Families First really helped make a difficult process seamless and helped us keep our friendship intact. Thanks to Dina and Deborah, we were able to look at everything honestly, openly, and together in a safe and friendly manner. They are wonderful!

Dina and Deborah helped us maintain our MSA, even years later, with the same kindness and professionalism as the first time we all worked together. Weve both come to trust FFM after both of us would independently check-in with our lawyers. Dina and FFM never failed to give us both fair and reasonable advice and direction.

Divorce is never something you plan for and the complexity and legality of it is something most couples don’t know, understand or inquire about. If you want the best legal representation please don’t hesitate to use Families First Mediation. Samira and Deborah are organized, professional, empathetic, knowledgeable, and efficient. They made the process simple and clear, ensuring both parties were satisfied. They answered and addressed all questions and concerns always being neutral. I’ll highly recommend it if you want to avoid the courtroom and save some headaches!Thank you Samira and Deborah!!!!

Dina is very knowledgeable both in terms of the divorce laws and accounting. She is a great listener and amazing in finding a solution that works for both parties. She has a very creative mind to resolve conflicts be it about child custody, scheduling or asset division. Dina and Deborah have everything very organized, structured and efficient. Last but not least, she has a very soft heart always encouraging and referring clients for marriage counselling first before going through the process.PS. I dont think Dina needs these reviews. Try to make an appointment with her and she is usually booked up for the next two months! This speaks for itself how popular she is.

Dina & Deborah helped us navigate an emotional and difficult time with knowledge and empathy. They were organized, professional, and efficient while also being compassionate. I would highly recommend them if youd prefer mediation when going through a divorce.

The entire process working with Dina was very organized. She has a system in place that keeps everything clear and within a reasonable timeframe. In addition to a high level of professionalism, they’re compassionate and understanding. Dina and Deborah were great throughout the entire process. Anytime we had a question, Dina or Deborah would respond promptly and include both of us on the email thread. Dina and Deborah were both really good about keeping the process fair and free from any bias as well. I would recommend Families First Mediation for anyone going through a divorce. Thanks again ladies

Dina & Deborah at Families First Mediation helped guide us through the difficult & emotional divorce process in a respectable & empathetic way. They were very knowledgeable about the law and mediated our divorce to ensure both parties came to a resolution we were satisfied with. Id highly recommend Families First Mediation.

I highly recommend Dina and Deborah at Families First Mediation. Dina is awesome she helped guide us from beginning to the end through this very hard and emotional process of Divorce. I loved her compassion towards our needs and looked out for the best interest of our family. This is one of the hardest and complicated things to go through and she made sure we understood everything answering all of our questions. We really appreciate all your help and how smoothly the whole process went Thank-you.

Dina made the entire process easy and painless. She is extremely organized and really knows how to make things run seamlessly. I highly recommend her!

They said we are not Attorny to contact restrained person . So why in your website and google map data you mentioned as mediator/ attorney?!?This guys are good just for making separation because its more time/ money making! They are not compassionate for joins.

Dina and Families First Mediation were recommended to me by a friend after she went through her divorce. The service we received from Dina and her staff was extremely professional and helped guide us through a very difficult time. Dina was knowledgable both of the legalities of the divorce process and how they affect both parties, including the children involved. Deciding to go through the mediation process with Dina allowed to avoid the courtroom and saved us money.

While this process can be full of emotion and never easy, Dina showed excellent professionalism and compassion during the entire process. We selected her after speaking with several mediators. She was thoughtful, thorough, and patient in explaining what to expect. Throughout the process, she explained the various pros and cons of each decision, made sure we understood the various details of each point, and was creative in finding alternative ways to reach solutions when necessary. Her suggestions were fair and she never pressured us into a decision until we were ready. Ive already recommended her services to several other people and will continue to do so.

I highly recommend Families First Mediation if you and your spouse are thinking about going separate ways. Dina and team are friendly, easy to work with, thorough, and responsive. They made a difficult transition seamless, which is not easy to do given the reason people go to see them in the first place. Dina always made sure to be fair to both of us in a gentle, yet poignant way. I wouldnt hesitate to use her services again should the need arise, and would highly recommend her to anyone!

