Wishing all victims of greedy family court parasites, opportunists, miscreants, flying monkeys & unwitting enablers, every possible blessing. Wishing you well, and much-deserved peace, respite, restoration of all that was stolen, and reunions with precious loved ones. May all of your fondest dreams and wishes come true in the coming year!
Retiring to make misconduct investigations disappear is a common strategy. Most recently, Donad Trump’s older sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, retired as a federal appellate judge, ending an investigation into whether she violated judicial conduct rules by participating in fraudulent tax schemes with her siblings. Retiring as a Judge, Trump’s Sister Ends Court Inquiry Into Her Role in Tax Dodges
Though it doesn’t get the big media coverage, Family Court lawyers and judges do the same, effectively ending Attorney Registration And Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) or Judicial Inquiry Board (JIB) investigations. Judges simply wait to qualify for their life-long taxpayer-funded government pensions first. How convenient for them.
Meanwhile, their hard working, middle class victims are left financially and emotionally devastated by their exploitation. (Family Court insiders don’t bother stealing assets or children from lower income families because they have no assets to steal.) Many family court corruption victims end up with Legal Abuse Syndrome, a variant of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
It is interesting that three key people from my case abruptly “retired” around the same time. Judge Levinson retired a year early, around the same time that the child rep, Natalie Koga (age 52) retired, as well as Elliot Heidelberger. Levinson & Heidelberger both retired on the very same day. Another attorney, Meg Jackson, was left off the ARDC lawyer registration for awhile, then came back with a different first name – “Mary Elizabeth”, and moved her practice to a different county.
Also interesting is the cyber-stalking and threats trying to intimidate me into taking down this website prior to their retirements. Excerpts from emails sent to me for over a year: “Sadly, cancer just isn’t (in)humane enough and it isn’t gonna work. I’m sure there are many alternatives for your consideration. One old standby that practically everyone is familiar with is hanging. Almost everyone knows how to tie a knot. Rope is easy to find, and much more definite…It should be easy for you to figure this whole suicide thing out…I think drop hanging would be preferable to suspension based hanging due to your prodigious weight, lack of dexterity, and longstanding disinclination towards physical labor. It’s easier!”
“When a ship is sinking, rats jump ship. So most likely, they were afraid of some inquiry by the ARDC, or JIB (and for the JIB, they made sure they were there long enough to collect their government pension.) Most are not afraid of any inquiry because neither the ARDC or JIB really care about bad lawyers/judges. They only care to get rid of those who make the profession look bad – that means either public (or soon to be made public) screwups, or those making the profession look bad by exposing the corruption.” – A Chicago attorney who read my case
“Just hope Natalie Koga finds something else to do, instead of terrorizing mothers and children.” – Another Chicago attorney who read my case
“Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.” From the essay “Other People’s Money” by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, featured in Harper’s Weekly, December 20, 1913. Other People’s Money, Louis Brandeis
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It seems like only yesterday, our beautiful life. “I love you, Mom. You’re the best Mom in the whole world! Thanks for everything you do for me, Mom.” I loved being Mom to my Son. Ours was an extremely close and joyous relationship. I was a very loving, hands-on, full-time Mom, running a private music teaching studio at home in order to be there for my child.
But our beautiful life was stolen from us. An innocent child was forced to finish growing up without his Mother, while I went from the Mom expected to do everything to not allowed to even send a Birthday or Christmas card.
This gang – this cabal – worked together in a well-orchestrated plan to use the custody case to steal my inheritance, and destroy every aspect of my life to break me so I couldn’t defend myself. Meg (Now “Mary-Elizabeth”) Jackson (ex’s lawyer #6) was heard by Courth Watch outside the courtroom saying: “We’re going to take her down and take EVERYTHING from her.” This counseling letter describes damage that the legal/financial abuse caused. nadig-051915-ltrsfromcounselingcenter
I am a licensed Educator in good standing, never arrested or convicted of any crime, with no substance abuse, mental illness or any wrong-doing. At the time of this case I was employed as a Nanny and Teacher. I am still employed as a licensed teacher.
