"I find the study of law to be an intellectual challenge. I enjoy solving problems and advocating for my
clients. Every day is different because no two cases are ever exactly the same," says Shannon Kelly, sole practitioner at
Kelly Law Office, PLC in Mesa. Kelly's practice areas are family law, including divorce, legal separation, child custody
and visitation, child support, spousal maintenance, modifications, enforcement, parental relocation disputes, legal name
changes, and orders of protection. She also practices estate planning including wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and
living wills.
It is a career choice that demands a wide variety of experience and the ability to handle many equally
varied challenges and sometimes unexpected opportunities at the same time. "As a solo practitioner, an attorney must be
skilled at multi-tasking. It is challenging to practice law and manage the administrative and business tasks," she says.
Kelly was born in Sioux Falls, S.D. She earned her bachelor's degree in psychology with a minor in biology
from the University of South Dakota in 1998 where she was a member of the National Honor Society in psychology, the Golden
Key National Honor Society and Pi Sigma Alpha Honor Society.
She earned her master's degree in public administration and graduated from the University of South Dakota
School of Law in 2004.
"I first decided to attend law school after taking criminal law and procedure classes in graduate school
while earning my master's in public administration," says Kelly.
Her honors at the University of South Dakota include the Dean's Certificate/CALI Award, Highest Grade Legal
Research and the Alan Bogue Excellence in Legal Writing Award.
While attending the university, she served as a graduate assistant for the USD Law School Foundation,
worked as an associate for LexisNexis, and was the managing editor for the South Dakotan Lawyer Magazine and the South
Dakota Law Review.