Family and divorce lawyer · Milan

Separation and divorce in Milan,handled with the care it deserves.

We stay with you from the first consultation to the end of the proceedings: we analyse your situation, decide the strategy together and provide you with a written quote before we start.

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Teresa Lo Torto standing with arms folded in front of the law library at the Milan office
Teresa Lo Torto Milan · Venice
1994
Admitted in 1994,
independent practice since 1997
100%
family law:
it's all we do
24h
first reply time
on working days
Practice areas

What we do

Civil law with a single focus: the family, including when children are involved.

i.

Separation and Divorce

Uncontested or contested, assisted negotiation, family mediation.

 ii.

Children, Custody and Protection

Shared or sole custody, maintenance, variation of arrangements.

 iii.

De Facto Cohabitation

Cohabitation agreements, protection orders, custody of children born outside marriage.

 iv.

Civil Unions

Formation, property regime and dissolution of civil unions.

 v.

Protection of the Person

Personality rights, privacy, image, honour and reputation.

 vi.

Succession

Wills, inheritance, division of estates, claims for a reserved share.

 vii.

Family Criminal Law

Offences within the family, domestic abuse, failure to meet support obligations.
How it works

Five steps, no surprises

Knowing what happens next is the first thing we take off your mind.

i.

First consultation

You tell us the situation. We listen, we ask questions, we tell you straight away what we see.

ii.

Reviewing your case

We examine documents, income, timing and room for manoeuvre. No promises we can't keep.

iii.

Strategy

We decide the route together: agreement, assisted negotiation or court.

iv.

Written quote

Before any instruction you get in writing what we'll do and what it costs.

v.

Representation

We stay with you to the end, and afterwards too, if the terms need revisiting.

Your case

What is your situation?

Pick the line closest to your situation: we'll take you where we cover it in detail.

A few words from your lawyer

I want to separate but I don't know where to start

It is the sentence I hear most often, and it is almost always said quietly. You don't need to arrive prepared: you don't need to know whether it will be consensual or contested, you don't need your papers in order. At the first meeting you tell me how things stand, and I tell you which routes exist and what each one involves. From there you decide, in your own time. Nobody asks you to sign anything that day.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

We agree and we want it done quickly

When the agreement is genuine it is the best situation to work in, and my job becomes protecting it. Because an agreement drafted badly falls apart two years later, and that is when it really does get long. We put every point in writing so that it holds even once the relationship changes: it is the only way for “quickly” to actually stay quick.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

The other side won't cooperate

It happens, and it is not your fault. When the other person doesn't reply, keeps postponing, or changes their account each time, the consensual route isn't available and insisting only loses months. In that case we go before a judge, and that is not a defeat: it is the mechanism that exists so a decision arrives anyway. My job is to take you there with everything in order, and without raising the tone more than necessary.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

My ex isn't paying maintenance

People who arrive with this sentence have usually waited too long already, to avoid a war or to avoid frightening the children. Let me say one thing: maintenance is not a favour being done to you, it is an obligation, and there are tools to enforce it without having to ask every month. The sooner you act, the less arrears build up, and recovering arrears is always the hardest part.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

I'm afraid of not seeing my children again

This is the fear I see do the most damage, because it pushes people into rushed decisions. I'll tell you what I tell everyone: the relationship with your children is not lost because you separate. It is protected, and it is protected better when it is not placed at the centre of the conflict with the other parent. If this is your fear, let's talk soon: it is almost always more manageable than you are picturing.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

I don't know what will become of the house

The house is the question few people raise first, and that everybody has in mind from the very start. Who stays, who pays the mortgage, what changes if it is in one name only. There is no single answer: it depends on how it was bought, on how you live now, and above all on whether there are children. With the documents to hand, in one meeting I can tell you where you stand.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

The terms we agreed years ago no longer work

A separation agreement photographs a moment. Then someone changes job, a child grows up, someone moves away: it is normal that what worked years ago no longer stands. Terms can be revised, but it has to be shown that something genuinely changed. Don't wait until the situation becomes unbearable to ask. It goes much better in calm times, and with less friction.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk
A few words from your lawyer

One of us lives abroad

Here the first question is not what to do, but where and under which law: in which country proceedings can be filed, which rules apply, whether a decision taken there also counts here. These are matters I have handled for years and there is nothing insurmountable. But this is the case where moving first genuinely matters, because which court is approached first often weighs on everything else.