For anyone out there navigating the legal complexities and emotional fallout of a divorce with children involved, I’d recommend Dina and Families First Mediation without a shred of reservation. She was able to skillfully work with us in acknowledging the emotional ramifications with compassion, while always maintaining a fair-minded and focused approach throughout that kept the process moving. In the end, we arrived at an agreement that was in the best interest of all parties involved, without needing to set foot in a court room or throw thousands of dollars away in litigation. Thank you, Dina!

Dina is the best divorce mediator in San Jose, hands down. Ive worked with her on various occasions for over a year. Families First Mediation has helped countless families in the bay area complete their divorce without going to court or hiring expensive lawyers to mediate.

The transition out of marriage has been difficult and emotional. Dina has shown excellent professionalism throughout the process. She has a warm sensitivity that allows both parties to see what is most beneficial for the family unit. I thank her for all her hard work and her quick email responses during this challenging time. Dina comes with quality legal experience and advocates for BOTH sides. Most of all, I am thankful that she has helped our family as a whole work through this. My children and my ex-husband can now move forward and rebuild our lives. Thank you Dina.

Going to Dina for mediation is a great decision. She is very professional, and treats both parties with empathy and impartiality. She was clear and transparent throughout the mediation process, and we could tell that she was really trying to get us to the best outcome. She made this stressful process much less stressful. I want to give Dina a big thank you.

I highly recommend Families First Mediation and Dina to anyone that is considering a divorce. Lawyers can be overwhelming and expensive and can make the other person feel attacked and on the defense. Working with a mediator is a much more civil way to approach this difficult time in your life. Dina made it much more comfortable for me. She explained things in easy to understand ways and listened and addressed all of my concerns. She is kinds, responsive and diplomatic. She knows how to handle stressful situations or situations that are highly charged and emotional. I honestly do not know how she does it, but she does it perfectly. Thank you Dina. I appreciate you.

We have had a great experience working with Dina. I would recommend her to anyone whos seeking to use a mediator. Shes helped us to get through the process in a very short time - just 3 months, and her professional advice was always provided with consideration to us, our needs and situation. Her communication around the case was timely, clear and provided on regular basis. Thank you for all your help in making this process easier.

Dina Haddad and Families First made a difficult process so much easier for us. For families with complex situations, Dina is the perfect choice. She has so many potential solutions at her fingertips and offers good advice while working through the choices. We were grateful to have found her and Families First.

My (now) ex husband and I chose Families First after interviewing a couple other mediators. Our goal was to work with someone who would help us make decisions that put our childrens needs first. I liked the fact that Dina has the experience of being involved in contentious divorce trials, but chose to move to mediation because she wants to see people dealing with divorce amicably and doing right by their kids. She still helps us with agreement modifications even though our mediation sessions ended more than 3 years ago, and she remains helpful, honest, and professional. I highly recommend her.

I am grateful to have worked with Dina Haddad and Families First Mediation, who helped us smoothly navigate the challenging process of ending a marriage. She educated us on each of the laws that play into divorce, and helped us come to agreements that made the most sense for both us and our kids, without pressuring either side to do anything they werent comfortable with. I would recommend Dina as a mediator to anyone going through the process of dissolving their marriage.

Both parties involved in mediation need to be valued and listened to equally without judgement. Dina Haddad did an outstanding job mediating toward our settlement. She gave equal weight to our smallest issues and to our most complicated ones which involved finances and parenting. Not only did Dina thoroughly handle each aspect of getting to a marital agreement for us, she did so by being attentive to each one of our own questions and/or concerns along the way. Her positive attitude while discussing logistical and emotionally charged topics is a real asset. In addition, she genuinely cares about the well-being of her clients and will offer any resources she has even when she has little or nothing to gain personally from helping. I highly recommend Families First Mediation as welcome alternative to litigation. Dina will assist any couple looking to reach a workable agreement in a notoriously conflict-heavy process.

Families First Mediation is the place to go when you need the help and knowledge from experts on separating and divorce. Dina and her teamare amazing and attentive. They respond to emails in a timely manner and provides you with the information and answers that you need. Dina has always been flexible when meeting with us to go over the separating agreement and never late or goes over since we take turns picking up our son after the meetings. She provides recaps of all the meetings and doesn’t miss anything that is said during those exchanges, great note taker which is very important in those meetings since I was too overwhelmed to take my own notes. She has been there to calm us down when we have been in yelling matches and when tears have been shed. She genuinely cares. Trust me, you will want somebody like Dina that will go that extra step for you. Thank you Dina and Deborah for helping us make this go as smooth as possible.

