J. Benjamin Stevens
About Ben Stevens
Mr. Stevens is an experienced family law attorney with a state-wide practice focused on high asset divorce, child custody, and other complex matters. Aggressive, creative, and compassionate are words his colleagues and clients freely use to describe him as a family law attorney.
He is proud to serve as the National President of the prestigious American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers from November 2023 through November 2024. He is also a Fellow in the , the International Academy of Family Lawyers and a Board Certified Family Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Mr. Stevens is the only attorney in South Carolina with these simultaneous distinctions (AAML, IAFL, and NBTA).
Mr. Stevens has been featured in numerous publications, including Forbes, ABA Journal, South Carolina Lawyers Weekly, and various other television and news publications, and he has taught continuing legal education seminars to other attorneys all across South Carolina and nationally. Mr. Stevens is the course planner and moderator of the South Carolina Bar's Advanced Family Law Topics for the Bench and Bar, which addresses more complex topics, and he previously developed its Family Law Essentials CLE program, which teaches new attorneys the basics of practicing family law.
Ben is a lifelong resident of South Carolina and is married to his law partner and noted family law attorney, Jenny R. Stevens, and they have six children between them. Having been previously divorced and involved in a child custody action, Mr. Stevens has seen Family Court from both sides (as both an attorney and a litigant), which provides unique insight into the problems and challenges today's families face in Family Court.
Professional Organizations, Certifications, and Honors
- Fellow, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (2013 – present)
- Fellow, International Academy of Family Lawyers (2015 – present)
- Board Certified Family Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (2016 – present)
- AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell
- South Carolina Bar, Board of Governors (2019 – 2022), and Family Law Council (2012 – 2018, Chair 2016 – 2017)
- South Carolina Association for Justice, Board of Governors (2010 – 2016), Chair of Family Law Section (2010 – 2012), and Chair of Technology Committee (2013 – 2015)
- American Bar Association, Presenter at ABA TECHSHOW (2008 – 2015) and Editorial Board of Law Practice Today (2008 – 2013)
- Super Lawyers, Family Law and Family Law Mediation (2019 – present)
- Best Lawyers in America, Family Law and Family Law Mediation (2021 – present)
- Avvo Rating: 10.0 out of 10 – Client's Choice in Family Law, Divorce, and Child Custody
Bar Admissions
- South Carolina - All State Courts (Practicing in All 46 Counties)
- Federal District Court of South Carolina
Education
- Graduate of the Harvard/AAML Negotiation Seminar for Family Law Lawyers (2019)
- Graduate of the SC Bar's Family Court Mediator and Arbitrator Training Programs
- Graduate, AAML's Advanced Mediation Training Program
- University of South Carolina School of Law, Juris Doctor, 1995
- Clemson University, Bachelor of Science in Financial Management, 1992, Cum Laude.
Selected Publications, Presentations, and Media
- "Family Law Essentials: A Primer for Private Practice Before the Family Court in South Carolina", South Carolina Bar CLE Division (Co-Author)
- “USA (SC)” Chapter in Family Law Global Guide,Thompson Reuters (Author)
- “South Carolina Family Law Toolkit”, South Carolina Bar Family Law Council (Principal author of two chapters)
- “The Essential Guide to Divorce in South Carolina – What You Need to Know Right Now” by Ben Stevens and Jenny Stevens (e-book)
- "Co-Parenting Better this Summer", Interview, FOX Carolina News
- "Tips on How to Co-Parent", Interview, WRDW Morning Mix
- "Same Sex Marriage", Interview, WSPA
- "The Truth About Marriage And Divorce", HuffPostLive
- “Advanced Family Law Topics for the Bench and Bar” (Course Originator and Planner) AAML SC Chapter and South Carolina Bar Seminar, Columbia, SC (2019 – present)
- "Technology in a Covid (or Post-Covid) World: A Practical and Ethical Guide to Family Law Practice", AFCC-AAML Conference on Advanced Issues in Child Custody: Evaluation, Litigation, and Settlement, Washington, DC (September 2021)
- “The Successfully Run Remote Law Practice”, AAML Mid-Year Meeting (March 2021)
- “Should Couch join Glasscock and E.D.M. on the “Mount Rushmore” of Attorney's Fees?”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2020)
- “The Way to Wealth: Using Technology to Improve Your Practice and Your Life” (co-presented with Thomas J. Sasser), AAML Meeting for Fellows from Virginia, DC, and Maryland, Washington, DC (September 2019)
- “What The Hague? (The Convention You've Heard Of - and All the Ones You Haven't)”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2017)
- “'It's Not Me, It's You' - Tools for Dealing with High Conflict Individuals”, South Carolina Bar(Annual Convention - Family Law Section Seminar, Greenville, SC (January 2017)
- “Special Concerns in High Profile Cases”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2016)
- “Practical (& Understandable) Ways to Protect Yourself & Your Clients from 21st Century Headaches”, AAML Mid-Year Meeting, Panama City, Panama (March 2015)
- “Working with Experts in Family Court”, Greenville County Bar Year End CLE, Greenville, SC (February 2015)
- “Family Law Essentials” (Course Originator and Planner) South Carolina Bar Seminar, Columbia, SC (2014 – 2016)
- “Dealing with Problematic GALs – To Remove or Not to Remove?”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC, (September 2014)
- “Establishing and Managing Your Family Law Practice”, South Carolina Bar Bridge The Gap, Columbia, SC (March 2014)
- “Practical Application and Creative Extension of the Psychological Parent Doctrine”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2013)
- “Family Law Basics for Private Investigators”, South Carolina Association of Legal Investigators Conference, Spartanburg, SC (May 2013)
- “Practical Application and Creative Extension of the Psychological Parent Doctrine”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2013)
- “Dealing With ‘Other' Parents (Psychological, De Facto, Grand, Etc.)”, South Carolina Bar Guardian ad Litem Training, Columbia, SC (January 2012)
- “Getting What Your Experts Need – Discovery Requests and Tactics to Assist Your Expert Witness” and “How to Store, Manage and Share Information ‘In the Cloud'”, South Carolina Bar Family Law Intensive Workshop, Asheville, NC (October 2011)
- “Managing Expectations: What Attorneys and Clients Want from Each Other”, South Carolina Bar Hot Tips Seminar, Columbia, SC (September 2011)
Contact
- Email: [email protected]
- Phone: 864-598-9172
Recommendations
- “I hired Attorney Ben Stevens to handle my divorce. He always listened to my concerns and gave me great advice!! He even gave me advice I didn't want to hear because I was only thinking emotionally and not realistically. Most importantly, he was ALWAYS available for any problem I may have,...
-
"Ben argued tirelessly, even when faced with what seemed to be impossible situations."
“When facing what I knew was going to be a difficult divorce, I needed an attorney that would have my best interest and my children's best interest at heart. I could not have made a better decision when I hired Ben Stevens as my attorney. Ben argued tirelessly, even when faced with what seemed to... - “Like most attorneys, Ben has his client's best interest as a first priority and understands what's important to them; however, the differentiator was Ben's responsiveness and sense of urgency on getting back to his clients. Response time was important to me given the geographic disparity and nat...
- "Ben and his team are fantastic. I highly recommend their services - especially in complex financial divorce litigation."