one of the most informed, knowledgeable and articulate attorneys I have ever met. He sets the gold standard for family law attorneys in California. I highly recommend you confer with Chris, especially if you have a complex issue in your divorce.

The Team at Walzer Melcher represent the best of California Family Law. They are caring, knowledgeable and professional. We have worked side by side with Walzer Melcher on appeals, and opposite Walzer Melcher on cases. They are tough litigators who understand which cases need to be settled and which cases need to go to trial. I can highly recommend the Team at Walzer Melcher.

If you want the highest level of expertise, call Peter Walzer. Peter is one of the finest family law lawyers in the United States. Not only does Peter go above and beyond for his clients, he is always ready to lend a hand (i.e., his brain power) to colleagues.

I have worked with this law firm on a very challenging case and they were great! One of the main attorneys there is Chris and he has a very good and has a calm collective demeanor which really helped me because I was stressed and I thought my world was coming to an end. Looking back at the situation I am blessed to have worked with such a great law firm that really cares about their clients.

Walzer Melcher LLP has been my family law firm for many years due to a number of long term issues arising from my divorce. Chris Melcher has been my attorney. I am a professional involved in a number of professional networking groups, and Chris is of the highest professional caliber with knowledge of family law, that is beyond anyone that I have met in my professional networks. He is easy to talk to and responds quickly to all my needs. In addition, the staff at Walzer Melcher is equally as professional and responsive. While I hope that nobody has to deal with divorce or other complicated family law issues, but if they do, it would be a mistake not to turn to Walzer Melcher.

I am an attorney. I contacted Peter Walzer for a matter for a client of mine. He was quick to get back to me; very responsive in providing suggestions for the client and helpful recommendations. He showed he was interested and cared, by following up afterwards to be sure that I was able to make contact with the individuals to whom he referred me for my client. I highly recommend him.

La creme de la creme in divorce and family law attorneys. High-asset, high-profile, complex litigation cases...they are your experts. I am a peer-attorney and admire their leadership in the academic field of family law.

Chris Melcher is one of the best family law attorneys in California. As a family law attorney myself, I can say that it is a pleasure to work on cases with him. He has an in-depth knowledge of family law and is a great advocate for his clients. He is a reasonable and solution-oriented attorney. I highly recommend him!

I am a lawyer who used to work for them. I'm surprised the California State Bar hasn't cracked down on them yet. They rip off clients, accept gifts from the opposing party, and they still owe me unpaid wages. They are wage thieves. They committed fraud on the California EDD.

I have been dealing with attorney's for all of my life and I trust this lawfirm like I trust my family. Anytime I have ever had an issue they were quick to come to bat for me and they always produced the best result. I first learned of their lawfirm by googling them and I noticed they had worked on many high end legal cases which I thought they wouldnt take my case. What I learned is that they take pride and care in all cases large or small, celebrity or just your average person. I am very happy with my results with them and I am thankful for their loyalty and compassion in my time of need. Hats off to you Mr. Melcher and Walzer!

One of the most important qualities that you are looking to find in a good lawyer is for he/she to give you a piece of mind regarding the legal issue under consideration. This requires expert knowledge of the field and the ability to communicate the key points without confusing the not-expert client. Chris has taken the expert knowledge of the field and communication capability to perfection. I highly recommend Chris.

I found Christopher Melcher's name while feverishly researching IRS codes etc., regarding alimony and mortgage contributions. My ex-husband was insisting that I claim not only my spousal support for the entire 2012 tax year as income (which I knew about and was prepared to do) but also his "mortgage contributions" as well. My ex gave me 40% of the mortgage monthly for the "marital home" from January 2012 to October 2012. This was home, not only to myself, but to our children as well. Both my ex and I were on the deed and the mortgages. I never imagined that mortgage consideration would be taxable to me! My own attorny was zero help on this. After 2 grueling years of being his annuity, I wasn't surprised that once again, he was unable to give me a definitive answer. That's why I set out on a mission to understand the divorce and IRS tax laws on my own, which quite frankly, is comparable to my becoming a physicist. But I persevered, and came across a terrific article on the topic by Mr. Melcher. I was so impressed with this article that I decided to contact him, even though we were in different states. I was hoping that since this was a federal tax income issue, he might still be able to help me regardless of where I lived. I am not only happy that I reached out to Chris-- but I'm ecstatic! He responded immediately to my online inquiry and he asked me to email him all the various court orders. I emailed the files and he wrote back-- again on that same day---outlining his advice, answering all my questions concisely and thoroughly. Thanks to Chris's keen perusal of my 3 court orders, he caught something that I would have never realized (and sadly neither would my own attorney). The one court order that was executed in June of 2012 had modified the September 2011 court order, and made it "retroactive" to September 2011. Chris explained that the IRS will not recognize that type of modification, retroactively. The June 2012 order was modifying the older order for child support, keeping the amount of money the same, but changing the breakdown from all child support to child, spousal and mortgage contribution. Chris explained that the IRS would only recognize the order that was in place at the time of the payments. So.....now this meant that EVERYTHING my ex paid me prior to June 2012--in the eyes of the IRS---would be considered ALL child support! He also weighed in on the mortgage consideration issue, explaining that since my ex was also on the mortgage at the time of those payments, they were not spousal support, and that it would be a very difficult case for my ex to make. He confirmed my thinking that I should not take those payments as income, and suggested how I could give my ex his "fair portion" of the mortgage interest. This will now be a very small amount since, as Chris pointed out, according to the court documents, there was no mortgage contributions ordered until mId year! Can you say KARMA?! Chris and I exchanged a couple of emails and we had one phone call (which by the way he made to me while on his family vacation!). Chris is obviously extremely sharp, extremely knowledgable, very kind and he was very generous with his time. I was also very impressed that on all of Chris's emails, his cell phone is listed along with his other contact info! Very unusual, and I think that says a lot. Moral of the story? Trust your instincts, be your own advocate, don't be bullied, do your homework, and call Chris Melcher. If I had a "re-do"- I would live in CA and hire Chris to handle my whole divorce!