Suzanne Chester, Attorney At Law
Suzanne, a graduate of UNC Law School, has almost thirty years of experience practicing family law, domestic violence, prisoner rights, fair housing litigation, and children’s advocacy. Early in her career, she represented adults in child custody and domestic violence matters through Legal Aid of North Carolina. More recently, Suzanne directed The Child’s Advocate for over a decade, where she and her team were appointed by the Court to represent children in tough custody cases. Suzanne’s expertise in children’s advocacy has led to her giving presentations at national conferences on direct legal representation for children. Suzanne has extensive experience with the challenges that come up in child custody cases: children with special needs, parent-child contact problems, LGBTQ
youth and their needs, substance use disorders, an incarcerated parent, relocation, domestic violence, child abuse and neglect. Suzanne knows that kids thrive when they have a loving relationship with both of their parents. And even though kids don't get to choose who they live with, Suzanne listens carefully to what children have to say and values their voices.
Drawing on the lessons she learnt from her years in the courtroom and working with families dealing with divorce and child custody, Suzanne now focuses on three areas: helping children and their families when the Court appoints a guardian ad litem for the children; representing kids and adults obtain protection from domestic violence; and giving advice to parents who want to learn more about child custody and family court, including court-ordered mediation.
Suzanne is a mom of two grown daughters and lives in Raleigh with her husband. When she’s not at work, you can find her exploring new places, catching up with family, taking her dog for a stroll, hitting the tennis courts with a friend, or simply relaxing and enjoying a good movie.
Education
1995 UNC School of Law, JD with Honors
1991 Louisiana State University, PhD in French Literature
1983 University College Dublin, B.A., French and Spanish with High Honors
Background and Experience
Bar Admission
1995 North Carolina
Work Experience
6/2025 to present:
Child’s Voice Law
President and Attorney at Law
1/2024 to 3/2025:
Child’s Voice Project
Co-Director and Head of Legal Programs
10/2013 to 12/2024:
The Child’s Advocate, Legal Aid of North Carolina,
Project Director and Managing Attorney
1/2012 to 1/2013:
Clinical Programs, UNC School of Law
Adjunct Professor and Staff Attorney
8/2006 to 5/2012:
Raleigh Office
Legal Aid of North Carolina, Supervising Attorney
8/1998 to 8/2006:
Raleigh Office
Legal Aid of North Carolina, Staff Attorney
8/1995 to 7/1998:
North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services
Staff Attorney
8/1991 to 5/1993:
Department of Foreign Languages, NCSU
Part-time Instructor
Classes and Seminars
Attended between 2019 and present
Child Abuse
Handling Child Sexual Abuse Allegations in Custody Disputes. Seth Goldstein, JD, Strafford Webinar, September 2023.
Assessing False Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse and Issues Regarding Recantation. APSAC-NY, Lawrence Jay Braunstein, JD, Anna Meltzer, PsD.
Family Law Legal Series, Wake County Bar Association. Lauren Rockwell, PhD.
Child Sexual Abuse, March 2025
Child Physical Abuse, May 2025
Child Development
Developmental Changes in Children and How It Applies to Family court. Deborah O. Day, Psy.D., Elisha D. Roy, J.D. ABA Family Law Section Spring Conference, April 2025
Brain, Social Development, and Decisional Capacities: Focus on Adolescence. Dr. Robert Kinscherff. Session at Pre-conference Institute , AFCC 61st Conference, 2024.
Child’s Voice
Authenticity and Weight When Including Children’s Voices in Court Processes. Lorri Yasenik, PhD and Jon Graham, LLB. AFCC Webinar. April 2025
Grappling With No: Children Declining Treatment in the Age of Consent. Barbara Jo Fidler, PhD and Stacey Platt, JD. AFCC Webinar. May 2024.
Should Children Participate in Family Law Processes? Consider the Brain. 6-hour Pre-Conference Institute, 61st AFCC Annual Child Custody Conference, Boston, 2024. Presenters: Hon. Amy Lyn Blake; Robin Deutsch, PhD; Robert Kinscherff, PhD; Stephanie Tabashneck, PhD.
Robin M. Deutsch, PhD, ABPP
Children with Special Needs
Interviewing Children with Non-Normative Needs and Unique Considerations.
