Bruce Law Firm - October 2021

Bruce Law Firm - October 2021

Behind the Curtain

HOW LITIGATION MANAGING ATTORNEY ROSALIE CRUZ SERVES OUR CLIENTS

Rosalie Cruz likes to say that family law is in her blood. She began her journey in law as a legal assistant and paralegal straight out of high school. After working at the Palm Beach County Courthouse for five years, she realized her passion was divorce and family law and decided to pursue her law degree. After graduating from Florida International University, she began her own divorce and family law practice in the Miami-Dade area. Chris and Rosalie met through the Florida Bar’s mentorship program Lawyers Advising Lawyers, and Chris became her mentor. So, when Rosalie decided to relocate toWest Palm Beach, she joined the Bruce Law firm. For a while, the staff was only made up of Chris, Rosalie, and one paralegal. During this time, Rosalie had the opportunity to work with Chris one-on-one,

By staying familiar with all of the cases the firm is handling, she’s able to ensure that deadlines are met and each case is getting the attention it deserves. She also facilitates our firm’s unique program designed by Christopher specifically for clients dealing with abusive or narcissistic spouses. We both also meet with Rosalie once a week to review the firm’s current cases and discuss strategy.With her additional oversight, our lawyers are able to negotiate favorable settlement agreements for many of our clients with a detail oriented and business focused perspective.When that’s not possible, our team shifts to preparing to litigate in court and eventually for a trial. Rosalie’s background proves very useful here; she’s able to help with key decisions and ensure action plans are effectively implemented.

and they proved to be a great team. Rosalie learned more about analyzing cases from both business and litigation perspectives. She gained a more in-depth understanding of when a case is worth litigation, what the likelihood is of winning, and when to either push an issue or let it go. This experience taught her to litigate with more finesse and allowed her to become a fantastic advocate for our clients. After several years, the firm began to grow. We now have eight attorneys handling divorce and family law cases. As the firm expanded, Rosalie’s role began to evolve, and in early 2021, we were glad to make her the firm’s Litigation Managing Attorney.

We’re so proud to have Rosalie working with us because her role allows us to provide our clients with exceptional service. Our clients not only receive the benefit of the attorney working on their case, but also the benefit of Rosalie working behind the scenes.We also don’t pass the cost of Rosalie’s services on to the client, unless they request a direct meeting with her or she needs to take over a portion of the case. Much like a play or movie, our clients see the results of her work without ever knowing what went on behind the curtain! Rosalie says that she “is honored and devoted to work ‘behind the scenes’ as she empowers our team members to successfully deliver excellence.”We’re extremely lucky to have her in our corner, quietly making a huge difference to each of our client’s cases.

In this role, Rosalie oversees the firm’s lawyers, meeting with them each once a week to collaborate on cases, decisions, settlement agreements, and more.

–Ashley and Chris Bruce

561-810-0170 • 1

Breaking the Bank

Signs of Financial Abuse

5 Low-Tech Tips for Lighting Your Jack-o’-Lanterns

While financial abuse is not as frequently recognized as other forms of domestic abuse, it can have some of the most far-reaching impacts on a victim’s life. It’s estimated that about 99% of domestic abuse cases involve financial abuse of some kind, but financial abuse can also exist on its own. Since it’s one of the most powerful means of keeping a victim trapped in a relationship, you should know how to recognize financial abuse when you see it. Here are three tell-tale signs. PREVENTING THE VICTIM FROM WORKING Financial abusers will go to extreme lengths to prevent their victims from working, in some cases outright forbidding it. In the event their victim does find work, abusers will often try to sabotage their job by making the victim late or showing up and making a scene. The goal is both to control where the victim is at all times and to prevent them from gaining any financial independence outside their abuser. TAKING CONTROL OF ASSETS Financial abusers will often start by offering to “take care” of bills and bank accounts, only to eventually move assets and restrict the victim’s access to them. The victim will frequently have their credit and debit cards confiscated and be relegated to an “allowance.”Abusers often run their victim’s accounts dry, leaving them with no means to make their own financial decisions or escape the relationship. RUINING THE VICTIM’S CREDIT SCORE After taking control of assets, abusers will often refuse to pay the bills they now control. Credit card, car, and mortgage payments may be missed, causing devastation to the victim’s credit score. Through these means, abusers can maintain total control by keeping their victims from opening new accounts or loans they might use to leave. If someone you know is being financially abused, they need the help of a divorce attorney to regain control of their assets and their life. The Bruce Law Firm has experience with financial abuse and can help minimize the damage it causes to victims. An attorney cannot prevent all fallout from financial abuse, but getting help as soon as possible is critical to the victim’s ability to regain financial independence.

Halloween is almost here, and you know what that means: home-carved jack- o’-lanterns! Turning pumpkins into decor is an ancient tradition, but as any experienced carver knows, using real candles inside them can be frustrating. Cooking pumpkins, unstable candles, and accidental burns are just a few of the issues that often crop up. To avoid them this Halloween, try these five tips. 1. CHOOSE YOUR CANDLE WISELY. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, it’s best to choose a candle that is at least an inch shorter than the hollow space inside of your pumpkin. To achieve this, you can buy long candles and trim them to size or learn to make your own from the book “Beeswax Alchemy” by Petra Ahnert. 2. CREATE BUILT-IN STABILITY. There’s nothing less festive than a jack-o’- lantern going dark because its candle has tipped over. To prevent that, carve a depression into the floor of the pumpkin that’s the same shape and size as the base of your candle. Then, drop the candle in! This simple trick will hold it in place. 3. GO BOTTOMLESS. Another option that will solve the toppling candle problem is hollowing out your pumpkin from the bottom instead of cutting a lid out of the top. If you do that, you can set up and light your candle first, then place the jack-o’-lantern over it. As long as your pumpkin is on a hard, level surface, your candle should be stable. 4. LIGHT UP AT THE RIGHT MOMENT. The easiest way to prevent burns is to light your candle at the right time and with the right method. If you like to hollow your pumpkins out from the bottom, light your candle first then place the pumpkin over it to prevent burns. If you hollow your pumpkins from the top, remove the “lid,” place the unlit candle inside, then light it with a long lighter or fireplace match. 5. DON’T FORGET THE CHIMNEY HOLE. To prevent heat and smoke from building up inside of your pumpkin and cooking it slowly, light up your candle and peek inside to see which spot on the top is warming up the fastest. Then, cut out a notch or “chimney hole” in that spot to let the heat escape.

