Yvette Ochoa

Yvette Ochoa is a partner at Farzad & Ochoa Family Law Attorneys, LLP, where she manages the firm's Los Angeles office.

Yvette attended Pepperdine University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English Literature with an emphasis in Philosophy. Her academic background in English and Philosophy at Pepperdine University has provided her with excellent writing skills, a necessary aspect of effective divorce and family law litigation. Thereafter, she attended Western State University College of Law, where she received her Juris Doctorate.

Yvette was an associate with the firm for nearly six years before she earned her partnership. Her exceptional litigation and communication skills, her no-nonsense approach to handling complex divorce and family law cases, and the rave reviews of clients made Yvette an easy choice for a partnership.

Yvette is knowledgeable, intense, and reliable—all traits a family law attorney needs to successfully represent clients.

Yvette Ochoa has been a licensed California attorney since 2010.

• Yvette is an active member of the Los Angeles County and Orange County Bar Association and a former member of the Peter M. Elliot Inn of Court.
• She works at and manages the firm's Los Angeles office.
• Yvette's skills and experience are in divorce cases involving complex financial issues, significant assets, and/or businesses.
• She is a volunteer, pro-bono attorney at Human Options in Orange County.
• In 2024, she was selected and appointed as a Board of Director member of Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law, a highly respect non-profit.

Like every attorney at the firm, Yvette only handles divorce and family law cases and is committed to the intelligent and effective representation of the firm's clients. We hope you enjoy the following interview with Yvette.

Of all the areas of law, why did you make the commitment to family law?

I knew my career choice would be my vocation in life and an opportunity to make a difference. I wanted to feel like I knew my client, a person whom I could help. After my first year of law school, I became a law clerk for an attorney, who gave me the opportunity to work on her family law cases to determine if I liked family law. I really enjoyed it, and the rest is history. Family law satisfied my desire to help others, get to know my clients and find my vocation in life.

What should a potential client expect from you when you represent him or her?

A potential client should expect me to ask questions, gather facts about their case, apply the facts to the law, and then provide them with competent legal advice. I am a proponent of constant communication. By keeping this constant communication, I ensure every one of my clients understands the legal process, the law, and their legal options and is continually informed about the status of their case and the next steps.

How do you adjust your representation of a client when the other party or other lawyer is high conflict and unreasonable?

I do not let the opposing party or opposing counsel derail my ability to strategize with my client, and I move forward with my client's case like I do with every case. If I do make an adjustment, it is to memorialize all of my communications in writing, such that I may later use those written communications as evidence is support of any sanctions my client may seek from the opposing party or opposing counsel due to their unreasonableness. I also move the case toward an evidentiary hearing and/or trial at a quicker, but reasonable, pace so that the Court can make its orders on any disputed issues.

What efforts do you make to keep a client's attorney fees within his or her budget?

First, I delegate what I believe to be appropriate work to my secretaries or paralegals. Second, depending on the facts of the case, I provide my client with estimates as to the amount of attorney time it will take me to perform a certain task. I weigh the cost-benefit of taking certain positions in their case with each client. Lastly, I communicate with my client if a certain task or agreed-upon strategy will exceed his/her budget; we then collaborate to determine the best approach to take based on their budget.

If there were one word you could choose to describe yourself, what would it be?

I believe that the best word to describe me is "Honest".