There are no DCFS findings against me. However, DCFS found that my ex-husband set up multiple false DCFS investigations. This was in the 604 and 604(b) custody evaluations by the highly respected Dr. David Finn. (604 custody evaluations are NOT chosen by either parent, the opposite of a hired gun psychologist hired by one parent.)
How did Judge Alfred Levinson allow a group of Chicago lawyers to terrorize me through a tangled web of corruption & deceit, in tandem with exploiting my family farm estate? The goal? Steal my only, irreplaceable child along with my share of our four-generation, multi-million dollar Family Farm Trust. (Though I am absolutely delighted that it provides for my child’s education anywhere he chooses.)
Their strategy? A fraudulent litigation-vortex to run me out of money for an attorney, and switch custody, in order to “convince” (read: Exploit) my elderly, ill father that I somehow “deserved it.” Elder Abuse/Financial Exploitation of this very high dollar amount is a Class 1 Felony. Elder Abuse Statute, Illinois
It’s illegal to continue filing custody motions within less than two years of a custody decision. But Judge Levinson and Natalie Koga, Child Rep didn’t care. My ex-husband filed EIGHT petitions for Custody, forcing my son and I into abusive litigation that lasted over six years, with countless harassing motions and delays so I would run out of money for representation. Many hearings were set at the last minute so I would lose income. Custody would no sooner be decided in my favor, when he would charge back into court with ever new and shifting allegations. This made it impossible to earn a living. Verbal and emotional abuse, and physical intimidation by the attorneys became customary.
Judge Levinson’s courtroom was a lawless, free-for-all. My child was forced to be constant fodder for Koga, my ex-husband’s parade of six unscrupulous attorneys and unethical court shrinks churning and charging the case. It is well-documented that Domestic Abusers with money use the legal system to punish the victim for leaving. And there is no shortage of unethical bottom-feeders harvesting victims to trap in their Litigation-Therapy Racket.
The law required Koga to promote mediation but she did the opposite because it was lucrative for her and her buddies. “The child representative shall…encourage settlement and the use of alternative forms of dispute resolution. The child representative shall not render an opinion, recommendation, or report to the court and shall not be called as a witness, but shall offer evidence-based legal arguments.” from Illinois Statute, Child Reps But she did all these things, to support my ex-husband’s hate campaign to erase me completely from my son’s life.
When my ex-husband erupted into his rages, she would step next to him to protect his image. She refused to submit bills for court review. She told blatant, horrific lies at nearly every court appearance. Koga’s anger at the evidence I brought was Judge Levinson’s cue to turn over my legal filings and evidence, saying “I didn’t have time to read it.” Judges are required by law to read all of the pleadings. Their well-rehersed schtick was disturbing.
Koga engaged in wildly inappropriate behavior by forcing my son to hug her. She interfered with his medical treatment as reported by his Doctors, and assisted in the parental alienation by disparaging me in front of my son. This was abusive and illegal.
Koga should have been discharged as Child Rep at the entry of the Divorce/Custody 
Judgment in early 2012. But at the last moment she demanded to “stay on free of charge” – her opportunity to churn and charge the case, and advocate for my ex-husband’s twisted campaign. After they finally erased me from my child’s life, suddenly she produced an enormous bill, and continued adding to it! Judge Levinson simply rubber-stamped it at the very last moment. Michael Volpe’s Analysis of My Case
“No system of care in America creates more devastation than the legal system. All but the wealthy are priced out of taking their cases to a point of closure.” Dr. Karin Huffer Legal Abuse Syndrome, Dr. Karin Huffer
There was no Evidentiary Hearing – THEY DID NOT SUBMIT ANY EVIDENCE AT ALL! A No Contact Order barked out by an enraged Judge Levinson was quickly scrawled in a hastily convened “Emergency Hearing” that lasted no more than 15 minutes, (I received an e-mail at 4:45 pm while I was at my Nanny job, summoning me to a hearing the following morning at 9 am.) My legal rights to respond, get an attorney, present evidence, request Discovery or even speak were denied.
