Learn About Holistic Divorce

Practice Areas

Dara Marias oversees Kainen Law Group's Holistic Divorce practice and Divorce Client Care.  Dara's practice includes: (1) amicable divorce representation, (2) divorce mediation, (3) holistic divorce education, and (4) Kainen Law Groups Fresh Start Client Care Program.

As a Certified Amicable Divorce Professional with a Gray Divorce Specialty, Dara serves as the Nevada Ambassador for the of the Amicable Divorce Network. Dara exclusively offers non-litigated divorce representation to clients who, together with their spouses, seek to resolve all their divorce issues outside of the court system. Amicable Divorce allows both spouses to have their own attorneys, but it operates outside of the court system offering a streamlined and lower-conflict approach to divorce.

Dara is also Nevada's only Certified Advanced Practitioner with the Academy of Professional Family Mediators. In this capacity, Dara serves as a neutral mediator to assist divorcing couples reach an uncontested divorce by resolving all of their divorce issues through mediation. In mediation, Dara does not represent either person as an attorney. Instead she brings her wealth of family law knowledge and creativity to develop solutions that work for both parties. 

Finally, Dara offers education on co-parenting, emotion management, communication skills, and problem-solving strategies for both litigation and non-litigation clients.

Education and Family Law Background

Dara joined the Nevada Bar in 1994 after graduating with a Juris Doctor and Master of Social Work from the University of Southern California. Prior to attending USC, Ms. Marias graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Ms. Marias has an extensive background in family law, mediation, and social-emotional skill development.  She served as a judicial law clerk in Family Court, Department E, and was later elected to the Family Law Section’s Executive Council of the Nevada Bar where she was instrumental in developing the Nuts and Bolts of Family Law and authored "Mediation and the Role of the Attorney" for the Nevada Family Law Report. She also facilitated the Contemnor Diversion Program for the Family Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court and has written extensively on co-parent education. 

Specialized Training

Dara received basic and advanced mediation training from the Los Angeles Superior Court Conciliation and Mediation Services (where she completed a 300-hour internship as a child custody mediator) as well as from the Eighth Judicial District Court’s Family Mediation Center and the Mosten-Guthrie Academy for Mediation and Collaborative Training. Most recently, Dara completed extensive training with the Amicable Divorce Network and earned her C.A.D.P. (Certified Amicable Divorce Professional) and a Specialty Designation in Gray Divorce. Finally, Dara has co-authored two social emotional and service-learning curricula for high school and elementary students and taught these skills to CCSD students for twelve years. She has also participated in numerous continuing education courses on mediation, estate planning, and advanced family law.

Awards

At graduation, Dara was awarded the Distinguished Student Award for the highest achievement in academics, field work, and creative leadership from the USC School of Social Work.  The Los Angeles County Bar commended Dara for Outstanding Volunteer Service, and she also received the Wiley M. Manuel Award for Pro Bono Legal Services from the State Bar of California for her work at the Maynard Toll Family Law Clinic. In recognition of her extensive community outreach in Las Vegas, Dara received the Summerlin Council Outstanding Volunteer Award, a Proclamation from the Clark County Commission, and most recently, she was honored as the 2020 Nevada Mother of the Year™.

Philosophy

Whether serving as an attorney, mediator, or educator, Dara works to enhance the well-being of people and help them divorce in an amicable, efficient, and supported manner without going to court. In the process, she strives to empower clients to navigate their divorce with emotional agility, develop new ways of interacting, and ultimately help people thrive in their post-divorce lives with a secure foundation.