— Teresa Lo Torto

Want to dig deeper on this? If this sounds like your situation, let’s talk

The first consultation is there to see whether we can help.

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Our clients
“A lawyer who knows how to listen, very professional. Extremely well prepared. She pointed us in the best direction for our situation. We recommend her without hesitation.”
Marco Bertolin, April 2026 · Google review
4.8 27 Google reviews
Journal

Most-read guides

All articles →
Costs and timelines

How much a separation in Milan costs in 2026

8 min read Children and custody

Shared custody: what the court decides

5 min read Maintenance and the home

When spousal maintenance is lost

6 min read
Frequently asked

What people ask us most

Straight answers, no legalese. For everything else there's the first consultation.

How long does an uncontested separation take?

Usually a few months, if you agree on everything. Assisted negotiation closes faster because it doesn't go before a judge; court approval takes longer and depends on the registry's workload. What really moves the timeline isn't the procedure: it's how many points are still open between you.

How much does a separation cost?

It depends on three things: whether you reach an agreement or go before a judge, how complex the assets are, and whether there are children. At the first consultation we assess your case and give you a written quote before we start: there are no costs you discover later.

Can you divorce without separating first?

In certain cases set out by law, yes. Otherwise a period of separation comes first: six months if uncontested, twelve if contested. At the first consultation we check which applies to you.

Can I get sole custody of the children?

The rule is shared custody: the law starts from the premise that both parents stay present. Sole custody is granted only where the other parent is concretely harmful to the child, and that must be proven. If you think you're in that position, bring us everything you have.

What happens to the home we live in?

Where there are children, the criterion is their interest: the home is assigned to the parent they mainly live with, regardless of who owns it. Without children, the home follows title. It's one of the points that can be settled in the separation agreement.

My ex isn't paying maintenance: what can I do?

There are concrete tools: from third-party attachment — that is, directly on their salary — to an order requiring the employer to pay your share to you. In the most serious cases non-payment is also a criminal offence. The earlier you act, the easier it is to recover.

Terms agreed years ago no longer work: can they be changed?

Yes, if something concrete has changed: the income of either party, the children's needs, a new cohabitation, a relocation. It's called variation of terms, and since 2023 the procedure is simpler than before.

One of us lives abroad: does that change things?

It changes the first step: you need to establish which court has jurisdiction and which law applies. That's not a technicality — it can make a considerable difference to the outcome. We handle cases with international elements and start from exactly that point.

Is the first consultation free?

No. The first consultation is a working meeting: we read the documents, assess the case and tell you what can be done. It is quoted transparently before you decide whether to proceed.

Do you only work in Milan?

Milan is our main office and the court we appear before most often. We also have an office in Venice-Mestre, and for proceedings outside these venues we rely on a network of correspondents across Italy and abroad.

Where to find us

We receive by appointment

Choose an office
  • Milano
  • Venezia

Via Morigi, 13

20123 Milano

T. +39 02 36630418

E. segreteria@alessandrielotorto.it

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Viale Ancona, 19

30172 Venezia-Mestre

T. +39 041 5299016

E. segreteria@alessandrielotorto.it

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By appointment, Monday to Friday 9:00–19:00 · network of correspondents in Italy and abroad
First consultation

Let's talk.

Tell us what's happening. We reply within 24 hours on working days and arrange a first consultation, with a clear quote before we begin.

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