The means? Fraud On The Court through an outside attorney (paid for by my ex- husband-James M. Kelly of Palatine) with no legal standing to appear. He claimed to have “evidence”, which he “demonstrated” in a sleazy, theatrical, over-the-top Pantomime, but never actually entered into evidence.
Koga also read aloud one of Dr. Fisher’s false reports. There was no opportunity to cross-examine him or even view his report as required by the Rules of Evidence. When Koga finished reading it aloud, she simply stuffed it in her briefcase. Of course, once they ran me out of money for an attorney, they ignored all the laws, rules of evidence, and due process.
Dr. Fisher apparently thought he know more than the police who had already investigated. A mandated reporter, if he really believed his false report he was legally required to report me to DCFS but he did not. Why? Because DCFS would have investigated and found the allegations to be false, as they already had several times before! And, DCFS requires reunification services to parents. Dr. Daniel Fisher’s Misconduct, With Michael Volpe
Within fifteen minutes, I went from Mother, Primary Caretaker and Sole Legal Custodian, to losing most of my parental rights, not even allowed to send a Christmas or Birthday Card. This “proceeding” consisted of me standing alone, not allowed to even speak, while my ex-husband and three lawyers (including an outside attorney, James M. Kelly, hired by my ex, who had no standing to appear in the case, no appearance filed), shouted a bizarre, incoherent stream of insane insults and hearsay. That was it. No evidence proffered at all. Months later I finally got to view this “evidence” – a darkened, murky cell-phone photo that had clearly been doctored. Convicted felons have more legal rights than I did.
I believed in our American Justice System. But I’ve been contacted by many respectable, decent people from across the country who report the same cruel tactics to make huge fortunes from the pain and suffering of innocent people like my son and I, endlessly routed and re-routed through this court insiders’ criminal money-making machine. I’ve done court watch where glib attorneys handed bribes to giddy Guardian ad Litems right out in open court. They didn’t even bother trying to hide it!
Shrinks with sanctions on their licenses were brought late into the case – Koga’s strategy to override the findings of one of the most highly respected custody evaluators in the state, Dr. David Finn’s evaluation recommending custody to me, with findings of Pathological Parental Alienation, Domestic Violence and family exploitation against my ex-husband.
Judge Levinson ignored the 604 and 604b (Court-ordered Forensic Psychologist Custody Evaluations) with findings of Pathological Parental Alienation and Domestic Violence against my ex-husband. At Koga’s request, he court ordered “treatment” by Dr. Daniel P. Fisher, psychologist of Oak Brook, IL, with sanctions on his license, Dr. Daniel Fisher’s Misconduct, With Michael Volpe, and Psychiatrist, Jonathan Gamze, MD, Arlington Hts., IL, whose controlled substance license was revoked and placed on indefinite probation Dr. Jonathan Gamze Misprescribing/Overprescribing Drugs. It is illegal for treating therapists to make custody recommendations – Dual Role Misconduct – but that’s exactly what they did. And it is illegal to deny personal choice on medical providers.
Our original providers were caring, ethical and competent, and of course, had no sanctions on their license They all reported to me how she would call them up trying to get them to write false reports about me! They were eliminated because they refused to write them.
When I could no longer afford an attorney, I stood alone, mute, not allowed to present evidence, while Koga and opposing counsel #6 Meg Jackson, stood together, insulting me, lying, all the while laughing, too many times to count. This forced me to file my evidence into the court record through Affidavits. It’s all in there, but wasn’t allowed to be presented in court. They thought depriving a child of his Mother while demeaning her in public was amusing. Judge Alfred Levinson joined in taking twisted pleasure in the cruel charade.