Ann Ordway, JD, PhD. AFCC Webinar. January 2022.
Special Needs Children: A Risk Assessment Model for Developing Parenting Plans. Daniel Pickar, PhD. AFCC Webinar. October 2019.
Family Violence
Litigation and Evaluations Involving Abuse Allegations in Family Court Cases (LEFCC). 20 hours of specialized interdisciplinary training for family court lawyers, judges, guardians ad litem and mental health professionals. April 2024, Dallas, Texas.
Trainers: Kelly Champion, PhD; Robert Geffner, PhD;Annabelle Martinez-Mullen, JD; Professor Joan Meier, JD; Tracy Shoberg, JD; Joy Silberg, PhD; Sujata Warrior, PhD.
LGBTQ Youth
Affirming and Supporting LGBTQIA+ Youth and Families: From the Basics to Advanced Family Court Concerns. Parts 1 and 2. AFCC Webinars. July and October 2024. Presenters: Lindsey Sank Davis, PhD; McKenzie Sheridan, MA;Jesse Frieder, MEd
Effectively Serving LGBTQ People, Time Out Youth Webinar for Legal Aid of North Carolina, July 2022
Shared (50/50) Parenting Presumption
AFCC-NC, Participant in Panel Discussion on Shared Parenting Presumption, November 2023
Substance Use Disorders
The Science of Addiction: How Substance Abuse Impacts Parenting and Children.
Stephanie Tabashnek, PhD, Session at Pre-conference Institute, AFCC 61st Conference, June 2024.
Guardrails, Safety Nets and Backstops: Navigating Substance Use Disorder in Co-Parenting. Chris Beck, Soberlink, Sarah Capps Hayes, Kentucky Legal Aid,
ABA Family Law Section Spring Conference, April 2024.
Publications
Giving a Child a Voice in a Contested Custody Case
In collaboration with Legal Aid attorneys from The Child’s Advocate, family court judges, mental health professionals, and private practitioners, Suzanne organized and presented at quasi-annual CLE programs to train pro bono attorneys to represent children in complex custody cases. 2014-2023.
Representing a Victim Seeking a Domestic Violence Protective Order
In collaboration with Legal Aid Attorneys, Wake County Judges, and private practitioners, Suzanne organized and presented at quasi-annual CLE programs to train pro bono attorneys to represent victims of domestic violence seeking protection. 2000-2011.
Awards
2022 Wake Women Attorneys Woman of the Year Award
2022 North Carolina Leaders in the Law (sponsored by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly), Finalist
2015 Gwyneth B. Davis Public Service Award
American Bar Association, Family Law Section
American Professional Association on the Abuse of Children (APSAC)
Association for Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC)
North Carolina Bar Association, Family Law Section
North Carolina Bar Association, Juvenile Justice and Children’s Rights Council
Wake County Bar Association, Committee on Professionalism
Trainings
Giving Weight to Children’s Experiences of Domestic Violence through a Client-Directed Attorney, ABA Family Law Committee Corner Articles, October 2024 (co-authored with Stef Sloan, PhD)
A Client-Directed Attorney for Children: Giving Weight to Children’s Voices. AFCC eNews, March 2024
Reunification, alienation, or re-traumatization? Let’s start listening to the child. Journal of Family Trauma, Child Custody & Child Development, (2021). DOI:10.1080/26904586.2021.1957059
When children reject contact with a parent: Response to Lubit, 2019, Journal of Family Trauma, Child Custody & Child Development, (2021). DOI:10.1080/26904586.2020.1866734
Professional Associations
Presentations
Making the Case for Client-Directed Representation. Co-Presenter, 62nd AFCC Annual Child Custody Conference. May 2025
Navigating Resist-Refuse Dynamics and the Child’s Voice. Co-Presenter, American Bar Association, Family Law Section Spring Conference, 2024
Understanding the Benefits of a Child’s Attorney in Contentious Custody Disputes. Co-Presenter. AFCC 15th Symposium, Las Vegas. October 2022
Litigating Domestic Violence, Child Abuse and Child Custody. Co-Presenter. American Bar Association Family Law Section Fall Conference, October 2021
Child's Voice Law
Experienced, compassionate and skilled advocacy for children and families.
(984) 276-0707
© 2025. All rights reserved.