Incoming LACBA family law chair champions program to recruit next generation of attorneys

As he prepares to become chair of the Los Angeles County Bar Association's Family Law Section next month, Tigran Palyan says the profession faces a growing problem: too few young lawyers are choosing family law as demand for legal services continues to rise.

His answer is a new, 10-week, paid Summer Associate Program that will place law students with family law firms, provide structured training and mentorship, and expose future attorneys to a practice area many never encounter in law school.

"We can't keep hoping the right new lawyer walks in the door," Palyan said. "We have to build them."

Palyan, founding partner of Glendale-based Palyan Hiett LLP, will be installed Aug. 22 during the section's annual gala. The almost sold-out event is expected to draw several hundred attorneys and judges. Judge Lawrence P. Riff, head of Los Angeles County Superior Court's Civil Division, will receive the Spencer Brandeis Award, Judge Shelley Kaufman, head of the L.A. Court's Family Law Division, will receive the Distinguished Judicial Service Award, and Cari Pines, of Pines Law Group in Encino, will receive the section's Distinguished Service Award.

Palyan said one of family law's biggest obstacles is that the subject remains largely invisible to law students. It is not part of the required law school curriculum, meaning many graduates can complete law school and pass the bar without ever seeing a custody hearing or learning the practical skills required to handle a divorce case.

"I believe almost nobody applies to law school dreaming of family law," said Palyan, who teaches at Southwestern Law School and Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. "You can't fall in love with work you've never seen."

He said he also believes family law has never developed the type of recruiting pipeline common in large commercial firms, which routinely hire second-year law students through structured summer associate programs.

The LACBA initiative seeks to change that. About six law firms have already agreed to participate in the inaugural program, which Palyan hopes will become a permanent feature of the section. The curriculum will emphasize practical courtroom skills, mentorship, and professional development while introducing students to the breadth of family law practice.

Paylan credited Steven Mindel, a past president of LACBA and partner at Feinberg, Mindel, Brandt & Klein LLP, and Alison Spirito, a member of the Executive Committee of LACBA's Family Law Section and an attorney at McGaughery & Spirito, both of whom have played key roles in developing and supporting the mentor program.

Palyan said strengthening the pipeline has become increasingly important as more Californians represent themselves in family court. He noted that the Judicial Council has reported that 70% of divorce cases involve at least one self-represented litigant at filing, with the percentage rising to nearly 80% by the time judgment is entered.

He also pointed to ongoing discussions within the State Bar about expanding the role of licensed paraprofessionals to help meet unmet legal needs.

Palyan said he believes the better long-term solution is to recruit and train more lawyers.

"If we don't get people in as attorneys, we're not going to have enough to sustain that need," he said.

A native of Armenia who immigrated to Los Angeles at 6, Palyan began his career as a research attorney at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse before joining Brot & Gross and later Trope and Trope LLP, where he was mentored by family law pioneer Sorrell Trope. He founded his own practice in 2017 and later formed Palyan Hiett LLP.

Beyond the summer associate initiative, Palyan said he plans to expand the section's Daily Settlement Officer program that pairs volunteer attorney-mediators with litigants to settle family law matters, continue promoting civility in family law practice and help attorneys adopt artificial intelligence responsibly. But he said he hopes his lasting contribution will be creating a sustainable pathway into a field that desperately needs new practitioners.

"The hope is that it becomes a win-win-win," he said. "Law students get training, law firms find talent, and the profession begins to address the unmet need for family law services."