Araceli Amaya

My first impression of Araceli was that she was knowledgeable, experienced, and professional. I came out of our initial consultation expecting that she would be able to help me through my challenging divorce situation. However, Araceli delegates much of her legal work to her Associate Attorney The...a Reinert, who is much less experienced and less competent (but charges nearly the same hourly rate!). Thea did some research and wrote some memos which left a lot of important questions unanswered. I asked Araceli some follow up questions, and her explanations were very clear. Unfortunately, Araceli's elucidation revealed that Thea's research turned out to be pretty much irrelevant to my case. After several interactions, I was left with the feeling that Araceli and her team were not going to be helpful to me. I had hoped to find a lawyer that would listen to the facts of my case and then help me figure out the best strategy to achieve my goals. Instead, at best I could ask specific legal questions and (if Araceli herself were answering) expect a clear analysis of the fine points of family law. There was a minor disputed charge. One of Thea's memos was inaccurate due to a miscommunication within their team. Although she said she would amend the memo at no charge, I was still billed $75 (that's 12 minutes) for Thea's one-line email that sent the amended memo. But if the rest of my experience with Araceli had been better, this would not be worth mentioning. There's one other thing. As a domestic abuse survivor, I wish Araceli had displayed a little more sympathy in our interactions. Maybe she just has a very clinical style, but I just didn't feel seen when I was describing what is maybe the most traumatic event of my life. There was very little compassion for my suffering, no anger at my abuser (that I perceived). I would have thought anyone would be motivated to help someone in my situation just out of human empathy, but as I said, she was more of a legal resource to me than an advocate. I don't have a lot of experience with lawyers, so maybe this is normal, but to me it felt very off-putting.

I hired Araceli after my first attorney became a family law commissioner and had to find another attorney for myself. I had dealt with long term emotional and physical abuse and my ex had an ongoing domestic violence case against him. Araceli and team were God sent at a time when I was also dealing w...ith a major health issue and custody issues. They were compassionate and understanding of what I was going through. Araceli listened and understood my point of view when I had concerns. She also was diligent enough to explain some legal aspects of my case. She was honest in explaining outcomes at different stages and that was very important for me. She may not look very aggressive but she is very smart, knows how to negotiate with opposing counsel and extremely hardworking. I would always get a call back the same day and there is always someone on the team available to answer my questions. I always felt I was in safe hands and was satisfied with final outcome.

Araceli was a great pleasure to work with. I had a lot of questions during my divorce which Araceli answered with confidence and on the dot. I have too many things to put in a review, but I felt extremely comfortable and easy working from the first call and through the finalizing process. Availabil...ity, transparency, communication and emphathy were all very important to me and Araceli, Tyler and Amber exceeded all my expectations. I always knew what to expect next and was thrilled with the final result. I can't thank them enough. Have courage to get out of your toxic marriage with Araceli. You deserve to be happy!

I hired Ms. Amaya, as my second lawyer. I spent a year with my previous attorney feeling unheard, unseen and utterly defeated in a highly contentious and abusive divorce. I was given a recommendation to hire Ms. Amaya, and it literally saved my life and my son’s life. Ms. Amaya is relentless, thoroug...h, brilliant and most importantly one of the kindest human beings I’ve ever met. Our case was brutal, involved domestic violence, substance abuse issues, relentless litigation, and Ms. Amaya handled all of it flawlessly. She listens, provides solid recommendations and isn’t too proud to hear you out. She has a mind for details that is astounding, she makes you feel like you’re her only client, while managing a expansive case load. She was able to secure a victory for my case that no one thought was possible, get essential services required for my ex, protections for my young child and did it all while managing my intense anxiety and fear. A good ER doctor and a good divorce lawyer are two people you hope you’ll never need, but when you do, you pray for someone as talented, empathetic and gifted as Araceli Amaya.

From beginning to the end the team at Amaya law firm kept me informed of every detail of my case. If I had any questions, someone was always quick to respond. She was an advocate of my rights as a parent and fought for a fair settlement. In my opinion there are no "winners" in a divorce but I was ver...y satisfied with the outcome.