Donna L. Smith, Attorney a Law

Donna Smith is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area.  Ms. Smith completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Oregon and received her J.D. from Golden Gate School of Law in 1996. She began practicing law in 1997; she has handled family law matters exclusively since 2004.  Prior to 2004, Ms. Smith was an associate attorney at Anderson & Watt in Berkeley, California, serving clients in the areas of probate, estate planning, and family law.  In March of 2004 the Law Office of Donna L. Smith opened on Solano Avenue in Berkeley.  In February 2010, Ms. Smith opened her second office located at 420 Sierra College Drive, Suite 100, in Grass Valley, California.  The firm now represents clients primarily in Nevada and Placer Counties in all area of family law.  Ms. Smith presently serves as a volunteer attorney- mediator and settlement conference judge pro-tem in the Placer County Superior Court.  She serves the Northern California Lawyer Referral Service as a member of their Board of Directors. The Bay Area office in Berkeley currently serves clients on a referral basis for consultation and mediation.  Ms. Smith resides in Nevada City.
 
Ms. Smith believes that divorce and family breakdowns are invariably difficult and painful but can offer an opportunity for healthy change.  The best outcomes provide children, their parents, and family members with a new beginning based upon firm boundaries that meet the family and individual needs.  New definitions of how the family will work, whether reached by agreement or through the courts, can lay a sound foundation for future success and well being.