R. Shane McFarland

Still using Shane’s services since 2007. This is an update, so I hope you’ll see my previous review as well. Shane and Michelle continue to be a dynamic duo. They have helped me with yet another suit by my ex-​husband. They took great care of everything during the entire process. I provided them with documents and knew they were in extremely capable hands and frankly didn’t give them a second thought. Shane (as usual) used his superb knowledge of the law to squelch the efforts of my ex’s attorney. At the trial, he made every word count and things turned out very well for me … ummm … not so great for my ex. My ex has had 7 attorneys since this all started in 2007. He’s obsessive and likes to go to court. Shane ensures we win EVERY time and avoid court as much as possible. He is clearly known well by and respected by the judges.
Michelle continues to be compassionate, organized, and stellar at her job. She remembers everything!
Shane continues to be the expert I hired in 2007. I appreciate his vast knowledge of the law, and the fact that he is board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization — a truly difficult certificate to obtain that declares him specialized in family law. I also appreciate his calm demeanor (though in the court setting, I have to say it’s like a calm viper making calculated strikes lol). I like that he is down to earth, easy to talk to and clearly cares about our case. Winning combination!

Particularly a HUGE fan of his Legal Assistant, Michelle — I wish she was my lawyer or my therapist, or BOTH! She has a ton of passion for her clients! McFarland lacks the passion or personal interest in his clients but he’s well-​respected in the Austin legal community and is confident in the courtroom. They got me ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ custody and I’m grateful but I definitely felt like a «back-​burner» case with Shane. My only regret is not listening to Michelle when she told me to be patient and try to get a better deal from my ex. I was just ready to be free but now I know, I should have listened! ;D

Shane and his team are amazing. I went through a very difficult divorce. My ex-​wife wanted to move with the boys and made every step of the divorce as painful as possible. Shane and his team were always there to calm me down and tell me what would happen.
His knowledge of the law was very impressive. Every time we had to go to court he could always tell me how it would go and his predictions were accurate on how thing would turn out.
The final trial was a jury trial, something that doesn’t happen often for divorce cases in Travis County. Shane was able to explain to 11 out of 12 jurors why it would be best for me, the father, to have primary custody of the children. This is not an easy thing to do in such a liberal county.
I couldn’t have made a better choice than Shane McFarland and his team. Michelle, his legal assistant, helped so much that by the end they all welt like part of the family. I truly think they felt they had more in the case than just another client.

Mr McFarland has represented me in an extremely difficult family law case for a number of years now. He has always been pragmatic (realistic) about what can be accomplished, he stays calm, grounded and focused, and he clearly has the respect of his peers and the staff at the courthouse. He and his staff are meticulous and thorough, and I’ve never had any difficulty in communicating with him or his staff, or in understanding any aspect of my case.
Mr McFarland’s professional approach can certainly help you disconnect from any of the confrontation and grief presented by the other party, and in adopting a business-​like approach to resolving the issues in your case. He works to avoid escalating issues. I have frequently seen Mr. McFarland propose solutions to settle issues in a way that would benefit both parties, without resorting to costly and bitter court hearings, and without capitulating. I feel that if there is a reasonable and direct way to settle an issue, Mr McFarland will find it.
Mr. McFarland has been excellent in working with Guardian Ad Litems, CPS agents, Mediators, Counselors, Exchange and Visitation facilitators, and many other entities that can become involved in a family law case, explaining their role in the case, understanding their concerns and expectations, and firmly (professionally) standing his ground when necessary.
His para-​legal, Michelle, has been a fantastic amount of help when I’ve needed to organize and prepare paperwork demanded by the other party, or in explaining many of the crazy things that go on in court. I have every confidence that my issues will be taken care of, the language in my orders will be clear and concise, all documents are properly filed, and they won’t come back to haunt me later.
If your intent is to resolve the issues without undue grief and get on with your life, I think it is well worth your time to discuss your case with him.

Shane is a good, no nonsense, family law attorney who represented me in court to recover from a do-​it-​yourself divorce. He was referred by the Texas Fatherhood Initiative — a non-​profit group that helps men in divorce issues. He represented me competently, and within the cost of the retainer that he required initially (there were some very minor $ 50-​ish charges following), and his billable hours always made sense. He’s not the kind of attorney that tries to get it done with flare. He’s not the glad-​handed political type who smiles big and promises you the world. He calmly aims at the target and hits it. I would very much want him sitting at my table (see the 1-​star Colby review for the view from the other table). BTW: don’t ever do a do-it-yourself’er. People change. Loose ends arise and it gets messy. Find the money to cut the ties the right way the first time.