Darnell’s practice focuses on all aspects of Family law. This includes:
- Co-habitation and pre-nuptial agreements
- Separation Agreements
- Divorce
- Family Property and debt arrangements
- Adoptions
- Spousal support
- Child support
He also has considerable experience with family and business property division.
Each family is unique and Darnell strives to tailor his advice and strategic solutions to the particular circumstances of each client and their children. For many family law clients, it’s important that their thoughts and opinions be heard. Darnell helps ensure his clients have a voice in the process. In particular, Darnell can help to ensure that the client’s interests are well protected against potential manipulation and positioning by the other side.
Darnell has years of experience as a lawyer, negotiating and advocating for clients’ rights in and out of court. He has even conducted several lengthy jury trials which is atypical for his years of experience. On his call to the bar, he worked with a range of law firms in the Fraser Valley before joining South Coast Law Group in 2019.
His court experience is considerable and varied. It ranges from estate litigation, 7-figure negligence litigation and application to the court of appeal. He is able to bring this extensive court experience to bear when fighting for his family law clients.
That said, believes most family law matters are not suitable for lengthy litigation and can be resolved through cost effective alternatives. Darnell works closely with his clients to determine the most appropriate, reasonable and fair solutions to each issue. Darnell is adept at both courtroom advocacy and alternative dispute resolution (i.e. mediation, 4-way meetings, and arbitration).
Selecting a family lawyer is often about fit. Feel free to give Darnell a call to make an appointment for a free half hour initial consultation at 604-496-5096 or by email at Darnell@southcoastlaw.ca.
Lawyer (PLC)
South Coast Law Group
#6 – 15243 – 91st Avenue
Surrey, B.C., V3R 8P8
Tel: (604) 496 – 5096
Fax: (604) 496 – 5196
Darnell@southcoastlaw.ca
Recent Reviews from Google:
Nicole Magnusson – ★★★★★ – I had an excellent experience for my initial legal consultation with Darnell. He was friendly, professional, and most importantly – knowledgeable. He was genuine and listened to my individual needs, and delivered advice accordingly. This was my first experience with a family law group, and I would absolutely recommend South Coast Law. – November 4, 2020
Rhonda – ★★★★★ – Darnell at South Coast Law is a very personable and competent lawyer. In a very stressful time during my separation, he had eased my concerns with his knowledge and timely responses. I felt he was very generous with his time and was available to me when my needs became time sensitive. I will not hesitate to recommend Darnell to anyone who is in need of a family lawyer. Greatly appreciated your services! Rhonda. – October 14, 2020
Dr. Rory Gibbons – ★★★★★ – Darnell is [a] fantastic lawyer. Not only is he extremely intelligent but also very personable and real. It is easy to see that he is genuinely interested in helping you get what you need. I would highly recommend Darnell and his team at Southcoast Law! – August 17, 2020
Leah Nadeau – ★★★★★ – Darnell was very professional and explained everything in a way I could understand. Not always an easy thing when you need a lawyer but is nice to have someone that cares about their clients. – August 12, 2020
Shelley – ★★★★★ – Darnell went above and beyond to support my needs. He showed an understanding to my situation and provided quality service, keeping me notified along the way. I highly recommend Darnell and this firm. – June 23, 2020
Alan Zaro – ★★★★★ – Darnell Smith at South Coast Law Group has provided me with phenomenal service. He explains well, listens and cares a lot for his clients, and he’s so fast to getting back to them unlike others, where you might get ignored or delayed. I highly recommend everybody reading my comment not to waste time and contact him directly!
Thank you Darnell awesome service 👍 – June 13, 2020
Amy Liberson – ★★★★★ – Best Surrey Family Lawyer! Darnell Smith helped me with a separation agreement. He is super reliable, knowledgable and friendly, and always replied to my e-mails and phone calls within a day or two at most. He took the time to thoroughly explain everything to me, and I felt comfortable asking him as many questions as I needed to. I would highly recommend Darnell at South Coast Law Group! – April 12, 2020
Kimberly Dennis – ★★★★★ – When I went into South Coast law I was defeated from an already 3 yearlong custody and child support battle with my ex. Meeting with Darnell Smith gave me a glimmer of hope for my family at a time when our options appeared limited and the likelihood of a resolution seemed almost impossible. Not only was he able to come up with a new plan and a more effective way to execute it , his calm and empathetic demeanor helped me become emotionally prepared to dive back into the train wreck I was dealing with. Darnell really had my children’s well-being at heart and was determined to make sure that their best interests were met. He takes a pragmatic approach to law and doesn’t over complicate things unnecessarily. My children and I are eternally grateful for his service and I would recommend Darnell without hesitation to anyone who is looking for a trustworthy, responsive and professional family law lawyer. – April 3, 2020
Jason Stratman – ★★★★★ – I had a great experience with Darnell Smith of South Coast Law Group.
I would highly recommend him if you’re dealing with a separation/custody/child/support situation and you want some serious, no BS advice.
I found him to be highly professional, very personable, and most importantly, very straight forward and direct.
Darnell is not one of those lawyers that is going to sugar coat things and promise you the moon, and that is what I appreciated the most about my interaction with him. He gave it to me straight. He told me exactly where I stood with no BS and no false promises. He didn’t try to give me a bunch of false hope in an attempt to get me to retain his services and waste my money when it could be much better spent supporting my kids.
More than that – he didn’t treat me like a paycheck. He treated me with the utmost respect and he took the TIME to talk to me, hear my story , consider my situation, and then give me his honest opinion. To him, I was a father going through a horrible time and a horrible situation and it was obvious to me that he wanted to help to the best of his abilities.
If you want someone who isn’t going to just try to rack up billable hours, is going to see you as a human being going through something, and who is going to do his best for you, I suggest that you give this man – a father himself – a call. – February 18, 2020