Family Law

Domestic law, a/k/a family law, encompasses a huge area of law and, by necessity, requires judicial discretion. Therefore, it is imperative to have a seasoned family law attorney who understands not only the case and statutory law but judicial discretion and how each judge tends to exercise that discretion. Noel’s twenty-three years of experience have provided her ample opportunity to discern the discretionary decisions of family court judges. Conversely, she is also very comfortable litigating in the courtroom and earned the nickname “Bulldog” early in her career.

Adoption

Noel has also enjoyed a busy adoption practice since the beginning of her career.  When the adoption code was rewritten in 1997, the old code was replaced with a detailed and complicated one.  Consequently, Noel had to quickly learn the new code to accommodate her existing adoption clients. She mapped out the new provisions in a “Cookbook” format to help other attorneys learn the new code. ​As she presented Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminars on the new adoption laws her practice swelled with family law attorneys who simply did not want to continue practicing adoption under the new requirements. She has also successfully tried several Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) cases, including ​securing the ​return of Baby Veronica.​

Surrogacy

Noel’s legal career involves a commitment to children and families, helping them transition through divorce or the family building process. Both Adoption and Artificial Reproductive Technology (ART) Law are close to Noel’s heart and provide a nice practice balance to her domestic (divorce) law litigation. Noel has been involved in the American Bar Association Section of Family Law since she was an intern in 1994. In 2006, this involvement opened the door for her to develop an ART practice in addition to serving her adoption clients. She is one of the very few attorneys in Oklahoma who can successfully navigate family building through ART.