Shana Velez

Senior Attorney III

With nearly two decades of courtroom experience across family law, criminal defense, and immigration matters, Shana Velez brings a rare combination of seasoned trial authority and profound cultural empathy to the legal team. A Colorado native, Shana has dedicated her career to helping individuals from all walks of life navigate complex legal systems that can otherwise feel overwhelming. Fully fluent in Spanish, she specializes in advocating for culturally diverse clients and monolingual Spanish speakers, ensuring they are heard, protected, and fully informed at every stage of their case.

After earning her Juris Doctor from the University of Arizona, Shana dedicated much of her early career to advocating for underserved communities. She represented domestic violence victims in Arizona state courts as well as within the sovereign tribal courts of the Navajo Nation. That foundational work shaped her approach to family law litigation, where she manages high-conflict custody disputes, divorce proceedings, and post-decree modifications with straightforward transparency, helping clients establish realistic goals and navigate high-pressure court proceedings with confidence.

Shana approaches every client relationship as a steady, dedicated advocate who knows how to craft comprehensive case strategies and remain composed when emotions run high. She is committed to breaking down complex legal processes into clear, manageable steps so her clients feel protected, supported, and empowered from start to finish.

What you may not know: Growing up on a homesteading wheat farm in a small town outside of Limon, Shana spent years riding horses and mastered trick riding, including riding two horses at once with a foot planted on each back. Today, her free time is happily anchored by her two kids, serving on the Board of Directors for her daughter’s school, Monarch Montessori, and keeping up with two cats and three dogs, two of which were adopted from a police K9 training program.

Client Success Stories

I represented a dad whose then-wife got him to sign a co-petition, separation agreement, and parenting plan, all in English without translating any of it. He is a monolingual Spanish-speaker. His then-wife also wanted to relocate to California before finalizing their dissolution, because she did not have stable housing for her and their 3 minor children. After a temporary orders hearing where OC tried to use my client’s undocumented immigration status against him (which the court did not buy), the court ordered that they were to have 50/50, week on/week off, so for the first time in approximately 6 months, he had meaningful time with his children – this was right before the holidays so he was able to spend holidays with his children.

Client Success Stories

I represented a victim of years of domestic violence. Her ex-husband did not allow her to work outside the home so she had little to no marketable skills and serious health issues. The parties were in their 60s, so retired. Although OP was only getting approximately $1400/month in social security retirement benefits, the Court ordered that he had to pay a nominal amount of spousal maintenance, partially because of the severe DV my client suffered. This case also involved a home and land in Mexico, which we were able to have appraised and although OC tried to use a tax bill from Mexico to value the home (which would have been substantially lower than the appraised value), the Court used the value of our Mexican appraiser. This also contributed to the Court awarding my client spousal maintenance because that property was awarded to OP.

Client Success Stories

I represented an undocumented client whose US Citizen husband abused her for decades, much of which was financial abuse by threatening to leave her in the streets with nothing. He claimed that they were not married at the beginning of the case. However, after showing they had held themselves out as married to multiple government agencies and businesses, he eventually admitted that they were married. As a result of establishing a common law marriage, my client is now entitled to an equitable portion of his business that was valued between $4 million and $6 million, in addition to real properties worth over $3 million.