Gayle McElroy, Attorney

This attorney backed out of my case at the last minute when she had accepted the retainer and promised she would appear for me at court. I asked her to transfer the money to another attorney and she did not because that attorney never put in an appearance and I was found in contempt (I was not in the state at the time). I should have reported her to the Bar Association, but I was busy moving. The hearing was about a crucial issue which I of course lost. Dont hire her. more

This attorney is the most unethical attorney you'll ever encounter. She has no morals or ethics and is all about the money. She takes advantage of a judicial system who is all about the woman and hates men. When my ex-wife chose her I couldn't find an attorney on the East side who when ever consider taking my case due to her being the way she is. If you're a woman, she's a great choice but beware due to her unethical behavior, more than likely, she take your money, make you lots of promises, send lots of letters to opposing counsel and charge you through the nose. She was so unethical that my ex finally said, bye, bye to her after she demanded yet another $5000.00 for future services to be rendered. Gayle, I'll politely say I wish you the best, and have to believe that God and another lady named Carma will deal with you at a later date. Like my ex said to you, bye, bye. more

First of all, this review has nothing to do with Gayle McElroy as an attorney, it has to do with her as a person. I can only assume that she carries the same high level of honesty and integrity over to her professional environment, as in her personal life. A couple days ago, while in Seattle for the weekend, I came out of a restaurant to find that my vehicle had been hit and damaged extensively, most likely by a vehicle backing out of the space next to min. My immediate reaction was complete horror as I am not in a position financially to pay for repairs, insurance deductables, and higher insurance rates right now. I was relieved to find a note attached to the windshield of my vehicle. It was simply a scrap of paper with a phone number on it, signed by "Gayle" stating she'd hit my vehicle. My initial reaction was to not trust this "Gayle" person who had so rudely hit my car, and I demanded that our insurance companies handle the claim. "Gayle" calmly assured me over the phone that she had every intention of holding herself accountable and indeed wanted to pay for the damage to my vehicle out of her own pocket. I reluctantly gave her the opportunity to do that and the following morning I went to two Seattle area body shops and recieved estimates. I phoned "Gayle" with the information and she agreed to give me cash that morning. She suggested I meet her at a restaurant in Bellevue. An hour later, I was at that restaurant, sitting across from Gayle McElroy. Ms. Mcelroy apologized for damaging my vehicle and handed me the exact amount of cash agreed upon, plus enough to rent a vehicle while mine gets repaired. She even bought breakfast for my girfriend and me! Integrity means doing the right thing even when you could get away with not doing it, and no one would know. It's about holding yourself to a standard and keeping yourself honest, not for the benefit of others, but because it's right. Ask yourself if you would have been tempted to "just drive away". Gayle McElroy didn't. more

Gayle handled my divorce with an incredible amount of professionalism and compassion. My divorce was somewhat complicated and she was consistently providing excellent counsel and sound advice. Divorce is an awful experience and Gayle literally saved me from making poor choices. I also felt that her attention reasonable fees was a unique example in her profession; my ex wife paid over 50% of what Gayle charged and my outcome was fair to all parties. more

After paying $1000.00 retainer fee, and another $1000.00 in time spent with Ms McElroy with no progress seen in my case, I packed up and moved on to another attorney who took two days to resolve my case. I also witnessed her verbally attack her office staff, which turned over a minimum of three times in my short six month stay with her. I would hope a professional attorney would have learned somewhere a long the line, professional etiquette; especially the daughter of a prominent Seattle physician. more

years ago my mother went to Gayle McElroy and Lowell Halvorson in a complex visitation issue and was given good advice. Subsequently, after paying Ms. McElroy a substantial retainer to continue after she left the Halvorson firm, Ms. McElroy backed out of the case (not a popular case as my mother had just divorced a WA attorney who is a pedophile, still happily practicing in Snohomish County) at the last minute. What was never revealed to my mother, until years later, was a family court services document in the possession of Alice Probert that was an assessment of my father for sexual deviancy which found him at high risk of offending, along with his own narrative in which he relayed all types of abuse of women and children. The many lawyers my mother sought assistance from never told her of the presence of the document and we spent the next fifteen years fleeing and hiding from this pedophile until a lawyer sent us a copy of the document. The following attorneys easily could have accessed and used the document to help my mother and me: Gayle McElroy, Leonid Ponomarchuk, Anderson & Fields, Michele Coad. Years later, my father sexually abused a client and was given 6 months suspension from practice (see WSBA site for attorney Robert Getz - remarried to family law attorney Karen Everitt Emery). I would not touch any of the above attorneys with a ten foot pole for family law and, frankly, my mother should take their licenses to practice for what we went through. more

There are a few times in life when you don't want to skimp - but you also want some value for your hard-earned money. Family law is one of these instances, and I can whole-heartedly recommend Ms McElroy as not only a skilled and aggressive attorney, but also an ethical and honest professional who knows how to work within the system and be effective without jeopardizing her integrity. She was direct and upfront with me that my case was a longshot, while at the same time exhibiting realistic self-confidence. She helped make a very stressful time work out better than expected. more