PAULINA FORREST is a graduate of the University of Central Florida (B.A., 2007) and Florida Coastal School of Law (J.D., 2010). She graduated law school with High Honors and High Distinctions. Prior to establishing the Law Office of Forrest & Forrest, PLLC, Ms. Forrest was the Appellate and Training Attorney for the Fourth District of Florida Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel.
In 2023, Ms. Forrest was selected for inclusion to Super Lawyers® Magazine, an honor afforded to no more than 5% percent of lawyers in Florida who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
Ms. Forrest has received Martindale-Hubbell's esteemed "AV- Preeminent" rating, which recognizes lawyers with the highest ethical standards and professional ability.
She has been selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers® (“Rising Stars”) Magazine for 2018, 2019, and 2020, an honor afforded to no more than 2.5% percent of lawyers in Florida.
Ms. Forrest was honored with the distinction of receiving 5.0 out of 5.0 Overall Peer Rating in Family Law, which is the highest possible ranking given by Martindale-Hubble and serves a testament to the fact that fellow attorneys consider Ms. Forrest at the highest level of professional excellence. Only a select group of attorneys are ever awarded with this premier distinction.
Ms. Forrest authored Chapter 4 (Jurisdiction in Child Custody Cases) of the 14th and 15th Editions of The Florida Bar’s complete guide to dissolution of marriage, entitled, Florida Dissolution of Marriage.
Ms. Forrest devotes her practice to any and all matrimonial, and family law matters, including divorce, adoption, dependency, paternity, adoption, premarital agreements, domestic violence, enforcement, contempt, alimony, child support, custody, visitation, parenting plans, time-sharing, equitable distribution, property division, restraining orders, mediation, post-judgment modifications, Agency Adoptions, Annulments, Assisted Reproductive Technology, Child Abduction, Child Abuse and Neglect, Child Advocacy, Child Dependency, Cohabitation Agreements, surrogacy arrangement, Collaborative Family Law, Domestic Violence, Gay and Lesbian Family Law, International Adoptions, Independent Adoptions, Interstate Adoptions, Juvenile Dependency, Juvenile Law, Same Sex Marriage, Step Parent Adoptions, Surrogacy Law, and Termination of Parental Rights.
Her legal career began assisting indigent persons entitled to counsel in dependency cases, defending the civil rights of parents throughout the State of Florida. She was drawn to the importance of the work, and the State’s need for quality attorneys to be a voice for people who are usually ignored. She has litigated cases involving a wide spectrum of vulnerable populations. It is and will always be her passion to bring families torn apart by substance abuse or mental health issues together again. She has personally tried cases involving mental health disorders, substance abuse sufferers, termination of parental rights, and guardianships of vulnerable adults. She has been a frequent lecturer on dependency law.
