Donelle H. Ratheal

Donelle H. Ratheal is the senior attorney of Ratheal Family Law and represents clients in Western Oklahoma, including through the firm’s Yukon office. She has almost thirty years of trial and appellate experience, with the majority of her practice centered on complex family law and probate matters. Her work includes contested custody, child relocation, business valuation in domestic cases, prenuptial agreements, grandparent rights, domestic and international enforcement, adoption, guardianship, wills, and trusts.

Ratheal earned her law degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Law in 1992. Supplemental professional records identify the degree as a J.D. and note law-school honors including the Order of the Barristers, an American Jurisprudence Award in Appellate Advocacy, and service as Assistant Managing Editor of the University of Oklahoma Law Review. Her legal education and appellate training support a practice that frequently involves complex records, legal writing, and disputed family or probate issues.

Ratheal has represented clients in numerous appellate matters, including cases that resulted in published opinions clarifying or modifying Oklahoma law. Her trial work includes contested custody and relocation disputes, valuation of family-owned businesses, prenuptial agreements, grandparent custody, stepparent adoptions, guardianships, and enforcement of domestic relations orders. She also handles wills and trusts. This combination of trial, probate, and appellate work allows her to address family disputes that continue through multiple procedural stages.

Donelle H. Ratheal brings extensive trial and appellate experience to family law and probate clients. Her professional background includes long-term work with children in custody and guardianship matters, legal writing, and presentations on family law and probate topics. She helps clients navigate disputes involving parenting, property, estates, and court orders while maintaining attention to both immediate litigation needs and longer-term consequences. Her practice is particularly suited to complex matters requiring detailed preparation and appellate awareness.

Law Office Affiliations

• Attorney, Ratheal Family Law
• Member, Oklahoma Bar Association
• Section Chair, OBA Family Law Section (OBA-FLS) (2007)
• Committee Member, Guardian ad Litem Manual Committee, Oklahoma Supreme Court
• Founder, Oklahoma County Guardian ad Litem Project

Licensed State

• Oklahoma

Education

• University of Oklahoma College of Law
  Law degree

Awards & Badges