Laken N. Smaha concentrates her practice primarily in family law, representing clients in all stages of domestic relations matters, including establishment of paternity, allocation of parenting responsibilities, child support and maintenance (alimony), divorce and legal separation, and post-decree enforcement and modification. Her practice also includes orders of protection, stalking no contact orders, adoptions, guardianships, and DCFS expungement appeals. She further advises clients in the negotiation and drafting of prenuptial agreements and surrogacy agreements, and provides mediation services for contested parenting matters within the 7th Judicial Circuit (Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Morgan, Sangamon and Scott).

Ms. Smaha graduated cum laude from the University of Illinois Springfield with a degree in Clinical Psychology. She earned her Juris Doctor from Saint Louis University School of Law in 2021.

Before entering private practice, Ms. Smaha served as an active-duty member of the United States Air Force as a Signals Intelligence Analyst, which provides her with a first-hand understanding of the unique experiences of service members and their families. She later worked as a court advocate with Sojourn Shelter and Services in Sangamon County, Illinois, where she assisted survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault with crisis intervention strategies, safety planning, and orders of protection. Her trauma-informed background influences her approach to family law matters involving allegations of abuse and high-conflict family dynamics.

Ms. Smaha joined Sorling Northrup as a summer associate in 2020 and was admitted to practice law in Illinois in 2021. She is also admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois and has experience with appellate matters, including In re Marriage of Stine, 2023 IL App (4th) 220519. Ms. Smaha is a member of the Sangamon County Bar Association, the Central Illinois Women’s Bar Association, and the Lincoln-Douglas American Inn of Court.