Barbara Helm Peters, Esq.
Barbara Peters is an experienced trial attorney and zealous advocate focusing primarily on Family Law. She compassionately represents clients going through some of the most difficult times of their lives. She handles cases dealing with all aspects of family law, including divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage), paternity, time sharing and parenting plans (formerly known as custody actions), child support, alimony, adoptions, dependency, and injunctions.
In addition to being a zealous advocate, Ms. Peters is also a Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Law Mediator, and is trained in Collaborative Law. She frequently acts as a Guardian Ad Litem on behalf of children in family law proceedings where she reports to the Court regarding the children’s best interests. She has also been appointed as an Attorney Ad Litem for children aging out of foster care.
She was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1995 at which time she was employed as an Assistant Public Defender, handling misdemeanor and felony jury trials. Since joining the firm in 1998, she has had an active trial practice handling both criminal and family cases, until devoting 100% of her practice toward family law. Attorney Peters is a member of the Florida Bar Association, the Brevard County Bar Association, and the Family Law section of the Florida Bar.
Mrs. Peters graduated Magna Cum Laude in receiving her Juris Doctorate from Boston College Law School in 1995, and was further honored by being named to the Order of the Coif, a legal honor society. While in law school, she served as a representative to the Law Students Association for two years. Prior to attending law school, Mrs. Peters graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Colorado, Boulder. She was a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society and Alpha Omicron Pi Sorority.
Mrs. Peters served as a board member of the Brevard County Bar Association from 2010 through 2012, and was awarded the Board Member of the Year award for the 2010-2011 term. She received recognition for her outstanding services to the community in 2009 and 2011. She participates in the Justice Teaching Program, where she engages elementary and middle school students in discussions about their constitutional rights. She has volunteered as a coach, mentor, judge and chairperson of the Brevard County Bar Association Mock Trial Competition. Mrs. Peters is a registered volunteer with Brevard County Schools. In April 2000, Mrs. Peters received the Professionalism Award from the Brevard County Bar Association, “for her tireless pursuit and practice of the highest ideals and tenets of the legal profession and for consistently demonstrating the essential attributes of professionalism: Character, Competence and Commitment”.
Ms. Peters is married to a Brevard County school teacher, and has three daughters in the public school system. Her oldest daughter graduates in 2020, and plans to attend Dartmouth College in the fall. Her step son is an Army veteran, living in Melbourne. She enjoys spending time with her entire family, including her toy poodle and Rhodesian Ridgeback.