At Koga’s request, Judge Levinson wrote illegal Orders that were impossible to comply with: the goal was to find me in Contempt of Court, with four failed attempts to throw me in jail. A modern-day Kafka novel – nothing made sense, with intertwined lawyers and mental health vendors. All the while salivating over my childhood home in Jo Daviess County, Illinois.
The best barometer of the tone and intent of this case is seen in Meg (now “Mary-Elizabeth) Jackson’s 
vicious email sent LESS THAN ONE DAY after my elderly, ill father passed away at our family farm – 150 MILES AWAY FROM JUDGE LEVINSON’S ROLLING MEADOWS, IL COURTROOM – TRYING TO BULLY ME INTO NOT ATTENDING MY FATHER’S FUNERAL! Since when do divorce lawyers have any business trying to decide who goes to private family funeral?
Meg (now “Mary-Elizabeth”) Jackson was an abusive bully whose menacing fits of rage were designed not only to intimidate me, but also to compensate for her woeful lack of knowledge of the law and court procedure. Levinson had to coach her the entire time. She yelled in court that I was a “brazen woman” for requesting family therapy COVERED BY INSURANCE, as I couldn’t afford $2,000/month medical expenses.
Yet Dr. Finn had recommended that my ex-husband be stopped from using our child to insert himself into my family! Koga fought his recommendations to protect our child and stop exploiting my family.
Two Physicians stated Koga refused to listen to their reports that my ex was abusing our son and concealed those reports from the court. This too is a crime!
And then there’s the eye-witness account of Koga’s corruption – colluding with opposing counsel #6 Meg Jackson to persuade Dr. Mark Goldstein, (my ex’s hired gun evaluator) to defame my character in his report and switch custody. Child Rep Natalie Koga Confronted With Eye-Witness To Her Corruption
The Child Rep texted and met with my ex-husband, while refusing to communicate with me. mehdipourtexts – Reza Mehdipour August Text She entered and exited the courtroom and sat next to every single one of his attorneys.
This vicious legal bullying, where the destruction of innocent people is entertaining and the truth meaningless is deeply traumatic and should never be allowed to happen to anyone. Ever. And then I understood how Chris Mackney, and so many others have been bullied to death in family court. MackNeySuicideNote
It is interesting that much of the cyberstalking & threats were used to try to manipulate me to take this website down. But I will never be silenced by bullies.
It is interesting that three key people from my case all abruptly “retired” around the same time. Judge Levinson retired a year early, around the same time as child representative, Natalie Koga (age 52), as well as Elliot Heidelberger. Levinson & Heidelberger both retired on the same day. Another attorney, Meg Jackson, was left off the ARDC lawyer registration for awhile, then came back with a different first name – “Mary Elizabeth”, and moved her practice to a different county. “When a ship is sinking, rats jump ship. So most likely, they were afraid of some inquiry by the ARDC (Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission, or JIB (Judicial Inquiry Board) (and for the JIB, they made sure they were there long enough to collect their government pension.) Most are not afraid of any inquiry because neither the ARDC or JIB really care about bad lawyers/judges. They only care to get rid of those who make the profession look bad – that means either public (or soon to be made public) screwups, or those making the profession look bad by exposing the corruption.” – A Chicago Attorney familiar with my case
“Just hope Natalie Koga finds something else to do, instead of terrorizing mothers and children.” –Another Chicago Attorney familiar with my case
Screen shot from the Illinois Attorney’s Registration & Disciplinary Commission Website:
From NH Neuro Training:
“This is the world’s first ever magnetic resonance image showing a mother and child’s bond. The image is of neuroscientist Rebecca Saxe kissing her two month old son.
The child’s brain appears to be smoother and darker. This is because it has significantly less white matter. White matter is comprised of myelin, which is fatty tissue that acts as insulation for the wires that communicate messages inside your brain.
Kissing causes a chemical reaction in your brain, including a burst of the hormone oxytocin. Oxytocin is often referred to as the ‘love hormone’ because it stirs up feelings of affection and attachment.
