Super Lawyers - Northern California 2012

The fact that an attorney who normally
opposed her would choose to have her on
his jury says a great deal about the level of
respect that colleagues have for Sheehan.

“Judges and jurors have a high degree
of respect for her professionalism and
ethics,” says Sacramento criminal defense
attorney Donald H. Heller, who has
opposed her in three cases. “[This] is
complemented by her being a very nice
person—very cordial and civil.”
In an age when attorneys grouse about
a general lack of civility, Sheehan is a case
study in how to be an effective advocate
and still get along with colleagues. In
fact, she won an award for civility from the
Sacramento chapter of the American Board
of Trial Advocates in 2010. At the time, she
remarked that some attorneys said it was
the last honor they wanted, because they
thought civility showed weakness. The
reality is quite to the contrary, she says.

“The most feared attorneys are those
who can get along with everybody
and still get what they need for their
clients,” she says. “I fear them more than
the attorneys who engage in endless
skirmishes, who have a scorched-earth
policy and serve papers at 5: 30 Friday
afternoon. I don’t do it, and I tell my
associates they don’t need to do it. And
I think this attitude has saved my clients
tens of thousands of dollars by not
engaging in needless discovery battles.”
Radio personality John McGinness
was a client of Sheehan’s when he was
Sacramento County sheriff. “She’s not
a flamethrower or bomb-thrower. She’s
always professional,” he says. “And she’s
whip-smart—she plays chess when others
are playing checkers.

SHE GREW UP ON LONG ISLAND, AND will happily show off the accent—or “speed impediment,” as she calls it. She earned a degree in criminal justice at Long Island University, where she was thinking of become a probation officer or police officer. After graduation, she spent a year traveling and working odd jobs.

B. Robert Allard*

Bradley M. Corsiglia*

Timothy D. McMahon*

Corsiglia,
McMahon

Corsiglia, McMahon & Allard LLP of San Jose, CA is proud
& Allard
to announce that this year all three of its partners have been
recognized in Northern California Super Lawyers®.