Laura A. Wasser

LOS ANGELES - Marquee names retain Laura A. Wasser of Wasser, Cooperman & Mandles when it's time for a divorce -- names like Angelina Jolie, Kim Kardashian, Johnny Depp and Maria Shriver. But the prominent partner at the firm launched in 1984 by her father, Dennis A. Wasser, wants to extend the principles of a good divorce to everyone.

So she's become the face, the "Chief of Divorce Evolution," at Divorce.com, which uses online mediation to aid pro per litigants negotiate their own dissolutions. The website describes her passion "for easing the toll divorce can take on families and children."

Wasser said she's gotten pushback from colleagues. "They tell me, 'That's cannibalistic. Why help people get divorces without lawyers?' But I want to be useful to the common man, to help those who can't afford thousand-dollar-per-hour lawyers. You look around the family law courts in Los Angeles and you see a lot of people milling around who have taken time off work. Divorce should be streamlined and cost-effective, and that's what Divorce.com offers."

On the site, she takes a whack at the family law bar. "I've seen far too many couples who want to proceed with their co-parenting and financial obligations in a calm manner get amped up and torn apart by attorneys. Think about it -- the more conflict there is, the more money the attorneys make."

Conflict, of course, makes headlines. "Divorce is the great equalizer," Wasser said in an interview. "No matter how much money you do or don't have. Some wealthy folks worry they'll have to fly economy. And I don't underestimate those emotions. Divorce is heartbreaking and terrifying. I want to make it more affordable and less acrimonious."

That applies even to mega-breakups like Kim Kardashian West's split from Kanye West. At the end of 2022, Wasser settled the matter shortly before trial. According to published reports, West will pay Kardashian $200,000 per month in child support; the couple will share custody of their four children. They will split equally the expenses for the kids' security and private school, including college. Kardashian West v. West, 21STFL01626 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed Feb. 19, 2021).

"Because the two parties -- particularly my client -- were so resolution oriented, when it came down to it, they put the kids first and settled. Say what you will about him, he got it done," Wasser said.

From the biggest cases to the smaller ones, Wasser said she remains enthusiastic about her work. "I'm coming up on 30 years, and I like to think that we are problem-solvers who are making a positive change."

- JOHN ROEMER