Kissing activates the brain’s reward system; releasing dopamine which makes us feel good. It also releases vasopressin which bonds mothers with babies and romantic partners to each other. It also releases serotonin which helps to regulate our mood.”
#nhneurotraining
#love #brainscience #neuroscience #neuro #psychology #neurology #neurosurgery #like4likes #gay #instagood #catsofinstagram #bodybuilding #science #research #nature #stem #likeforlikes
“In what is being called an unprecedented ruling, a judge in Argentina has reportedly ordered a man to pay his ex-wife approximately $179,000 after she gave up her career for nearly three decades so she could clean the house and raise the kids.
Clarin Sociedad reports the unidentified 70-year-old woman struggled financially after the couple’s 2011 divorce while her husband continued to live well.
Man ordered to pay ex-wife $179K for child-rearing/housework
See also: What’s a Mother Worth? by Lisa Nadig
As Mother’s Day weekend commences, many are excitedly gearing up for the holiday; cards, flowers and gifts being bought, precious gifts made at school secreted away, brunch reservations made, all is being made ready for the special day. Some of us are celebrating, while others of us are grieving. Those of us left to celebrate Mother’s Day in quiet solitude have time on our hands to reflect, and to ask probing questions.
For some, a Mother is priceless, more precious than the finest gold, emeralds or rubies, and the mere thought of assigning a dollar value to her is not only abhorrent, it is aburd. I would agree; it IS absurd that we even have to go there in the first place.
But we do. In a world where Mothers have become increasinginly expendable, disposable, where Mothering work is seen as “less than”, those of us who are, or who have been, on the Mommy-track have faced a rude awakening, and forced to ask ourselves this very question.
“In 1979, a young attorney named Michael H. Minton successfully argued that a housewife was worth more than $40,000 a year. The public snorted and the press made fun, but the ramifications proved enormous. When the dust finally settled, the 33-year-old Chicago lawyer had catapulted matrimonial law into an entirely new arena.” What’s a Wife Worth? Michael Minton
But here we are in 2019 – 40 years later – and how far have we REALLY come? When the sheer enormity of the work of Mothering, and the importance of it, is still strategically devalued by some men, along with “father’s rights” attorneys and activists, who view divorce as a game of chess to be won at all costs? When society has bought into the false notion that a woman really can, and should have it all-all the time? When “men’s rights” and “father’s rights” become feel-good euphamisms for “screw the bitch” in divorce? Realizing, recognizing and documenting, not only the importance, but also the monetary value of Mothering work becomes even more fundamental and important.
Investing in the career of Motherhood is in direct conflict with
our materialistic, superficial, money-driven society. How many of us have heard a stay-at-home Mom say out loud “I’m just a Mom”. We’ve all been sold this notion that being a Mom is not for “smart women, educated or high-value women.”
What Wife and Mother, giving her all for years, suddenly confronts this sad reality when facing aggressive, gut-wrenching divorce tactics, as well as the Federal Fatherhood Funding driving child custody decisions, hasn’t had a cold slap to the face, and the gut-wrenching realization that their work apparently had no value all along, unbeknownst to them. But Mothers are crying out: “No! There is indeed great economic value to the work I do!” Government’s Intentional Devaluation of Motherhood
Being a Surrogate Mother (becoming impregnated with someone else’s baby, going to doctor’s appointments, time off from work, giving birth, sometimes having a C-Section, medical after-care, then releasing the infant to the paying parents) has a going rate! Yes, there are wage calculations for the work of creating a human!
