Matthew Sheena
Professional Summary
Matthew M. Sheena joined Garmo & Garmo, LLP as an associate in 2014. Mr. Sheena has experience handling matters concerning estate planning, business and real estate, personal injury, and criminal defense. Mr. Sheena is also an experienced Real Estate Agent and negotiator.
Mr. Sheena obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and minor in English from San Diego State University. He earned his Juris Doctorate from California Western School of Law, where he was a member of Middle Eastern Law Student Association. Mr. Sheena is also a licensed real estate salesperson in California.
Mr. Sheena comes from a hard working family that has taught him to live with respect and integrity. His family allowed him to pursue his goals to attend school. Throughout his education, Mr. Sheena helped his parents operate their small business, teaching him the value and importance of hard work and dedication.
Living in San Diego, Mr. Sheena enjoys spending time with his family and friends. He also appreciates the outdoors, where he enjoys playing basketball, hiking, golfing, and kayaking.
“I pride myself on providing the best experience for my clients. That means picking up their call, calling them back, providing them with regular updates, and taking the time to help them truly solve their problems as efficiently and cost-effectively as I can.”
Q&A
What inspired you to pursue a career in law?
I come from a family of attorneys. Several of my uncles, cousins, and family friends are attorneys and I was constantly around that environment. I started thinking seriously about being a lawyer during high school. I enjoyed the spirited discussions my family and friends would have, and I wanted to be a part of that.
I was also interested in the idea of helping those who needed legal assistance but don’t have the resources and ability to advocate for themselves. You don’t always need an attorney. But for those who need help and can’t do it on their own, (for example, the numerous members of various immigrant communities that we serve in Southern California), I wanted to be able to advocate for them.
My family is part of the San Diego Chaldean community, of which there are estimated to be around 50,000 in this area. For first-generation immigrants in communities like ours, English is not their first language. Many of them do not know how to do basic types of legal paperwork, such as applying for a business license. For me, being able to help our immigrant communities with these issues, educating them, etc. is among the most rewarding aspects of being a lawyer.
What sets you apart in your area of legal expertise?
People don’t always associate the legal profession or their attorney with customer service, however, the single most common complaint from clients about their attorney is that they don’t call them back or they don’t ever hear from them.
I pride myself on providing the best experience for my clients. That means picking up their call, calling them back, providing them with regular updates, and taking the time to help them truly solve their problems as efficiently and cost-effectively as I can. We don’t do everything – no attorney does. If it is within our wheelhouse, we will give you the best possible legal guidance and representation. But if we can’t help you, we will help you find somebody who can.
Could you describe the journey that brought you where you are today?
I moved here to the San Diego area from the Detroit suburbs when I was in middle school. I went to high school in this area and I wanted to stay local. I worked part-time with my parents’ small business while also working part-time with my uncles at the firm. I obtained my undergraduate degree at San Diego State, then I went on to California Western School of Law. During those years, I continued to work at my parents’ business and the firm, although I had to limit the amount of time I could work during the first year of law school because of the demands it puts on your time.
What do you consider your most significant achievement?
Helping a family with a serious criminal case. The parents were worried about the trouble their son was in. He was a good kid, but like many young people, he had a lapse in judgment and made a bad choice. I spent a lot of time with the family explaining the legal process surrounding their son’s criminal matter, and I spent a lot of time negotiating with prosecutors at the DA’s office. He was facing 18-36 months in jail on a felony conviction, but we were able to settle the case with a community service requirement and no jail time.
This was one of the most gratifying cases for me because of how hard I worked on the case and the emotional investment I had in the outcome. The parents were really concerned about what might happen to their son, and it felt good to be able to keep a felony off of his record and protect his future. And more good news is the kid has been clean ever since.
Can you share a case or client experience that had a profound impact on you and/or your career?
I had the opportunity to help a young client (she was in her late 20s) who was involved in a serious car accident get the care she needed to recover compensation for her serious injuries. Like the case with the young man facing criminal charges, I spent many days and hours working with her and built a close relationship during the life of her case. She was in really bad shape for two years, but she got better, and it was amazing to watch her progress.
It was a pleasure being able to help her navigate her complicated medical treatment and eventually get her fully compensated for all that she went through. I spent a ton of time with adjusters, medical professionals, and other involved parties, and this case taught me a lot about the many nuances that are involved with cases that involve serious injuries.
If you weren’t an attorney, what alternative career path might you have pursued?
Definitely some type of an entrepreneur and maybe I would be a real estate developer. Entrepreneurship runs in the family – it’s in our blood. I really like real estate though, because I feel like I would’ve been good at overseeing complex development projects.
What advice would you give to aspiring attorneys who are going through law school right now?
In addition to studying and understanding the law, it is essential to get hands-on experience in a firm as soon as you can – because theory (school) and practice are very different things. There are many things outside the letter of the law that you read in books that you need to be exposed to. It is good to do this even before you go to law school so you have a better perspective going in. The way the law is taught and the practice of law are significantly different, and knowing these differences going into law school will give you a much better idea of how the legal theories you learn in school are applied in the real world.
What’s one thing about the legal profession that might surprise people?
It’s not what it looks like on TV! Most of our days are spent behind a computer screen reading, writing, and analyzing information, on a phone call, or meeting with a client. It’s not as glamorous as TV makes it look. I do spend time in court, but the majority of time is spent doing behind-the-scenes work. And it’s also important to understand that few legal matters ever get to court – most cases settle.
Another thing is people think lawyers are super expensive. We do have to charge appropriately for our legal knowledge and expertise or else we wouldn’t stay in business. But I believe that we are very fair with our pricing.
Outside of practicing law, what hobbies or activities do you enjoy in your free time?
I enjoy a lot of outdoor activities like golfing and hiking, and I enjoy food experiences and taking in many of the attractions around the San Diego area, like the zoo, Liberty Station food hall, the beaches, etc. I also enjoy traveling, and now that we have a toddler, taking him to different places like LA, Palm Springs, and Hawaii.
What source of inspiration or motivation has been the most significant driving force in your professional career and in your personal life?
The main source of motivation and inspiration in my life has been my family. My grandparents immigrated to the US in the 1970s. They owned their own business, but they worked extremely hard to maintain that business and still raise a family. They also had to leave what they had back home when they came to the US, so they essentially built everything here from scratch. My mom and dad were both teenagers when they came to the US, and they were also entrepreneurs.
My parents and grandparents were people who did what they had to do to provide for us, even if that meant working day and night. Seeing how they took care of us encouraged me that I could do it too. I gained that self-confidence just by being around it. I have also been blessed with opportunities that they didn’t have, and my parents wanted me to be aware of all the options I had available to me.