Paul Battan, JD
Helping Families Through Tough Times for Over 35 Years.
Serving Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater, Washington
Paul Battan has the experience to help you with all family law matters:
Divorce, legal separation and annulment
Divorce (which is known in the state of Washington as “the dissolution of marriage”), legal separation, and annulment (which is known in the state of Washington as a “declaration of invalidity of marriage”) are three separate legal procedures by which marital relationships are ended. We are very experienced in all aspects of these types of cases.
Parenting plans, custody and visitation
As part of divorce, legal separation or annulment, parenting plans are necessary for the well-being of children. The terms custody and visitation are not generally used in the state of Washington; they are included within the concept of the parenting plan. Parenting plans are specific to each family. They are based on children’s needs and parents’ beliefs about those needs. When parents fail to agree to a parenting plan, a court will order a parenting plan that it believes is in the best interests of the children.
Spousal maintenance
When one spouse needs financial support during the transition from marriage to separation, and the other spouse can afford to provide it, spousal maintenance may be appropriate for a reasonable length of time. There are no objective standards for computing the amount or duration of spousal maintenance in Washington. For this reason, it is a very challenging issue.
Child support
Orders of child support are required whenever there are dependent children. Child support in Washington is based on the parents’ incomes and the Washington State Child Support Schedule.
Property and debt
Property and debt must be identified, valued, and equitably divided, often by special orders such as qualified domestic relations orders (QDROs), which divide pension benefits. We are fully qualified to handle these types of cases.
Third party custody
Grandparents, aunts, and uncles are more frequently raising their grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. The harsh reality is that some parents’ attraction or addiction to drugs, alcohol, or crime supercedes their ability to parent. In some cases, a parent may be capable of only limited parenting because of his or her own youth or disability. We are experienced in representing relatives who wish to protect a child, while also preserving family relationships, by using a simple power of attorney for the care of a child, by establishing a guardianship of a minor, by filing a legal action for third party custody, or by an open adoption.
Adoption
Parent-child relationships are of fundamental constitutional importance in American law and are of fundamental social and emotional importance to the parent and to the child. New and permanent parent-child relationships can be formed by adoption.
Licenses/Certifications
 Juris Doctor (J.D.)
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Education/Training
Seattle University School of Law Juris Doctorate 1983
University of Arizona English BA - Bachelor of Arts
Bio
Paul Battan received a B.A. in 1977 from the University of Arizona with a major in English Literature. Following graduation, he studied Linguistics at the University of Arizona prior to attending law school. He graduated from the Seattle University School of Law (then the University of Puget Sound) in 1983. He has practiced law in private practice in Thurston County, Washington since that date focusing on family law. In addition to his work as a legal counselor and advocate, he has worked as a mediator and arbitrator.
Paul Battan has served on the board of the Thurston County Bar Association, as family law section chair, and as the association´s president. He has served on the family law section board and the inter-professional relations committee of the Washington State Bar Association. For three years he served as Thurston County court commissioner for mental illness commitment hearings and he serves periodically as a pro tem judge and court commissioner in the Thurston County Superior Court. He is a contributing author to the Washington State Bar Association´s Family Law Deskbook.
Paul Battan received the Thurston County Bar Association´s Daniel Bigelow Lawyer of the Year Award in 1997. In 2000 he received the Boss of the Year Award from the Thurston County chapter of NALS, the association for legal support professionals. Paul was recognized as the Volunteer Lawyer of the Year for 2001 by the Thurston County Volunteer Legal Clinic.
He has received a rating of "AV" from Martindale-Hubbell´. The Martindale-Hubbell´ AV rating indicates very high to preeminent legal ability and very high ethical standards as established by confidential opinions from members of the Bar. In 2007 he was named a Super Lawyer by Washington Law and Politics Magazine.
Memberships
Board Member Thurston County Bar Association
President Thurston County Bar Association
Chair Thurston County Bar Association Family Law Section
Chair Thurston County Bar Association Guardianship Section
Member Washington State Bar Association Interprofessional Relations Committee
Bar Admissions
Washington - 1983
Helpful Links
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Av rated by martindale hubble:
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Rated 10 - superb by avvo:
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Practice Areas
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Legal Services
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Family Law
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Children (Custody, Support)
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Mediation
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Contract Disputes
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Online / Video Legal Consultation
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COVID-19-Related Legal Help
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Parents (Elder Law, Medicare, SSI)
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Divorce
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Personal Injury
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