Initiative in Practice.®
For every client. Every day.
Founded in 1880, we serve individuals and businesses.
We’ve transformed the way we practice law to meet the technological and social requirements of the day.
ABOUT US

MacElree Harvey 145 Years Of Experience
With roots that reach back to 1880, MacElree Harvey uses the traditional values of professionalism and excellence as the foundation for the firm’s identity. Our attorneys are encouraged to build on these traditional values through Initiative – creative problem-solving, proactive planning, and strategic positioning.

Initiative in Practice® . For Every Client. Every Day.
Our 45+ attorneys and their staff are dedicated to providing clients with superior representation and are committed to achieving the best outcomes. We serve individuals and businesses in the Pennsylvania and Delaware area with our expertise in various areas of the law.

Client Focused Law Firm
We believe that we’re only as good as the reputation of our clients—which is why we work diligently to ensure our clients come first. We never hesitate to put our reputation on the line to ensure they get as much out of the relationship as we do.
NEWS & INSIGHTS
MacElree Harvey Earns National and Regional Recognition in 2026 Best Law Firms® Rankings
Nine MacElree Harvey Attorneys Recognized in Delaware Today’s Top Lawyers 2025
Employment Law Update October 2025
Partner Brian L. Nagle Represents West Chester University in 10-Year Campus Master Plan Presentation
Employment Law Update September 2025
MacElree Harvey Partner Joseph A. Bellinghieri Honored with 2025 Door Opener Award
Attorney Spotlight Interview: Michael G. Louis
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce: Why Prenuptial Agreements Make Sense for Global Superstars – And for the Rest of Us

CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
It is easy when getting divorced to make emotional decisions. Lance helped keep me on track by constantly benchmarking my emotional choices against my long term goals. His ability to steer my communications and ultimately my decision making to achieving my goals was an enormous benefit. Lots of lawyers understand the law. Lance not only is a great lawyer, he also understands people and how to motivate them to success.
Marie has been very involved in helping me get the primary residence of my young son. Due to a distance situation with his father and the disagreement on what state my son would attend school in, I sought out Marie’s counsel. From the beginning, she kept me up to date, including her staff, and explained how these cases work. I felt more than confident with Marie as my attorney when it was time to appear before the judge. She was able to prove to the court that my son’s father and his witness were not being truthful in specific time frames, which I believe were crucial in winning the case. Marie maintained a calm, cool and collective stance when representing me and there was a very large visible difference if comparing attorneys. Ultimately I won and did receive primary residence of my son, and I couldn’t be happier. I received an email from Marie’s office and she also texted me with the good news. I would recommend Marie to anyone of my friends or family seeking this type of counsel.
Several years after a divorce, new issues prompted me to seek counsel about child custody concerns. No longer confident in the divorce lawyer’s practice, a recommendation led me to Lance Nelson. I truly cannot say enough good things about Lance. He is patient, pragmatic, professional, accessible. Exceptional communication and clear integrity. He laid out the options at every stage, with practical advice regarding the most logical next steps. It never needed to go to court — we were able to manage the situation well enough long enough, the kids aged out before needing more serious legal intervention. In addition to Lance, everyone I have interacted with in the office is equally competent and caring. I would not hesitate to recommend Lance specifically or the practice as a whole.
Patrick was great! We hired him after consulting two other attorneys. We had a situation complicated by Delaware law requiring us to post ads in South Korean newspapers regarding custody and offer proof to the court. The law was unclear about how to go about this, but Patrick guided us through the process and the court ruled in our favor. The adoption went through with no hassle on January 25th and our family is thrilled to now be legal under the same family name. We originally attempted to do this ourselves which turned out not to be a very good idea, way more complicated than we thought. Patrick was able to undo our mistakes and get us on the right path. Thanks, Patrick for your hard work and getting results. We highly recommend Patrick for anyone needing counsel for adoption!
I was faced with a challenging divorce with complex estate implications. Lance provided clear practical advice ultimately allowing me to reach an agreement through mediation. He was accessible to answer questions – even during weekends – helping me map out strategic approaches to complex dispute areas. Despite the emotions being felt, Lance maintained focus on the “big picture” – advising where it made sense to fight and where it made sense to compromise. His team was also very professional and continue to guide me post-divorce on things like estate planning to help put this event behind me.













































