If you are a father dealing with a high-conflict family law situation, Steve Brody, Timothy Brandner, and Mariana Kostova are the absolute best in the business. Gaining custody as a father in McHenry County can feel like an uphill battle, which is why your own preparation matters. This team acts as an absolute shield, but the key to our success was collaboration. I made sure to actively participate as a reliable teammate, delivering solid, verified proof to support our case while following through on every promise made to the court. They focus entirely on the best interests of the child, handling difficult dynamics effortlessly. They take your dedication, pair it with their unmatched courtroom skill, and deliver results. Five stars isn't enough for the peace of mind they provided my daughter and me. read more

We had a bad experience with 2 lawyers. They wanted our money but did not seem to think our grandson was innocent. They kept asking us to say he was guilty of a lesser charge when really, he was innocent. Steve met with us on a Saturday. He listened and he looked at the evidence. Steve took it to court and the charges were dismissed. I would HIGHLY recommend Brody Brandner read more

From the first consultation, Steve Brody made us feel heard and supported. He explained everything clearly, laid out our options, and handled all the communication on our behalf. It was such a relief knowing someone so experienced was in our corner. Steve not only helped us resolve the issue, but also made sure we understood our rights and how to avoid similar issues in the future. If you're facing a situation where you need a trustworthy lawyer, I highly recommend his firm. Legal issues can be overwhelming, but they made the process smooth and much less stressful. read more

After three months of negligible progress and virtually no communication--despite being told my case would take about six weeks--I dismissed Steve Brody and retained a new firm. I initially hired the firm in early June after a positive consultation with Tim, who assured me my amicable divorce would be quick and straightforward. My ex and I had already agreed on a parenting plan and asset division; I only needed legal review. In three months, Steve spoke with me once (June 28), during which he suggested filing a counter-petition, but I told him this was not needed since we already had a plan in place. I submitted my financial affidavit, and my ex promptly provided hers and our parenting plan, yet Steve never followed up to review these key documents. In late August, I learned from my ex that her attorney had not received my affidavit and that a court hearing was scheduled in three days. Steve failed to notify me of the hearing or provide any updates despite repeated emails. At the hearing, he reportedly told the judge he needed more time to respond and to file a counter-petition, directly contradicting my instructions. I repeatedly emailed Steve and his assistant Anna without replies (see timeline below) and ultimately requested that Tim take over my case. Though Tim acknowledged my concerns, no follow-up from Steve occurred, and on September 4 I ended Steve's representation. Below is a record of calls/emails to Steve's office that went unanswered: 7/1: email to Steve with a question about my financial affidavit. No reply 7/23: email to Anna asking for the status of my financial affidavit. No reply. 8/14: email to Anna asking what happens next, since my financials were submitted. No reply 8/22: follow-up to Anna asking if she saw my previous emails. No reply 8/25: email to Steve asking about the status of my case. No reply 8/26: email to Steve sharing my concern about the lack of communication, what would happen in court in 3 days, and for an update as to what happens next in my case. No reply 8/27: emailed Steve 4 specific questions about my case, and told him I'd like a reply by the end of the day. He responded that he would call me that evening. No call was received. 8/28: email to Steve indicating that I never received a call from him. I still want the info requested. No reply 9/4: notified Steve that he will no longer be representing me Steve's lack of communication and inaction were unprofessional and unacceptable. By contrast, my new attorney accomplished more for me in two weeks than Steve did in three months. If you need to verify Steve's level of professionalism, simply go look at their FB page. read more

Steven Brody is representing my son as he navigates through a 4 year probation period. My son has struggled in recent years in a toxic relationship and slid into a state of depression and addictive behaviors that resulted in my son violating his probation. Steve provided honest but stern consultation with my son and advised him what he needs to do to show the court that he is on a successful path to recovery. While the case is still pending final judgement, Steve presented a professional and concise argument to the status of my son's recovery against a prosecution that clearly wanted the probation revoked. Thanks to Steve knowledge, experience and professionalism, my son is still on probation, successfully active in his IOP and other meetings, and no longer in a severe state of depression. I highly recommend the Brody Brandner team. read more

I needed legal help for a simple QUILDRO. Found Steven online and visited him on the following Saturday in December 2021. He quoted $500. I wrote him a check for $1000 as I would be hiring him for a modification for my divorce decree. At the time my ex was willing. He handed it off to one of his aides (Anna). They then began the process of filing the request and blowing us off, ignoring us and being dishonest about getting back to us. The whole process pissed my ex off and is now unwilling to listen. I've never been rude or disrespectful to Steven or Anna during our correspondence and am perplexed as to why they would treat me so badly. "If you can't be trusted with the small things, how can you be trusted with the big things". Do yourselves a favor. Avoid this crook! read more

