Your path forward
Five steps, and you always know which one you are on
Most of the fear in this process comes from not knowing what happens next. So here is the whole thing, in order, including the parts about money.
- 1
A first call, free, twenty minutes
You tell us what is happening in your own words. We tell you what area of law it lands in and roughly what it costs.
You will usually speak to Aaron first. He is not going to ask you for a case number or a document; he is going to ask what happened and what you are most worried about.
By the end of the call you will know three things: whether we are the right practice for this, what the realistic range of cost is, and what the very next step is. Plenty of these calls end with us pointing you somewhere else, and that is a fine outcome.
Bring nothing. Just call.
- 2
We sit down and get the picture on one page
A ninety minute meeting at the office or over video. Afterwards you get a written summary of where you stand.
This is the meeting where the fear usually drops. We go through the finances, the household, the children, the timeline and the parts you have been avoiding.
Within three working days you receive a plain-language summary: what we know, what we still need, what the law says about your situation, and what the options are. It is written so you can hand it to somebody you trust.
Bring whatever you have. Incomplete is normal.
- 3
We agree a plan and what it costs
A written scope, a fee estimate with a range not a single number, and a decision that is yours to make.
You get a written engagement that says what we will do, in what order, and what it will cost. Where the cost genuinely depends on the other side, we say so and give you both ends of the range.
You will not be asked to sign anything in the room. Take it home. Ask us the awkward questions about money by email afterwards; we would rather answer them then than have you worrying in month four.
You decide at home, not at the table.
- 4
The work, with the lights on
Negotiation, filings, mediation, and if it is genuinely needed, a courtroom. You hear from us on a schedule, not at random.
Most cases are built and settled at a table. Where we have to file, you see the draft before it goes. Where the other side files something, you hear from us the same day, with an explanation of whether it actually matters.
You get a status note on the first Monday of every month even when nothing has happened, because "nothing has happened" is information too, and silence is what makes people frightened.
A note on the first Monday, always.
- 5
It ends, and we hand you the file
Signed judgment, a closing letter in plain English, and a list of the things you now have to actually do.
The judgment is the beginning of the paperwork, not the end of it. Retirement accounts have to be divided. Deeds have to be recorded. Beneficiary designations have to be changed. Insurance has to be re-registered.
We give you a checklist with dates, we do the pieces that need a lawyer, and we tell you which parts you can do yourself in an afternoon so you are not paying us for them.
You leave with a checklist, not a mystery.
The four things people say before they call
I do not know if I can afford this.
Say that on the first call. We set up payment plans regularly, we quote flat fees where a flat fee is fair, and where we are genuinely out of reach we will tell you where to go instead. Nobody here is offended by the question.
I am worried about making things worse.
Almost nothing you can do in the first week is unfixable, and the few things that are, we will warn you about before you do them. Asking early is how you avoid them, not how you trigger them.
I do not want a fight.
Neither do we. Around four in five of our matters settle without anyone seeing a courtroom, and we will tell you plainly when a filing would cost money and change nothing.
I am not sure I am ready.
A first call is not a decision. A good number of the people we talk to are still working out whether they want any of this to happen, and understanding the process is often what makes the decision possible either way.
How to reach a human here
Phone, weekdays
(503) 914-2270. Aaron picks up, or calls you back the same day. Thursday evenings until 7:30pm.
Email, any time
hello@harborfamilylaw.com. Answered within one working day, including the short questions.
Book it yourself
Use the consult form and tell us when suits you. We will come back with two or three times.
Start with a conversation, not a commitment
Twenty minutes on the phone, free, with somebody who will tell you plainly whether you even need a lawyer for this.