Joe Spirito, Erin McGaughey and Lauren Bass have been selected to the 2026 Southern California Super Lawyers list. Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.  We are also proud to announce the selection of Alison Spirito to the 2026 Southern California Rising Stars list.

These recognitions are awarded only to a select number of accomplished attorneys in each state. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates, and peer reviews by practice area. The result is a credible, comprehensive, and diverse listing of exceptional attorneys.

This is Erin’s ninth consecutive year being selected for inclusion, Alison’s fourth consecutive year, Lauren’s initial recognition, and Joe’s twenty-first consecutive inclusion. Congratulations to all!

Each year, Super Lawyers recognizes the top lawyers in Southern California via a patented multiphase selection process involving peer nomination, independent research, and peer evaluation. Including her selection for 2026, Erin McGaughey has been selected for inclusion and recognition as a top lawyer for nine consecutive years in the practice area of family law.

The top-rated Southern California lawyers are further recognized in the elite Southern California Super Lawyers Top Lists. This year, in addition to the honor of being rated as a top lawyer, Erin has also been recognized as one of the Top 50 women attorneys in Southern California across all practice areas of the law. This is the fifth year Erin has received this accolade, and she is one of only a handful or so family lawyer attorneys to be included. So well deserved. Congratulations Erin on this tremendous accomplishment!

 Congratulations to Sean whose article about preparing for domestic violence restraining order hearings was published in Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine.

Well done Sean ! The article can be read here.

McGaughey & Spirito was named a preeminent Tier 1 Family Law firm for the Los Angeles region in the 2026 edition of Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms”. M&S is the largest family law firm in the South Bay located in the Riviera Village of Redondo Beach, providing professional services throughout the County of Los Angeles as well as Orange County.

This 2026 recognition marks the twelfth consecutive year that the firm has been awarded a Tier 1 ranking for Family Law, the highest possible ranking.  McGaughey & Spirito was one of only twenty-six family law firms in the greater Los Angeles region to receive this honor.

Congratulations to the entire team at McGaughey & Spirito!

Alison Spirito is welcomed as a partner at McGaughey & Spirito. Well deserved, and congratulations, Alison !

Erin McGaughey, Joe Spirito and Lauren Bass were selected by their peers for inclusion in the 2026 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America® for their work in Family Law. The Best Lawyers in America highlights only the top practicing attorneys in the United States. Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. This is the seventh consecutive year that Erin was selected, the fourteenth consecutive year of inclusion for Joe, and Lauren’s third year in a row of recognition.

Congratulations to Erin, Joe, and Lauren!

McGaughey & Spirito is very pleased to announce that Alison Spirito has been included in the 2026 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America. Alison has been recognized in the practice areas of Family Law and in Family Law Mediation. This is the third consecutive year that Alison received this honor recognizing her expertise In Family Law and as a Family Law Mediator.

The Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America recognizes associates and other lawyers who are early in their careers for their outstanding professional excellence in private practice in the United States. “The unparalleled methodology of Best Lawyers ensures the value and esteem of our legal rankings through both our traditional awards and our expanded ‘Ones to Watch’ accolades,” said Best Lawyers CEO Phillip Greer. “Clients trust Best Lawyers as a credible and reliable way to identify the most elite lawyers, and it is with great pride that we continue to provide this valued service in the country.”

Congratulations Alison, an amazing accomplishment!

Each year, Super Lawyers recognizes the top lawyers in Southern California via a patented multiphase selection process involving peer nomination, independent research, and peer evaluation. Including her selection for 2025, Erin McGaughey has been selected for inclusion and recognition as a top lawyer for eight consecutive years in the practice area of family law.

The top-rated Southern California lawyers are further recognized in Southern California Super Lawyers Top Lists. This year, in addition to the honor of being rated as a top lawyer, Erin has also been recognized as one of the Top 50 women attorneys in Southern California across all practice areas of the law. This is the fourth year Erin has received this accolade, which is so well deserved. Congratulations Erin on this tremendous accomplishment!

Congratulations to Sean Burch who was sworn in as member of the California State Bar on Nov 20, 2024. Sean graduated summa cum laude from California State University, Northridge in 2020 with a B.A. in political science.  He graduated from Loyola Law School with a J.D. in 2024.

Sean is now representing clients of McGaughey and Spirito’s family law litigation team on a broad spectrum of matters, including restraining orders, divorces, and custody disputes.

During Sean’s three years of legal study, he prepared to represent family law clients with excellence. Sean served as a judicial extern for Los Angeles County supervising family law judge, the Honorable Amy M. Pellman.  He was selected for Loyola Law School’s Collaborative Family Law Clinic where he received hands on experience alongside Los Angeles’ leading family law attorneys, mental health experts and other professionals. Sean participated in Loyola’s Child & Family Law Society and served as a law clerk for a well-respected civil litigation firm and McGaughey & Spirito.

Congrats Sean and welcome onboard!

Lauren helped build and develop California family law forms for Lexis Practical Guidance published by LexisNexis, a preeminent provider of legal information for attorneys. These forms include templates for judgments, orders, motions, discovery requests, and letters common in family law cases. An amazing honor to be asked by LexisNexis to contribute to their family law practice guide.

Congratulations Lauren!