Divorce is the unraveling of your family. If you’re reading this, you’re probably living it. I’m truly sorry you (or anyone) has to go through this. Few paths are more personal, emotional, disorienting, or life-changing. Keeping that context front-and-center is critical when choosing counsel.
My son had an excellent experience with Contreras Law Firm, especially attorney Shaudi Malek. I also want to recognize the firm’s owner, Dolores Contreras—based on what I observed, her leadership was pivotal in helping drive resolution. To be clear: my son was the client and had the attorney-client relationship. I helped with fees and observed the outcomes, I was not the client.
He did not choose lightly. He interviewed 15+ firms across California (San Diego, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and the Bay Area) and did full due diligence—reputations, recommendations, online reviews, and consultations. Candidly, reviews often didn’t match his experience. When you urgently need counsel, you may be forced to decide whom to trust on a timeline you don’t control.
Over the course of this process, he engaged three different firms, and it was a sobering lesson: location mattered far less to him than trust in his attorney.
He originally started with Contreras Law Firm in San Diego, and their work was excellent. They advised him to consider counsel closer to the court to reduce costs, so he tried it. In practice, it wasn’t right for him. Elsewhere, he ran into billing issues and an overall “assembly line” feel. He later tried another attorney whose approach lacked the confidence and experience his matter required—too many meetings, too much reassurance, and poor results. It was wasteful, exhausting, and counterproductive.
Because his first experience with Contreras had been so strong, he retained them for representation in Sacramento. One downside is travel billing, he was clearly warned—it’s real, and it adds up. Full-rate billing for airport/transit time (about 4.5 hours one way in his case) was hard to swallow. As the person paying, that time component felt disproportionate. I’d like to see the industry evolve on this point. That said, once counsel was on the ground, the quality of representation was excellent and focused—exactly what mattered in the moments that counted.
Attorney Shaudi Malek was the difference-maker: extremely competent, no sugar-coating, no theatrics, no false comfort—just concise, direct, respectful counsel grounded in experience. She understands the process, the strategy, and what matters (and what doesn’t). Most importantly, her guidance proved correct. In a divorce, you don’t need someone to tell you what you want to hear; you need someone to tell you what you need to hear, and then execute.
Core recommendation:
- If you don’t trust your attorney, switch.
- Once you find an attorney you trust, listen. This process will not—and should not—feel comfortable. If conversations feel comfortable, pause and reflect on whether you’re receiving unvarnished guidance—or simply reassurance.
One more important boundary: any legal decisions and strategy were between my son and his counsel, and I was not privy to attorney-client communications. I don’t think it’s appropriate for anyone to share privileged details in a public review.
Practical note: divorce law is expensive, and billing often tracked in 6-minute increments. Prepare notes before calls. Keep questions focused. Stay on point.
I did not write this to “help” a law firm. I wrote it for the next person trying to choose wisely. I’m truly grateful to Contreras Law Firm for guiding my son through a difficult time, and especially grateful for the caliber of representation he received from Shaudi Malek. No one “wins” in a divorce—but the right counsel can help minimize the damage and protect your rights.
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