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Val Lewis

Val was born and has lived and worked in the Hamilton area all of her life.  After spending many years as part of the working world in different capacities, she has turned her attention to helping people to solve the financial problems of couples either getting together or separating.

She uses her understanding of numbers from doing the books in the family business for 20 years, and her insights learned from running her own fashion business to help her clients understand their new financial realities. 

In 1993 she went to work with an investment company as a financial planner, and in 1997 took the option of upgrading her skills by taking six strenuous courses to become a Certified Financial Planner.

Val came to realize that more and more of her practice was in the areas of financial advice to clients going into second marriages or living together, getting divorced, setting up estate plans and trusts.  This was not mandated by the company she worked with so she resigned and has chosen to take further training as a Certified Financial Divorce Specialist (2003) and in 2004 Val took her training in Collaborative Divorce. With all these skills and a heart to serve, Val decided to open her own company, Transitions.

‘Transitions’ is about giving people options so they can make informed financial decisions. Val explains, “When people are emotionally charged, the last thing they think about is how this will affect them long term.” She looks for easily understood solutions that will lead to financial stability. Having a good agreement going into a relationship means less stress for both involved and if there is a breakdown the terms are already in place.

Val can make sense out of all the numbers for both sides of the dispute, and can offer reasonable solutions for all concerned. She works with both traditional and Collaborative Lawyers, Child Care Specialists and Divorce Coaches. Her work takes her from the Niagara area to Hamilton – Halton and points beyond.

All of her consulting is episodic where she deals with one part of a lifecycle. It can be through co-habitation agreement, pre-nuptial planning, divorce strategies, or estate planning. She works strictly for the client, offering her services as “fee for service” and there is no need to change from the financial planner or institution currently being used.

Whatever the situation, Val is there to help. As a long time victim services volunteer she is trained to address delicate situations. She offers unbiased options. Her sense of fair play allows her to help both sides in the end, making “life’s transitions” a lot easier to handle.