Steven Brody helped me tremendously after an extremely traumatic time in my life. He did so professionally and compassionately. I would recommend him and his associate to anyone in need of serious legal representation. Steven is compassionate, real, genuine and driven. He reassured me during this time of needing a lawyer and helped me keep my head on straight. He genuinely cares and listens. Steven lead to a successful finish. I am truly grateful for him and his associate for the outcome of my case. Call this Law firm, you WILL be represented with an incredible level of experience and knowledge. read more

Disregard any negative reviews. Those people are probably very difficult to work with. Worth every penny. I initially hired Tim Brander to work with an order of protection I had filed against me. My particular situation was incredibly confusing and had many pieces at work. I was so impressed by Tim's clear confidence and knowledge that i decided to hired Tim and Steve to handle my juvenile case. A year long battle it turned out to be. Over time my case was soon handle through Steve mostly. I hope I never will need them again, but if I do, the Brody Brandner firm are my lifetime attorneys. Steve's experience was obvious and he's like a wizard! I followed his exact instructions and I came out victorious. If you do what Steve or Tim tells you to do, i'm very confident to say that you will also win your case. They will put up one hell of a fight for you. Also, there staff were always very quick about updating you with important information about the case. 12/10 review! Sincerely, thank you so much Steve and Tim for your efforts! read more

Steve represented me in my divorce. My ex-husband is a lawyer and was trying to dominate me and tell me what I was entitled to. At first, I believed him, but then after talking to Steve, I realized that my ex was just trying to take advantage of me. Steve helped guide me through the situation and when all was done, I received all that I was entitled to including primary residence of my children, child support and guideline maintenance. read more

I hired Steve for a complex juvenile case that involved coordination amongst legal counsel for myself and my husband. Steve was amazing throughout the whole process. He worked hard at advocating for the reunification of my family and I would recommend him hands-down. He's a shark in the courtroom and really knows the in's and out's of the family/ juvenile system. read more

Steve Brody is easily the worst lawyer I have ever come across in my life. I hired him to represent me in a BK proceeding after my ex left me in severe debt after a nasty divorce. He made a paperwork error on my BK petition (inputting the wrong income), and then did not inform me of an important meeting with the trustee which I missed as a result. These mistakes caused my case to get tossed out of court. He did not refund my $2800. I got a new lawyer and re-filed, but it was tossed out again because of prejudice for the prior attempt. Now i have two BKs on my record, and zero relief. Steve, if you read this, just know how much you let me down and how much your actions have had a negative consequence on my life and finances. I trusted you. The least you could have done is refunded me. those of you considering hiring him, make sure to look past all of the probably fake positive reviews until you get to the real ones at the bottom. His response: my mistake is your fault cause you should have caught it. Nice. read more

If I could give more than 5 stars I would!!! Steven and Tim are a fantastic team! From day one to yesterday's victory I watched Tim's determination and knowledge/skills to never giving up on my sister and the truth! Tim, once he's in that court room nothing else counts but the truth! The knowledge and language used by Tim, words cannot even describe. Very professional, friendly, response times are super fast. Tim and Steven made sure my sister understood the whole process. This Law Firm is highly recommended by myself, my sister and the rest of the family/team. read more

Steve Brody and associates is a great firm to work with and everyone is a professional, you will not be disappointed.

I retained Steve and Tim to represent me concerning an order of protection filed against me by an ex-girlfriend, the allegations were very serious but false. I did not want any order against me. I was also very concerned about my reputation, Tim represented me at a highly contested hearing. He clearly knew the law and his way around the courtroom. After a long contested hearing, the judge ruled in my favor. I felt like I was exonerated and we proved the allegations were just lies. I am extremely pleased with the representation I received and strongly recommend both Steve and Tim! read more

I cannot say enough amazing things about both steven and Timothy. I was referred to Steven by another very reputable attorney and as soon as I sat down for my consultation I knew I was in the right hands. I felt safe. I watched Timothy fight for me as if he was fighting for his own truth, his own life. From the care and support they offer to the knowledge they bring to the table, they are an unstoppable team! Yesterdays victory and Timothy's will to fight for the truth is something I will forever be grateful for. Again, I cannot thank this firm enough! read more

"I hired Mr. Brandner to help me with an order of protection filed against me by a mentally ill close family member. He came highly recommended and did not disappoint. He sat with me on Zoom for over 2 hours just waiting for the judge to start our hearing! Mr. Brandner showed that the other side had no case, and so the judge dismissed the case without me even needing to put on a defense or any evidence. He was flexible, patient, and kept me informed throughout the entire process. If you need help on your restraining order, call Tim and Steve." read more

I originally retained Steve and his firm to represent me in 2013 to represent me in my divorce and child custody proceeding. Steve was successful and I was awarded sole custody of my son. My ex-wife appealed and we won that too. Two years later my ex-wife took me back to court again seeking custody of our son. Steve and his firm represented me again and the outcome was the same. Steven and his firm are both diligent and responsive. Most importantly, they know how to try a case and win. If you need a lawyer on your side, you should hire Steven J. Brody & Associates, Ltd. read more

