Kaufman

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Robert S. Kaufman

Kaufman & Young

Specialty: Family law

Law School: Southwestern University, 1963

When actor Michael Douglas and media mogul Rupert Murdoch needed a divorce lawyer, they turned to Robert S. Kaufman, whose opponents call him one of the most relentless, creative trial attorneys in L.A.

Kaufman, for example, is credited with developing the argument that the goodwill of a star can have economic value as a property right, and thus should figure into divorce settlements. It’s just one factor in the economics of celebrity divorce.

“Family law is one of the most complex areas of the law,” Kaufman says. “Someone like Michael Douglas has many different faces and many different businesses he is involved in.”

After graduating from Southwestern University Law School in 1963, Kaufman began specializing in family law, which he has taught at Pepperdine University and UCLA. He also lectures around the country at legal seminars and writes about divorce law for legal magazines.

While many divorce lawyers like to see their name in the media, Kaufman is a stealth attorney, preferring anonymity to headlines. (He is sometimes called the “Velvet Hammer.”) “What is important is your case and your client’s rights,” he says, “not the ego of the lawyer.”

Kaufman, who also has represented Neil Diamond, Antonio Banderas and Bob Dylan, says pre-trial preparation, not courtroom theatrics, wins cases. But more than anything else, he believes in his own credibility in the courtroom.

“In the field of divorce, many people have their own spin on things, and if you are able to create a credible case, something relied on by judges, your success will be higher,” he says. “I try to be very dignified and gentlemanly, always taking the high road to get the job done, but I am also able to try the case in court.”

“He’s the toughest litigator I’ve ever encountered,” says Nathan Goldberg, senior partner at Allred, Maroko & Goldberg. “He has a strong, intimidating presence. He gives nothing away, and you have no clue to what he is thinking. But he always has the goods.”

Frank Swertlow

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