Dina Haddad and her team are very knowledgeable, responsible and responsive. What I appreciated from my mediation experience was the guidance, the organization and the fact that Dina was always objective and clear. Doing a mediation divorce is not fun or easy yet I have friends going through divorce with lawyers and court presently and it’s torturous. If you can afford Dina’s services I highly recommend it.

We were so pleased with the help that Dina provided us in working through and finalizing our Marital Settlement Agreement. We thought we had a lot of the details already worked out and just needed to put them on paper and get through the legal paperwork part. However, it soon became clear that we were not completely on the same page. Dina did an expert job of presenting the other persons viewpoint in a way that was much easier to understand/accept. This allowed us to move through in a very efficient manner and had everything completed in a short period of time while still maintaining a workable relationship between the two of us. Thanks Dina!

We like the way Dina Haddad and Families First Mediation made the well-being of our kids their top priority. They guided us through what could have been a messy process, and looked out for the best interests of both of us. Dina and Deborah were easy to work with, and made our divorce much less stressful than it would have been if we had gone through opposing lawyers.

Very good experience. Dina knows how to get everyone on the same page while keeping both parties on friendly terms. This was a very amicable resolution thanks to Dina. I would highly recommend anyone going through this versus hiring separate attorneys and ending on not so friendly terms. We are still friends and care for the welfare of each other, well worth it!

Dina is a compassionate professional and I highly recommend her services. Shes thorough, efficient, and truly has everyones best interest in mind as she skillfully mediates. The process is streamlined and clear from start to finish.

FFM was an amazing and instrumental partner during our divorce process. They were considerate to our every question, and provided multiple view points in helping to bring resolution to specific aspect of the process. Very detailed, but simple, explanations to what is a very hard and emotional thing to go through. The way that Dina interacted with us allowed for my ex and I to rationally come to decision that were fare and not make us feel that one was out to get the other. I would highly recommend FFM and Dina to help anyone through such a difficult and life changing event. Highly professional yet caring and understanding. Thank you Dina and Deborah for help us through this!!!!!

Dina is the best. She made our dissolution seamless even though it was painful. I highly recommend seeing Dina if you need a divorce mediator. Dina, Thank you so much for hanging in there even though we dragged our feet.

Dina is very professional, knowledgable, organized, and efficient. Dina is informative and easy to communicate with. I appreciate her prompt communication and I plan to recommend her to anyone on the unfortunate path of divorce.

During the separation and divorce process, there were various potentially combustible parts that could have easily been set on fire, thus causing much more hurt than already existed. I want to thank Dina and Families First Mediation for handling a fragile situation with extreme care and with a personal touch. The agreements to which Dina helped us arrive have created a healthy co-parenting system in which our children can thrive. Though the mediation sessions were excruciatingly painful at times, they provided the makings of a new framework for civil dialogue and joint decision making from which we benefit to this day. Dina, thank you for helping us transition to family life 2.0.

As much as you can love going through mediation and divorce, Dina H. is the one to help you come to a positive outcome. She has good ideas and alternatives that you may not think about with a traditional divorce. She is always fair and good at maintaining rules and boundaries. I would recommend her to anyone that has to go through this gruelling process.

When it comes to professionalism, Dina Haddad is just that! She was prompt and to the point! Her mediation style is very empathetic and she really gets on a personal level with you. She knows the law and takes time into making sure the right path is taken. Thanks for all your help!

Dina was fantastic I would highly recommend her as she is very focused, fair minded, and hard working. She insured that we would reach a solution in a timely manner and was totally impartial without favoring either party. After going to an attorney, I was frightened and quite frankly worried about a long arduous process where i felt we both would end of hating each other. Dina created a comfortable atmosphere from day 1 by assuring us she would foster a spirit of cooperation and good will and not sacrifice our souls in the process. She always provided easy solutions to what could have been very costly consultations. Do yourself a favor and arrange for a consultation with Dina, and I am sure you will be convinced of her empathy and willingness to provide a comfortable environment in which to accomplish a very emotional process. Mike Rugani

Dina Haddad brings a refreshing perspective to the often difficult process of a marriage dissolution. This very difficult time in a persons life can be often made worse through a very litigious process. Dina and the staff at Family First Divorce & Custody Mediation provide a unique and healthy environment to allow couples to resolve their differences in an amicable way. Dina brings in her many years of divorce litigation experience, as well as her excellence as a mediator to provide practical resolutions to difficult issues. I encourage others to seek a consultation with Dina as early in the process as you can!

