Abstract: A sheet metal shears for protecting from injury the hand of a user holding the sheet metal shears while cutting a piece of sheet metal. The tool includes sheet metal shears having a pair arms pivotally coupled together with each arm having a cutting blade and a lever handle. The lever handle of one of the arms has a closed finger loop distal the cutting blade of the one arm. The lever handle of the other arm has a generally U-shaped open finger loop distal the cutting blade of the other arm. The open finger loop has a pair of space apart elongate portions and an arcuate portion connecting the elongate portions of the open finger loop together. A first of the elongate portions connects the open finger loop to the lever handle of the other arm. A second elongate portion has an arcuate region for forcing a portion of the sheet metal cut by the cutting blades away from the open finger loop to protect the hand of the user from injury from the cut edges of the sheet metal while the user is cutting the sheet metal.