Michael E McHale

Michael E McHale

4.0
Rating: 4.4

Licensed for 20 years

Criminal defense Lawyer at Lancaster, PA
Practice Areas: Criminal Defense, Family

53 North Duke St., Suite 315, Lancaster, PA

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2019
See Details

About Michael

Biography

Practice Areas

2

Practice Areas

Fees and Rates

Cost

Free Consultation

$0 first 60 minutes


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Credit Card

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Licenses

Licensed in Pennsylvania for 20 years

State: Pennsylvania

Acquired: 2005

Suspended

Lawyer disciplined by state licensing authority in 2019

Location

McHale Law Group

53 North Duke St., Suite 315, Lancaster, PA, 17551

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Michael E McHale's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

4.0 /5.0

19 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (19) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.

Showing 1 - 5 of 19 reviews

Posted by Jose | May 12, 2025 | Hired Attorney

He’s a piece of crap

This guy is a scumbag. All he wants is your money. He doesn’t fight for you. He doesn’t do anything you tell him to do. He works with the county. He’s a CROOK. Do ever hire this fraud

Posted by anonymous | February 18, 2020 | Hired Attorney | Domestic Violence

Double books and doesn't show up. Should get zero stars

I used McHale for a bogus PFA and he didn't show for the hearing. I also had him hired for representation for custody and he was double booked and only made it by the skin of his teeth. The mediator was about to start without him. This is someone I whom I put my life and the lives of my children in t...heir hands to make sure my kids stayed safe and he barely makes it, as well as he was paid a good amount of money, money which I really didn't have a lot of having two small children to take care of. He should be ashamed of himself. He's a disgrace! Very unprofessional. Should have to reimburse all the clients he stiffed! TAKE A WORD OF ADVICE, FIND SOMEONE ELSE TO REPRESENT YOU, if and when he's back in business.

Posted by Robert | January 14, 2020 | Hired Attorney | Speeding & Traffic Ticket

Below Zero Stars if I could

I hired this Lawyer to represent me in a traffic citation case for speeding. This lawyer talked a good game, told me what I wanted to hear then showed up at court and barely spoke on my behalf. He represented me on a traffic citation, we went over exactly what happened and he said he thought it was a... bad stop due to poor visibility at night and the Cop was behind me a mile or so and could not have seen the lines in the road. He said we would win by out working the officer. I paid him and he never returned any of my calls regarding the case, he didn't do any research, he did nothing. He showed up in Court and the officer did not appear but his Chief did. The Chief told the Judge the Officer was transporting a prisoner picked up on a Governor's Warrant and would be late arriving and the lawyer didn't object or say anything. He seemed so intimidated by the Chief that the only thing he said, was "how about no points". Never mentioned that it was midnight when the cop pulled me over claiming to have clocked me with V-Spec in the dark, timing me between the white lines in the road. There were many other holes in the citation plus the cop didn't appear, the Chief wasn't even involved in the stop. The lawyer didn't exploit any of the holes in the citation so I wound up accepting a plea because I had ZERO confidence that this lawyer would speak up at all. If you ask me the Cops had such a weak case that the cop didn't even show to testify to the validity of the stop or the citation and they plea bargained me to 10 mph over the 45 mph speed limit circumventing the legislature and the law here in PA that theres a 10 mph exception when using electronic devices. He never said a word about being suspended until after the case when I got a letter offering refunds, he agreed to a full refund, I offered to accept a partial. He asked for some time I agreed. So as it turns out he lied then shut off his phones and never refunded me a dime. So I would not recommend this Lawyer to anyone. I only wish I knew he was being suspended for not adequately representing his previous clients. I could have...well actually I did represent myself more aggressively than he did.

Posted by LouAnn | June 06, 2019 | Hired Attorney | Divorce & Separation

Excellent Attorney

Michael McHale is an excellent Attorney. He took my case even though I had no money at the time and I desperately needed to be represented. I'm also using him for my divorce because he knows what he is doing and he cares about his clients.

Posted by Joseph | February 16, 2019 | Criminal Defense

Mr.

I Joseph Adam's, have known Mr. Mchale for a very long time and throughout them years he was always someone that would help ,and defend you . So when I started getting into trouble again I came to Mr. Mchale and hired him to help with my one case and he succeeded which I knew he would . Mr.Mchale and... his staff go above and beyond. Well while I was incarcerated new charges from last year came to light . And Mr. McHale knowing I was just released and lost everything decided to take this new case pro bono , not only his he a magnificent attorney who will fight for his clients , he is also a compassionate and thoughtful person who will help anyway he can like he always has .

See All Client Reviews

Michael E McHale's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Michael
Scott Michael Engstrom headshot
Scott Engstrom

Unknown lawyer | Oct 24

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Michael S. Waddington headshot
Michael Waddington

Criminal defense lawyer | Jun 06

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse Michael. He is a highly skilled attorney that is well respected in the legal community."

Justin C. Gearty Jr. headshot
Justin Gearty

Criminal defense lawyer | Feb 27

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"I endorse this lawyer."

View All Endorsements

No Endorsement Data Available Yet
This attorney hasn't created any attorney endorsements recently on Avvo.

Experience

Rating:  4.4 (Concern)

Professional misconduct

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2019.

Suspension issued in PA, 2019

updated on 10/30/2019

Suspended means an attorney lost his or her license to practice law for a period of time. The attorney typically returns to practicing law when the suspension expires.

Honors

2017

10 Best Attorneys, American Institute of Family Law Attorneys

Associations

2009 - Present

Lancaster Bar Association

Member

2006 - Present

American Bar Association

Member

2006 - Present

Pennsylvania Bar Association

Member

2006 - Present

Monroe County Bar Association

Member

Education

2005

Widener University School of Law

JD - Juris Doctor

2002

Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Languages

English

Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline
    This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2019
    Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution