Divorce for Men Only
Divorce for Men Only was founded by Douglas Page in 1982. Through three divorces of his own in the 1960’s and 1970’s, Page experienced first hand the traditional favoritism that women seemed to receive in divorce cases: loss of finances and depletion of property with little concern about the effect of the father’s absence from the children. Through this, Page conceived “Divorce for Men Only” to promote a more balanced, fair and practical approach to the problems men experience in divorce.
30+ years later, the courts have made tremendous progress in this area. Unfortunately, not all divorcing parties have similarly progressed in their thinking.
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Neil Holmes, Attorney
Neil Holmes, Attorney
Neil is a 1982 graduate of Loyola Law School. He began working as a general practitioner of law, and found that he really enjoyed focusing on family law.
The decision to go exclusively into family law came when the founder of Divorce For Men Only invited Neil to join their firm. The opportunity to focus in on men and men’s issues crystallized the decision for Neil to become an expert in this field.
Neil really likes the analysis and game planning with a client on how to get through the case successfully, but also efficiently. He plans ahead of time and works with individual clients to minimize the potential stress and expense of divorce. He finds that planning ahead and his vast experience helps men avoid making the mistakes that other men have made. There is a mens perspective on divorce that Neil is very familiar with and walks his clients through. Men are generally the ones trying to maximize their parental time, and get more child custody.
“In the modern world,” says Neil, “now men must also learn how to balance career and parenting. That’s not something they teach in the law books — how to coach guys in parenting. Having raised a family and now as grandpa to two wonderful little girls, I provide a combination between the professional, the legal, the personal, and those man-to-man insights that only experience with life and the law brings. I work closely with my clients to mix law and reality in the right combination to get to the best resolution possible.”
Neil’s approach to representation is very team oriented. Together with his client, he discusses, brainstorms, and delegates tasks to maximize time and cost efficiency. Neil’s goal with every case is to get the client through the process as efficiently and quickly as possible.
Neil has served as a Judge Pro Tem in Contra Costa and Solano County Courts.
You may have heard Neil interviewed on NBCs Today Show, KGO News Talk and KCBS News Radio as well as quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle, Contra Costa Times, Associated Press, Redbook and Diablo magazines.
Stella Burrough, Paralegal
Stella Burrough, Paralegal
Stella has been with Divorce for Men Only since 2003. She has a business degree and in the course of her years in practice, has accumulated vast experience in personal injury, real estate, and now family law; bringing her skill and knowledge from all these fields to her work with clients.
Clients often times turn to Stella through the process to stay informed and updated. She is the critical link in the office; also handling administration and making sure all processes run smoothly. Stella is married with four children and four grandchildren.
Jennifer Sylvestre, Paralegal
Jennifer Sylvestre, Paralegal
Jennifer proudly joined our staff in December 2014. She attended Heald Business College and brings over 13 years of family law experience to the firm. She understands how devastating divorce, custody, and separation matters can be and she strives to make the process as simple and stress free as possible for each client. She enjoys hearing each client’s unique story and situation and treats each case with the care and understanding that it deserves.
Jennifer is originally from Port Costa and currently resides in Concord. She is the mother of one amazing son and enjoys spending her time with family, hiking, attending concerts and camping. She is a welcome addition to the firm.
Terri Quilantang, Office Administrator
Terri Quilantang, Office Administrator
Terri is a licensed real estate agent and notary public. She comes to us with roughly 20 years of experience as a transaction coordinator and an office manager.
After getting her only daughter off to college at UC Santa Cruz in the fall of 2016 (go banana slugs!), she decided to make a career change and joined our Divorce for Men Only team. Terri is compassionate and has a heart for helping people. She enjoys spending time with her family, gardening, and making jewelry.