Elizabeth Hartsell has always known one thing about herself: she is happiest when she’s helping people. That theme shows up everywhere in her life, from imagining herself in the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, to planning on attending law school while in undergrad at App State, to every job she has ever taken since. Helping people just feels good to her. It’s the reason she chose the legal field. It’s also the reason she walked through the doors of Triangle Smart Divorce. 

Elizabeth grew up in Winston-Salem, headed to Boone for college, and eventually moved to Raleigh for the opportunities, the energy, and, if she’s being completely honest, the access to Top Golf. As mentioned, she thought she wanted to work for the FBI, until an internship at the District Attorney’s Office and a few ride-alongs reminded her the job wasn’t exactly like TV. But she loved criminal justice. She loved having professors who actually worked in the field. And when she later went through UNC’s paralegal program and learned from people who handled family law every day, something clicked. Those were the areas of law where she could actually see the impact she was having on someone’s life. That mattered more than anything. So much so that after completing the program, she went on to pass the exam and become a North Carolina State Bar Certified Paralegal.

One of Elizabeth’s best crash courses in human behavior came from an unexpected place: a ski resort. She handled customer service and employee scheduling, which meant dealing with people who were either really excited or really angry — sometimes both within the same five minutes. Vacation, as it turns out, does something interesting to the human brain. Elizabeth learned to stay calm, keep her humor, and help people feel supported even when everything was happening face-to-face and all at once. She came away with a thick skin, a lot of patience, and a lot of stories. 

Outside the office, Elizabeth is the happiest outdoors. She loves snowboarding (of course), golf, and sailing — a skill she learned at the summer camp she later taught at. She jokes that snowboarding and sailing feel the same to her because you can’t think about anything else while you’re doing them. It’s the perfect “get out of your head” reset. She also loves cooking and baking. She’s excited to have an office full of willing taste testers (because baking a single cupcake is basically impossible). She also reads for fun, even if her version of “light reading” usually means social science or history. 

Elizabeth is also a big sports fan. She loves App State football and was raised correctly, as she puts it, as a Carolina fan thanks to her dad who went to UNC. She will watch almost any sport in person and is glued to the screen during the World Cup. 

What drew her to Triangle Smart Divorce was simple. She loves hearing people’s stories and helping them figure out what comes next. As TSD’s Client Care Coordinator, she’s often the first person someone talks to when they reach out, and she takes that responsibility seriously. She loves getting to know people, helping them feel heard, and guiding them toward the attorney or resource that best fits what they need. Every person who contacts the firm has a different situation and a different definition of “the other side,” and she enjoys finding the best path to help them get there. She also immediately felt at home with the TSD Team. She says that everyone on the Team genuinely likes and supports each other, which makes a difference when you’re helping people through difficult moments. 

At home, Elizabeth is supervised by Cash, her four-year-old cat who is, in her words, a complete diva. If you ask her nicely, she might show you a picture. She definitely has one.