As someone who experienced “Morning Sickness” so severe that I had to be hospitalized 
and put on IV fluids, along with several other complications, the thought of assigning a dollar value to this physical sacrificing is shocking at best. But, here is a handy chart from one agency, West Coast Surrogacy. A summary of costs: Base Pay (Surrogacy and expenses) First-time $50,000; Experienced $60,000; Twins: ad $5,000; Triplets add $10,000; C-Section, add $3,000; compensation for lost wages-actual cost; additional medical problems-$10,000. Surrogate Mother Costs
Many of us have realized along our own divorce journey, that while Attorney Minton educated us all on the economic impact of a wife and mother’s work, that somehow we didn’t really get the message. We thought it was “progress” to pressure women to have it all, all the time, and it is “for their own good” that they now work full-time outside of the home and full-time when they come home, and if a husband helps out when he has time, that’s okay. Statistics showing the distribution amongst the sexes of hours spent on home and parenting labor hasn’t really changed!
Many of us have also been confronted with the disturbing reality that women who can afford an attorney such as Michael Milton will come out of their divorce at least somewhat protected, without becoming impoverished, raked through the system, and children stolen. Sadly, we learned the old adage still holds true: you get the justice you can afford.
Especially for those doing, or having done, this immense Mothering work, we know the dedication, the exhaustion, the emotional and physical investment in a job that has no vacation days, no “off-duty” time, and that a Mother’s career typically takes a big hit. We have learned that we can spout all the feel-good rhetoric about shared or co-parenting we want, but the practical, day to day reality for most marriages, even today, is that Mothers still do the vast majority of parenting and housework.
But as is usually the case, if Mom has been the one expected to always take a day off for a sick child, has been the backbone of the house, while father focuses on building his career, and suddenly father and his divorce attorneys demand shared parenting, and in too many instances, erase Mom altogether, any thinking, rational person would question whether those motives arose from a sudden, personal epiphany on the importantce of assuming a fair-share of parenting work, or is it something more calculated and self-serving.
But even with all of this ugliness, the dismissive attitude towards Mothers, and the fact that when a father fights for sole custody he wins 70% of the time, I still believe in Motherhood. I still believe in the great importance and the immense value of this career. If I were confronted with the same choice again, it wouldn’t change. I would still choose this exasperating, exhausting, undervalued, demanding, joyful, life-changing, unpaid career. I would still choose Motherhood.
So, on this Mother’s Day, to the Mothers out there falling asleep with your newborn on your chest with the deepest joy, I acknowledge you. To the Mother watching her child walk for the first time, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there with the flu while caring for the family, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there who think they’ll never get it right, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there working inside and outside the home, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there caring for children and aging parents at the same time, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there choosing to work inside the home, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there who have lost their children to death, I acknowledge you. To the Mothers out there who have lost their children to Domestic Violence by Proxy and Court Corruption, I acknowledge you. To all Mothers out there, I acknowledge you.
To the children out there celebrating with your Mother this Mother’s Day, I acknowledge you. To the children who have lost their Mothers to death, I acknowledge you. To the children living long distances from their Mothers, I acknowledge you. To the children out there separated from Mom at the border, I acknowledge you. To the children out there missing a Mom erased by family court, I acknowedge you. To the children out there wishing their Mother could have been better, I acknowledge you. To the children out there just beginning to appreciate your own Mother after having children of your own, I acknowledge you. To the children out there making their joyful school gift, I acknowledge you. To all children out there, I acknowledge you.
“You may learn to manipulate people to act the way you are requesting from them, and they will learn to manipulate you back to act the way they require from you, but when and if that happens and you realize it, it becomes very sad. Please do not go that route. A life of manipulation is a life of bondage, intrigues, lies and loneliness. Do not play that game. At the end the only one who loses is you.” – Erika Ferenczi
“As children, we are sponges. We take on the beliefs and values of those we look up to, depend on, love or, sadly, even fear. Some of these beliefs may be serving us well; others are doing the exact opposite. Taking the time to reflect on what is important to us, what resonates, what is truly our belief is a step we must all take. Without doing this, we are carrying around baggage that is not our own: baggage that keeps us from finding our authentic self. By exposing ourselves to new ideas and different ways of being, we can discover what resonates within us.” – Diane Mottle, MSW
