About Us

Mary Ann graduated from Rutgers University with honors and Seton Hall  University School of Law Cum Laude. She was admitted to practice in New  Jersey in 1988 and is also admitted to practice in the U.S. District  Court for the District of New Jersey, the New Jersey Supreme Court, and  the U.S. Supreme Court. She served as a law clerk for a Superior Court  Judge from 1988 to 1989, during one-half of which time he was assigned  to the Family Part. She is a certified matrimonial attorney and was  elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in  2009. 

 Mary Ann is a former President of the Somerset County Bar Association  and a member of the New Jersey Bar Association Family Law Section. She  has served on the Somerset County Family Law Committee and served as  co-Chair of the Hunterdon County Family Practice Committee. She also served on the Hunterdon County Alternate Dispute Resolution Committee  and Collaborative Law Committee. She is a member of the New Jersey  Collaborative Law Group and International Association of Collaborative  Professionals. She is the former Chair of the District XIII Fee Arbitration Committee and serves on the Somerset and Hunterdon County Early Settlement Panels. She was a barrister in the Family Law Inns of  Court for Central New Jersey. She was also an Associate Professor at  Raritan Valley Community College where she taught family law. Lastly, she has spoken at numerous seminars focused on family law topics. 

 Steven J. Karch, Esq. is Partner/Co-Founder of Bauer & Karch Law Group, LLC. Mr. Karch is admitted to practice law in New Jersey and the United States District Court, District of New Jersey. Mr. Karch concentrates the majority of his practice in the area of Family and Divorce Law, including custody and parenting time, alimony, child support, equitable distribution, domestic violence trials, post-judgment issues, and pre-nuptial agreements. He is trained in Collaborative Divorce and a family law mediator. He is a past chairperson for the Warren County Family Law Committee.

In 2002, Mr. Karch earned his J.D. from Rutgers University School of Law-Newark. While in law school, Mr. Karch volunteered at Warren County Legal Services in Belvidere, New Jersey. Upon graduating law school, he clerked for the Honorable Amy O’Connor, J.S.C., Superior Court, Chancery Division-Family Part, Warren County and thereafter joined a firm in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. In 2013 he joined a firm in Lebanon and became partner in 2017. In 1992, he graduated from Wilkes University with a B.A. (double major in History and Political Science). While at Wilkes, Mr. Karch was a member of the Colonel Tennis Team. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Karch worked in the financial services industry and in his spare time, he enjoys skiing, golf, fly fishing, hockey and visiting national parks.

Bar Admission
New Jersey – 2002
United States District Court, District of New Jersey – 2002

Education, Training, Experience
Rutgers School of Law-Newark, J.D. – 2002
Wilkes University- B.A. (double major in History & Political Science) -1992
Family Law Mediator and trained in Collaborative Divorce
Early Settlement Panelist-Warren County/Hunterdon County

Mary Ann and Steven's expertise is family law, particularly in the areas of  divorce, custody, and domestic violence. Both area trained collaborative  law attorneys as well as a mediators. Mary Ann is al a trained arbitrator. Both attorneys have  a vast array  of experience in all family law matters and all methods of resolution.