Released on: November 6, 2007, 3:10 am

Press Release Author: Dorothy K. Philips

Industry: Law

Press Release Summary: PHILADELPHIA - November 5, 2007 - Can brother and sister
business partners who do not reside in the same home, and who have no relationship
outside of work, seek Protection From Abuse orders against e

Press Release Body: The Pennsylvania Superior Court says "yes", according to a
recent decision by an en banc panel, but this ruling "totally distorts the meaning
of the Protection from Abuse Act which is to prevent domestic violence," says Family
Law attorney Dorothy K. Phillips.

"What should have been a civil action dealing with a commercial setting has now been
covered by a Protection from Abuse Order preventing one business sibling from
abusing another business sibling," says Phillips, who commented on the ruling in
"Abusing the Abuse Act," published in the November 5, 2007 issue of the Pennsylvania
Law Weekly. The article also appears on her web site, www.mydivorceattorney.com.

In its September ruling (Custer v. Cochran), the Superior Court expanded the
Protection from Abuse Act to cover feuding family members in business settings who
have no contact outside of the business and who do not reside together.

"This constitutes a total distortion and watering down of this important
legislation," Phillips says. "It defies the purpose of the Protection From Abuse
Act, which is to prevent domestic violence. The PFA Act was not designed to resolve
disputes between feuding siblings in a business setting."

The Pennsylvania Law Weekly is one of the most prestigious legal resources in the
Commonwealth. The publication offers timely and objective coverage on federal and
state cases for all 67 counties throughout Pennsylvania. Phillips is a featured
family law columnist and regular contributor.

Phillips, who is founder and managing Partner of Dorothy K. Phillips & Associates,
LLC, is a frequent author and lecturer on a variety of family law issues. She has
been featured on WPVI-ABC 6, KYW-CBS 3, WCAU-NBC 10, Fox Philadelphia, and CNNfn,
and has been published in The Wall Street Journal, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The
Philadelphia Business Journal, Harper's Bazaar magazine, and The Legal
Intelligencer. A resident of Wynnewood, PA, Phillips also has been chosen to be
listed in Who's Who in American Law. She has received an AV rating by Martindale
Hubble and is listed in the Martindale-Hubble Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers.

A former family therapist, Phillips received her B.S. from The University of
Pennsylvania (1964), her M.A. from New York University (1975) and her Juris Doctor
degree from Villanova University School of Law (1978). She is a member of the
American, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and the Montgomery County Bar Associations and
the Pennsylvania and American Trial Lawyer Associations. She is a member of the
Bars of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as the Third Circuit Court of Appeals
and the United States Supreme Court.

For over two decades, Dorothy K. Phillips has focused her practice in the area of
domestic relations, providing advice and counsel on a variety of complex marital
issues involving divorce, division of property, alimony, child custody and child
support. With three offices throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Dorothy K.
Phillips & Associates, LLC is committed to providing its clients superior counsel
and support.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dorothy K. Phillips ##
(215) 568-7757
www.mydivorceattorney.com
E-mail: dkp@dkphillipslaw.com




Web Site: http://www.mydivorceattorney.com

Contact Details:
Dorothy K. Phillips ##
(215) 568-7757
www.mydivorceattorney.com
E-mail: dkp@dkphillipslaw.com