I've enjoyed being represented by Steven, Esq. for the last couple of months through a very contentious divorce that got expedited under his legal guardianship. Steven, Esq. fights tirelessly not just for what's fair for you but for what's right. The only way I received anything approximating fair resulted from Steven's legal skill and ferocity. He is an amazing lawyer. I highly recommend him if your divorce is stuck in chaos or uncharted territories. He is a man of his word. read more

Very unprofessional. A taker. Beware. This office comes off as caring and friendly. Not. Adds to your bill without letting you know until charges have reached an unpayable amount. Wish I had money to hire a malpractice attorney as I surely would. Shame on this hurtful taking man. read more

I needed some legal advice about a summons I received. I searched the internet and found this lawyer who was close to my home. I was able to make an appointment within a week of calling. However, that is the only good thing that came from this experience. When I arrived I immediately could tell that he was in a hurry. I spent more time trying to get is puppy to stop chewing my pants then I did talking to him about my questions. He only asked me three questions and stated "I can't help you." I then asked if he could explain the summons to me and he looked at the forms for a mere 15 seconds and said " Um, yeah you need to go to court." I was so frustrated that I said thanks and left. If you are seriously looking for some legal advice, I would highly recommend staying away from this guy! read more

Stay away from Steve Brody!! During my first meeting with him, he was working on an on-line course at the same time that we were having our meeting, and he still billed me for the full time. I had to fix all of the initial paperwork that was sent to me because it had another client's information on it. He over-billed me for time that we met, encourages clients to file motions that drag the case out (so he can collect more fees) and would not respond to numerous messages left at his office or e-mail for weeks. He finally called me the morning of my court date after my wife's attorney called him and said that he was going to court to represent both of us since he wouldn't respond to my messages. But of course he still billed me over $500 for the court visit. He only cares about putting money in his pocket, not representing the best interests of his clients. read more

TERRIBLE TERRIBLE TERRIBLE . Very disorganized and not prepared for court. It took him almost two years to get a simple child support issue resolved way after the divorce was finalized. Will keep pushing things off just to run up his fees. His games and irresponsibility will cost you. Stay away from him. read more

Steve helped me with a difficult custody situation where my ex-wife had primary residential custody of our youngest 2 children. She refused to force them to go to school or do homework. She also failed to ensure one of the took his daily medication which caused him to become ill and hospitalized. Steve filed the right petitions and after an 11 month battle my ex-wife knew she it was time to give up residential placement of our two youngest children. They are now thriving in my care. Steve's assistance was critical in removing my children from their mother's care and allowing me to the opportunity to provide them the care and environment they need. read more

I wish Yelp had a designation of zero stars for Mr. Brody. I hired Mr. Brody as my attorney as the defendant in my divorce. He was actually recommended to me by a childhood friend that works in the same county, as an attorney who would be good against my ex-husband's divorce attorney. Bottom line, he was so difficult to deal with, terrible about returning phone calls and texts, very disorganized at trial, overbilled me by $10,000, he failed to file needed dissipation and Exclusive Possession motions, so I lost on almost every issue, and in the end refused to take monthly installments as originally agreed. Instead, he filed a judgment for his fees against me, a nonwage garnishment, a wage garnishment and he put a lien on my house! He was able to freeze my assets because he knew where I had my bank account from the divorce discovery process. Mind you, I'm a single mom with four children, receiving child support, yet he impoverished me during the course of the court proceedings and held up the sale of my house for weeks. What a guy! Don't use this guy, he's not worth your pain. If you have a him as an attorney currently, change banks immediately following your divorce!! Please tell your divorcing friends not to use him either, just not worth it read more

A big mistake on my part-recommended by a business associate who is a relative of Brody-he didn't show in court several times-1 time resulting in a $20,000 judgment against me- he made excuses-said he'd take care of it @ next hearing-I asked to reschedule it as I was to be 750 miles away-he said it was ok he'd take care of it- he called me when I was out of state -said judge ruled I pay the $20K to my ex's lawyer and pay him $20K-I asked why-he wouldn't explain-saying that was just how she ruled--I returned to IL found myself facing a contempt hearing filed by ex's lawyer-Brody didn't show- I paid the $-afterwards I got a copy of the judges order-found out he entered an agreed upon motion with her lawyer for me to pay the $40,000-I went to his ofc-saw his brand new SUV there-fired him asked for my file and my $20,000 to him back-he never returned my file or $-refused to take any action to withdraw from case after several calls from me-but kept billing me until he used up the bulk of the $20,000-then he withdrew as my counsel-I had found out my ex was hiding near $250,000 of casino losses-had $146,000 out on credit cards I didn't know she had-judge asked for proof-I had given Brody the proof-I found out he never filed the proof with the court- I ended up suing him for negligence & malpractice-due to health problems-I settled out of court for over $60,000. In my opinion-if he didn't have a law license-he would either be in jail or homeless...hire him at your own risk read more