Philip

C.

Gerard

Phil is a highly experienced senior attorney at The Cavanagh Law Firm, working in the field of family law. This encompasses divorces involving considerable property, characterization of assets and difficult financial circumstances, as well as the crafting of both prenuptial and post-marital agreements. He is part of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and the American College of Trial Lawyers and has been featured on The Best Lawyers of America listings since 1987. Additionally, the Arizona State Bar has accredited him as a Family Law Specialist.

Phil originated from Minneapolis, Minnesota, but when he was young his family relocated to Iowa. He studied at both Iowa State University and Coe College with his B.A. being attained from Coe College in 1968 and later his J.D. from Drake University in 1973.

With a strong focus on family law, Phil's litigation skills encompass the evaluation and courtroom presentation of separate and shared possessions, business appraisals, the designation of retirement plans, stock options, limited shares and other chief-level payment plans as either community or joint property as well as spousal maintenance claims and tax aspects of these financial matters. These roles additionally necessitate conferencing with forensic specialists such as accountants and valuation professionals.

Since the year 2000, Phil's involvement in civil issues has been heavily concentrated on family law questions. Yet in the preceding years of his practice, he took part extensively in both commercial and business conflicts for courts at both federal and Arizona state levels, such as anti-trust litigation, securities class action suits and other sorts of business conflict.

Furthermore, Phil was part of the Arizona Family Law Advisory Commission for Certification of Family Law Specialists and a member of the Arizona Revised Jury Instruction Committee, including the initial subcommittee on jury directives in agreement disputes. He provided presentations at a number of CLE gatherings with regard to the Arizona and Maricopa County CLE programs, as well as the Law Education Institute's nationwide seminars, focusing particularly on business, property and taxation elements of family law litigation.