Celia J. Harned

Mrs. Harned was appointed to my case by the Denver courts. I had read the reviews and considered the negative ones as anyone would; but everyone should be given a fair chance and a person should never be condemned based on what others say. Unfortunately, in this line of work, one person is going to b...e the "winner" and the other the "loser". I was the " loser". So, as others on here, I could have an axe to grind...or I could be fair and appreciate what she did do. My ex LEGALLY kidnapped my children and the laws prevented me from getting them back. Basically, my children were smuggled out of state without my knowledge or consent, AFTER I had filed for divorce AND she refused service of divorce documents.(all documented and filed with court). My wife and I had zero contact and I spent 2.5 months without any contact with my kids. But Mrs. Harned was a shining star in a dark world. She was the only one who listened to me, and didn't judge me because I'm a black male accused of horrible stuff. Over a 6 month period fighting for my children and 100% of my motions were denied, but my wife was granted almost anything she asked for. I felt helpless because I'm poor. And my demographic makes some folks uncomfortable and subconscious biases dictate decision making. Mrs. Harned got us to finally communicate and I was rightfully put back into my children's lives. She recommended in her plan that I get to talk to them a few times a week, I'm to get weekly updates, and be involved in ALL decision making for them. Plus, very liberal visitation. It couldn't have been a better plan given the situation. Mrs. Harned realized I'd been railroaded and that fathers matter too. Her plan was fair and honest, because it was inclusive. I was/am not a monster and the plan reflected that. All one had to do was follow the evidence and the truth was obvious. My ex is terribly dishonest, conniving, controlling, and very mean. I believe Mrs. Harned saw some of that throughout this process and she helped me when nobody else would. To this day, my ex has faced 0 consequences for her actions and was considered a good person and credible from the judge. Talk about not paying attention and bias. He saw me, but didn't see me. Declaring me indigent on one hand, but takes 82% of my income in final orders is hardly fair thus destroying the helpful plan Mrs. Harned put forth to involve me in my children's lives, but its just another example of a long list of unbelievable rulings. I also have to give her some money for the time she disappeared with my kids and refused to let me see or talk to them for 2.5 months. Can anyone else live on $300 a month in Colorado?? Didn't think so. But that's for a different forum on another day. I'm proud to have had Mrs. Harned on my case! Too often folks will complain about bad service or voice displeasure but we rarely give thanks. Thank you Mrs. Harned for everything you did for me and my children. Thank you for realizing children need dads too, even the really poor ones. And to those who bashed this woman and wrote mean things- shame on you. Maybe things didn't go your way because of the judge, or you weren't entirely truthful or the laws just suck. I was the "loser" too, but i tell it like it is, and she is deserving of 5 stars. She represented what our legal system is supposed to uphold!

Please do not use this woman as a CFI for your case. The fact that her title says she cares about the kids is so far from the truth. I personally hired Celia for our custody case. She met with the opposing party first and was against me from the start. Every member of my family she spoke with sai...d she was rude, interruptive, and very unprofessional. Someone in this position should be able to take out the emotions from the case and look at the facts. She did none of this. My daughter, who was 10 at the time, said that the entire time she spoke face to face with Celia, Celia seemed very disconnected and wasn't really paying attention. She would interrupt her and almost guide her to certain answers. My daughter was in tears from their meeting. Celia's recommendations for our case were so far from what either party were even going for. She planted these ideas in the opposing parties head that had never even come up in the case. After submitting her recommendations to the court, there were so many grammatical errors as well as false information. It seemed like she didn't even take the time to carefully write things out and review them. Since the case, my life has been flipped upside down and my daughter is now facing so many challenges in her young life that were never there before. She is facing things that she should never have to face. She was a happy and vibrant child and is now struggling day to day. We are now having to look at therapy to help her face some of these struggles.

y'all sound like some bitter ex's who didn't get their way in court probably because what you wanted want's in the best interest of your child. Celia handled a difficult case for our family and was able to shift through the hurt, hate and bad intentions to act in accordance with the child's best inte...rest. in hindsight she was 100% right and fair and our family as we know it owes her a debt of gratitude.

Celia Harned was assigned by the Denver District Court as a CFI for my case which, iniitially, was a minor dispute between co-parents. The court ignored their own order for mediation and proceeded to assign Celia Harned as CFI. The reports are true, the only thing Celia Harned is concerned about is... the money. She refused to talk with me until she had received and cashed my retainer fee. When she finally granted me an initial interview, she shuffled me out of her office after 45 minutes, yet her final bill shows that she met with me for 2.4 hours. In her home visit with me, she arrived 1 hour late, only stayed for 50 minutes, yet she billed me another 2.4 hours. During her home visit, she watched my children eat dinner, then played "hide and seek" with them for 10 minutes while I was required to leave the house. The only billing she was correct on, was the final conference with me, by phone only. Yes, I was only allowed 3 conferences, and this took 6 months. At no time did Celia Harned inform me about issues that were brought up from my ex, nor did she investigate issues that I had brought to her attention regarding the children. The issues brought up by my ex were never brought up in the original motion that brought Celia Harned into the case, so I had no idea about them. The most important thing is, Celia Harned did NOT even interview the children regarding any issues, nor did she spend the time necessary to find out what the children's wishes were, or what problems they were having. This "IS" what it's all about, right? Celia Harned's report to the court and recommendations were completely biased and based soley on issues that were never discussed with me. On top of furnishing an incompetant report, she overstepped her own orders by issuing recommendations regarding issues not requested in the original motion. Overall, if you end up using Celia Harned, you will find that she is unable to remain neutral and is easily swayed. She will not discuss, equally with both sides or share problems brought up. She is not concerned about what is in the best interests of the children, nor will she consider their wishes. Celia Harned has no business acting as an attorney let alone a CFI, and if she finds it necessary to continue in this line of work, she should at least attend some form of formal training. She needs it. Celia Harned has done more harm and created more conflict in my children's life then they had before her arrival. This will take years and thousands of dollars to resolve.

I am amazed to find that Celia Harned is still practicing from the overwhelmingly similar stories from the many that have used her, or were suggested to use her, then to find that you were stuck with her absolute incompetence. Every instance that was discussed in the above reviews, happened to us in... our child custody case; misspelling the CHILDREN'S names, not speaking to witnesses until the last minute only to exclude crucial testimony, inaccurate and malicious remembrances of events, and eliminating crucial details where the childrens' safety was involved, perjuring herself on the witness stand, having vital information and not disclosing it to the Court, and on, and on, and on. It is such a shame that a person like this, that you are supposed to trust to be just and fair, can have such an irreparable effect on our childrens' lives, prove time and time again the same incompetence and still be allowed to practice. It is heartbreaking, what she did, and continues to do, to our family. Our children are now struggling through the ultimate decision that she made for them, and we wish that she never would have been involved in our lives. Please continue to speak out about Celia Harned, and maybe someday justice will be served on our behalf and those that have been subject to her.