Is your friend or client married to a controlling, manipulative, narcissistic husband?

OUR BOOKS CAN HELP!

The book can be downloaded for FREE at DivorceInformationBooks.com.

2 • BrucePA.com

When Your Ex Remarries Co-Parenting With Your Child’s New Stepparent If you have children, giving up your parental oversight can be one of the hardest parts of a divorce. You can’t control what the rules are at your ex’s house, and you definitely can’t control whether they remarry. When they do, it can feel like your co-parenting plan has completely changed. While adjusting to the arrangement won’t happen overnight, here are some tips to help you through the process. Accept what you can’t change . When your ex remarries, chances are that you’re going to have feelings about it. You may be angry, jealous, hurt, or just worried about your child’s well-being. All of those feelings are valid, but you need to process them away from your child. Remember that you can’t stop your ex from remarrying, and this is a new reality you’ll have to live with. Resisting the change will only make things more difficult for you and your kid.

or abusive — but you do have to be polite. Remember that this new person will be majorly involved in your child’s life, so you need to put your kid first. The less animosity between you and their stepparent, the easier it will be for your child to adjust to the new adult in their life. Set boundaries. With extremely few exceptions, your ex’s new spouse is always going to take their side, so your relationship with your ex will likely dictate your relationship with your kid’s stepparent. If you’ve got a good relationship with your ex, you should ideally have an open discussion about needs and expectations on both sides so everyone is comfortable. If your relationship is strained, however, you’ll need to set boundaries with the new spouse just like you did with your ex — and enforce them with consistency. In most cases, a little bit of time and effort will result in a healthy co-parenting relationship with your ex’s new spouse. If everyone involved is able to keep your kid’s best interests at heart, the road ahead won’t be as rocky as you fear.

Be civil. Believe it or not, some people become friends with their ex’s new spouse. You don’t have to go that far — in fact, we wouldn’t recommend it if your ex is a narcissist

Apple and Carrot Dog Treats

Inspired by CommuniKait.com

Fall is harvest season, and with this recipe, even your loyal mutt can partake in some of its greatest flavors.

Ingredients

• •

1 1/2 cups flour

• •

1/2 cup apple, peeled and shredded

1/2 cup carrots, shredded

1 cup broth of choice

Bruce Law Firm making an appearance at a family law judge’s swearing in ceremony

Directions

1.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, carrots, apples, and broth and mix together well. 3. Sprinkle the countertop with flour and, using a rolling pin, roll the dough flat to about 1/2-inch thick. 4. Cut the dough into your favorite shapes. (Cookie cutters are encouraged!) 5. Bake cookies for 8–10 minutes. 6. Cool before serving and refrigerate to store.

561-810-0170 • 3

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

1601 Forum Pl. Ste. 1101 West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Meet Litigation Managing Attorney Rosalie Cruz! page 1 5 Low-Tech Tips for Lighting Your Jack-o’-Lanterns 3 Signs of Financial Abuse page 2 Co-ParentingWith Your Ex’s New Spouse Apple and Carrot Dog Treats page 3 The Unique Benefits of Reading Fiction page 4

Self-Help Books Can’t Do It All How Reading Fiction Can Benefit You

Many CEOs and other successful individuals continually espouse the benefits of regular reading. Many times, leaders read self-help books to improve their leadership skills and become more successful.

This is all well and good, but even the most successful people in the world could be missing out on the unique benefits that come specifically from reading fiction. But what are those benefits exactly? GREATER EMPATHY When a psychologist analyzed 86 functioning MRI (fMRI) studies, he found that the same parts of the brain that fire up when reading fictional stories also fire up when we’re seeking to understand the thoughts and feelings of others. That’s because when the characters in the book we’re reading are thinking or feeling a certain way, we tend to think or feel that way with them. LESS STRESS AND BETTER SLEEP When we read fiction specifically, we tend to disengage from the world — and that’s a good thing! Our brains can’t always be functioning at their peak capacity. We need breaks, or else we’ll stress ourselves out and negatively affect other areas of our lives. Stress tends

to keep us from sound sleep, but reading fiction before bed engages the imagination, taking us away from the stresses of everyday life before we drift off. MORE COMFORT WITH UNCERTAINTY Even though many stories (particularly those portrayed in popular movies) have nice happy endings, most people would agree that life sometimes leaves things a little more open-ended.While this fact might stress out some people, researchers have discovered that fiction readers don’t need “cognitive closure” as much as nonfiction readers. GREATER HAPPINESS Even if none of the benefits of fiction interest you, everyone wants to find ways to make themselves happy — and for many, that is reading fiction. According to one survey, 76% of participants said that reading makes them feel good and improves their lives. So, what are you waiting for? Dust off that novel you’ve been meaning to read and crack it open!

4 • BrucePA.com