What My Clients Say
i called sheila harrington's office in search of an estate attorney and was in the process of leaving a voicemail when she picked up the line. (i've left voicemails for other attorneys and have not received any call backs.) sheila was kind enough to let me know this is not an area of law she practices and spent time referring me to two other attorneys she felt comfortable with their work and demeanor. in the short conversation i had with her, i felt comfortable going back to sheila if i needed her services. sometimes good people deserve positive feedback! thanks for pointing me in the right direction sheila!
Edward C.
Several years ago, Sheila helped my ex- and I though our divorce.
She kept us in the room until we settled, through multiple mediation conferences, which were frequently contested and emotional.
I thought that was quite an accomplishment, PLUS her fees are very modest, compared with other estimates that we were given.
I highly recommend Ms. Harrington for any case where the two parties are willing to mediate.
David K.
Gave great advise and when she realized she would not be able to help, she recommended 3 referrals.
Amanda M.
I had an opportunity to speak with her regarding using her services. She was nice and patient. Unfortunately the meeting never happened as my spouse cancelled the last minute. But I sensed that it would have been a good experience and outcome for both me and my wife. Not mentioning the money we would have saved as a result.
O L.
I highly recommend Sheila for any family law matters and divorce process. Sheila is extremely helpful, competent and professional lawyer.
Anna E.
I visited Ms. Harrington's practice to seek advice on palimony eligibility within the state of California. Ms. Harrington is a very attentive listener, who made copious notes. She proved to be very understanding and intuitive. She was able to present a very balanced perspective, as she was to the point and was able to weed through my ramblings to what was relevant.
What I admired most though was this was the free half hour consultation- she did not attempt to stretch the time out or state I should come back, or accept my offer for payment for her time and advice. She stood by her principles that it was a free consultation. This is the mark of a true, sincere, honest professional. She weighed my case through legal and moral lenses and directed me to what was best for me.
It is against this background that I strongly recommend Ms. Harrington, as she has demonstrated excellent professionalism and a sense of fairness, making her ideally suited for resolving family issues. Moreover, the smile you see in the picture - is ever present, making the visit to a lawyer's, office ever so pleasant.
Rey L.
I retained Sheila's services to prepare a marital property agreement, which was needed to create a complex family trust. My spouse retained representation from another attorney, as is proper. Sheila was a pleasure to work with. She is very competent, good-humored and friendly. She worked collaboratively with the other attorney to arrive quickly at a mutually satisfactory agreement. The fees were very modest, and she returned the balance of the retainer promptly.
I see that another reviewer gave negative ratings, but it appears the person may have had rather naive expectations: Of course your attorney charges for her time - including phone calls: that's how they make a living. And it is your attorney's job to advise and represent you: if you don't like the guidance, perhaps what you want to do isn't legally defensible...
I've worked with many attorneys, on a variety of personal and business concerns. I would strongly recommend Sheila for any family law matters without hesitation.
Craig K.
Sheila was so professional, caring and honest. She gave very helpful advice on my divorce and specific steps I could take today toward preparing for my ex-husband's return from another country. She even recommended moving to the court system where I currently live (just outside of the Bay Area), when she probably could have found ways to charge me for long-distance advice. She kept our conversations quick and straight forward and went out of her way to contact colleagues in my area. I wish she lived up here! I absolutely recommend Sheila. Thank you for your help!
Andrea C.
We decided to scout around the top yelp-reviewed lawyers in our area. Sheila's name came up, and based on my interactions, I can happily say that she did not disappoint:
Things I really appreciated:
- Super quick to pick up the phone and/or respond to email.
- Took the time to understand the details of our situation even before signing a retainer
- Cared about our situation and was ready to work on our timeline (even offering to do some work on the weekend)
- Super friendly and polite
- Hastings alum with a wealth of experience
Based on my interactions, I strongly recommend her.
G N.
Extremely Professional! Knowledgeable. Brutally honest plus Incredible and very kind service. Highly recommended
Brenda J.
Extremely Professional! Knowledgeable. Brutally honest plus Incredible and very kind service. Highly recommended
Brenda J.
Shelia called me up today which was quick.
She did give me some info free of charge over the phone.
My situation cannot use mediation because my estranged husband
is not an honest person. Thank Sheila for a quick response.
Jennifer G.
Over ten years ago my wife and I worked with Sheila Harrington to mediate our divorce. I wanted to comment on just how "lasting" the mediation was. It's tough going through a divorce but mediation has proven itself to me to be the most civilized way to do it as long as you have a good mediator. Sheila was thorough. With her guidance through the process both my wife and I found agreement on how to end our relatively long term marriage, and how to begin a new chapter as "friends" going forward. Our mediation included discussions on every aspect of our marriage; children, home, savings, retirement. And yes it was hard discussing all those things. But that's the point; mediation led by Sheila allowed us to actually have that discussion of every detail without confusion and without being hurtful to each other. Here we are several years later and my ex-wife and I have a good relationship thanks to those facilitated discussions many years ago. I highly recommend Sheila to get through a divorce and to help build the foundation for a future relationship with your ex-spouse.
