Seattle and Western Washington Attorneys
Anne Wakefield, Attorney
Anne began the practice of law during her education at The University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. There, she worked as an intern in the Legal Affairs Unit of the California Department of Corrections, and subsequently for the Sacramento District Attorney's Office where she charged individuals for misdemeanor offenses. Anne started her post graduate career as a public defender in Everett and subsequently worked at a small private firm in Lynnwood where she handled criminal, dependency, and family law matters before starting her own private practice.
Today, Anne practices exclusively in family law, which includes a limited number of private dependency cases. Anne is passionate about representing clients in family court and mediations. Her background in criminal defense and dependencies has earned her extensive trial experience. Anne knows that it is important to begin developing trial strategy from the inception of a case, immediately gathering and preserving important evidence, which can be used in settlement negotiations and can ultimately be used at trial when necessary. Anne is a skilled negotiator who is ready to go to court if the opposing party will not agree to reasonable terms. She loves guiding clients through life crises whether clients are facing an amicable separation or a contentious trial.
Anne’s background in criminal defense and dependencies is particularly useful where these practice areas intersect with family law. It is unfortunately not uncommon for Domestic Violence and CPS matters to be part of a dissolution case. When child custody is at issue, Anne knows how to build her client’s favorable evidence and to engage appropriate parenting evaluators, mental health experts, and other experts tailored to her client’s unique case.
Anne mainly works with a professional client base and regularly deals in high asset division. She knows that, when warranted, it is important to obtain qualified experts at the beginning of a case to conduct financial tracing, business valuation, stock valuation, future income analysis, etc. When your retirement, your home, your life savings, and your future income is at stake, it is important to work with a skilled attorney who knows how to protect your rights while pushing a case toward an optimal resolution, whether that may be by settlement or via trial.
Anne’s practice is to identify the client’s goals during her first meeting and to work backward to build a strategy with the client to support the best possible chance of reaching the desired outcome. Clients notice that Anne is particularly attentive and understands their pain points. Clients come to a meeting with Anne feeling overwhelmed, not knowing what lays ahead. Anne maps out the way through their legal challenges so that clients can visualize their future on the other side and a sense of relief begins to take shape.