In my situation - in a single word - Dina was a godsend. I had been stuck in mediation for over 2.5 years with a painfully ineffective unbiased mediator who had referred us to a custody specialist for 10-12 hours - who milked us for 60 hours of mediation without reaching an agreement. When I engaged Dina for guidance in breaking the stalemate, she provided extremely helpful insight. When I subsequently handed the mediation process over to her to effectively restart it, she was a consummate professional, was very responsive, paid attention to detail, and navigated the process with consideration for time and cost. I had been concerned that all I had spent with the previous professionals would be thrown away if I started over, but the reality was, that experience only served to show me how capable and well-intentioned Dina is. I just wish I had made the change to work with Dina 2 years sooner!

Divorce is not what anybody wishes for. Id bet that many people get stuck and overwhelmed by the complexity of the process. I found that Dina was able to outline the possibilities in your couple situation. Given possibilities, people are able to proceed forward, and move on to a better situation. Staying overwhelmed, and staying stuck because lack of professional counsel, is not a fun place to live your life. Divorce mediation is not for all people and all situations, but in my case, I found it to be a satisfactory solution. Thanks, Dina.

Families First Mediation was professional and helpful in a difficult time, and Dina did a great job explaining the process and guiding us through it.

Unfortunately, cannot recommend Family First Mediation.Me and my ex-girlfriend needed mediation to work out custody of our newborn son and we were working with Samira Amato who was filling if for Dina Haddad while she was on leave. We found that Samira was unavailable, unprepared and did not read or return her emails regularly. This was during a critical time while we were trying to get a Stipulation written to avoid an immanent court day. Samira never followed up about the court date.Ultimately, I had to ask my lawyer to write the Stipulation because Samira was unavailable after emailing and calling her office many times. Me and my ex ended up negotiating without Samira to finalize our stipulation and used our on lawyers. Samira did eventually write a stipulation, but it was too late. That did not matter because I got charged for it anyway.When it was time to review the bill, Samira had racked up double the number of hours that we used in mediation. A lot of small charges that really added up. This would make since if Samira was doing useful legal work, but as I explained above, she was not doing anything legally useful. I will admit, some of this was useful to my Ex because she had not done the research, but this was a really bad value.She also charged for being late to our first meeting when she was making copies. I had a meeting to discuss this and even Dina confirmed that they charge for the full time even if the mediator arrives late and the session ends early. I also got charged $175 for the day that I was reviewing the billing with them. I emailed that they should not bill for discussing billing, but Dina and Samira said that they were “reviewing my case”. After many phone calls and emails I was able to get a refund for the $175, but I was still charged over $2300.

Dina brings such strength, professionalism, and wisdom to her work. Her assistance in helping me navigate a divorce kept me at ease in what can otherwise be such a messy, painful process.

Dina handled the day to day management of my very contentious (and I mean v-e-r-y contentious) dissolution while she worked as an associate attorney at a Los Angeles lawfirm. She ended up leaving to start her own mediation business (why did I ever encourage her to do that? LOL). After she left, things went haywire, which made me appreciate Dina and her awesome personality and way of handling matters even more. I would have stayed with her, but she went back to San Jose to start her business. She referred me to a relative of hers who is also a great local family attorney. Dina is the type of calm, smart and resolution-oriented person you want if you are looking to settle your divorce. Dina and I are still friends and in contact to this day. I know she will do amazing with her Families First Mediation firm because with Dina Families truly come First! The (divorce) world needs more Dinas!

I had the pleasure of working with Ms. Haddad in the past, witnessing first hand her high level of professionalism and passion for her work. Ms. Haddad is charismatic, thorough, diligent, and truly goes the extra mile for her clients. Ms. Haddad is extremely well-versed in a variety of family law areas and I highly recommend her counsel. I cannot think of a more dedicated individual to the field.

Excellent experience and service. Dina is very professional and committed to achieving your goals!

Dina Haddad provides a newer, higher standard to mediation. If you are considering divorce, seek mediation first, and where better than Families First Mediation.