Robert C.
My wife and I worked with Sheila to draft a prenuptial agreement and she made it incredibly easy and straightforward. She was great at listening to how we wanted to set things up and also provided a ton of helpful guidance and education to further steer us in the right direction. We ended up with a prenup that was just what we wanted and that really aligned with the spirit of our partnership, which was really important to my wife and I as we did not want the experience of creating this prenup to negatively impact our relationship in any manner whatsoever. Sheila helped us produce a great final product and the experience that my wife and I had working together on this with Sheila, actually strengthened our relationship and was a great exercise for us in expressing our commitment to one another. I'd highly recommend working with Sheila!!!
Tyrone A.
Sheila was professional and thorough in her work. She made me feel comfort and confident about my decisions by educating me on relevant legal practices. I never felt pressured to make certain choices.
YuShin C.
I needed help with a prenup review in a short time frame and turned to Yelp to find a Menlo Park based family law attorney. Thanks to Yelp I found Sheila and got the prenup done in time for the wedding.
Negotiating a prenup can be awkward and uncomfortable. Throughout the negotiations Sheila was highly responsive, pleasant, professional and knowledgeable. She knew exactly what to ask for to protect my interests. She worked well with the other attorney and was able to get some provisions included in the agreement despite encountering resistance from the other side.
One of the best things about Sheila is how quickly she responds. She actually answers the phone in her office. She responds to emails even at night. She let me know ahead of time if she was not going to be available. Although I was tense about the prenup, Sheila's responsiveness put me at ease. I felt like I was in good hands and that she had the process under control. She was also willing to work within a very tight timeframe that fell over the Christmas holiday. Even on Christmas Eve she was revising documents.
Based on my experience, I highly recommend Sheila and her services.
DJ W.
I found Sheila to be compassionate and professional. She was flexible with scheduling and responded to calls and emails quickly. She clearly has a lot of experience and knows what she is doing. Unfortunately, my husband had his own agenda coming into mediation (he was not honest on his disclosure forms, misrepresented a tax situation, and was deceptive about his current financial situation) and it became clear that he was not there to mediate but instead to bully me into dissolving the marriage as quickly and cheaply as he could without honoring the terms of our prenup. Sheila set up a call to take charge of the situation and determine if we should continue with mediation but my husband cancelled it at the last minute and didn't respond to her request to reschedule. We waited a week for him to reschedule but he never replied. Rather than waste our time and his money, Sheila let us know that due to lack of trust we were not good candidates for mediation and suggested we hire our own attorneys to represent us. She could have dragged things out and continued to accrue billable hours but she was smart enough to know when one party wasn't going to mediate in good faith and terminated the mediation. Neither she nor I could have known from the outset that my husband was not going to be trustworthy through this process or I am sure she wouldn't have even accepted us as clients.
S G.
Sheila is absolutely wonderful! She is patient, understanding and caring. She helped me get through a very difficult time when I really some needed advice. If more attorneys are like her, I am sure there would be a lot less 'bad lawyer' jokes out there. I would highly recommend Sheila if you need an attorney skilled in family law and mediation!
Stan L.
I highly recommend Sheila Harrington as a top-notch mediator. I was a client of Sheila's over a protracted mediation period, more than 2 years, and she consistently was prepared to move to the next step of negotiation when the time was right. All paperwork filed with the court was first-pass accepted and Sheila kept me informed of progress. Her office is located in downtown Menlo Park with plenty of nearby parking (that's a stress-reducer!) and her meeting room is professional and private. At no time did I feel unrepresented in my mediation, but rather, knew I had a rockstar looking out for my interests.
Aimee C.
Oh Sheila, my angel! While I am not a licensed attorney, I do craft and review complex legal government contracts for a living and know excellence when I see it (not all lawyers are exellent...remember that and always perform due diligence) - Sheila is PHENOMENAL!
I'm lucky because I am sooo in love and got to go to her for a prenup - problem was, my fiance and I got to her a little late, yet she was so professional, quick/responsive, provided clear instructions and advice, asked all the right questions, always two steps ahead, listened to our needs - what a breath of fresh air! Very easy process!
Sheila is an absolute EXPERT in marriage and family law (and probably lots of other things, she is so sharp wouldn't be surprised if she built like rockets for NASA on the weekends thats how brilliant she is), I couldn't possibly over-recommend her. I even found out through this process while bragging about her to a friend that she also represented another friend in a divorce and that friend was also very pleased.
If you have complex marriage and family law issues or would like a prenup, you absolutely want Sheila on your side. I sincerely hope to never work with her again because that'd mean my life became a hot mess, but if something did happen I know exactly who I'd call!!