Our primary goal is always to help you move on with fair and reasonable agreements. A divorce does not have to devastate your family or even mean the end of productive relationships.
If there are contested issues, our divorce lawyer will try to help the parties come to an agreement. Mediation and eventual agreement cost less than a court fight, but we will not hesitate to advocate for our clients in court when necessary.
At the Aurora Law Office, we work to make the client's costs as low as we can. In 20 years of handling divorce matters for our clients, we have developed a competitive flat fee plan for uncontested divorces in Oregon.
At the Aurora Law Office, we are aware that many people feel they need a lawyer, but they are not sure they can afford a lawyer. At attorney Brendan Enright's Aurora Law Office, we offer:
Our office is small enough to provide you with the individual care and attention you need and deserve, and experienced enough to vigorously pursue your rights. Contact us at the Aurora Law Office for friendly, experienced legal advice. Evening appointments are available. Major credit cards accepted.
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Grounds. Oregon has adopted the concept of "no fault" divorce. It is not necessary to prove cruelty, adultery, etc., in order to obtain a divorce. A statement that you and your spouse have developed "irreconcilable differences" will suffice. "Irreconcilable differences" is an advanced case of not getting along with each other.
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Legal Separation. A legal separation is possible but is not generally used. We recommend counseling services and not legal services if you are not ready for a divorce but want to talk things over with someone.
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Residence Requirements. You must have lived in Oregon for six months prior to filing your Petition. The Petition must be filed in the county in which either you or your spouse lives.
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Starting the Proceedings. The first step is the preparation and filing of a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage. The Petition states the names, ages, social security numbers, and addresses of the husband, wife, and all children born or adopted during the marriage; when and where you married and when you separated; that the residence requirement has been satisfied; and that your marriage should be dissolved. It also states whether any other domestic relations suits are pending between you and your spouse in any other county or state. Finally, it will set forth provisions for support, custody, a parenting plan (visitation), property division, attorney fees, and court costs.
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Who Should File? The person who files first is the Petitioner. The other party is the Respondent. There is no legal significance in who files the Petition, although there may be procedural and tactical advantages for the Petitioner. Pride is another matter. Talk it over with us and with your spouse so we can avoid a race to the courthouse and further hurt feelings over this small item. You will want to file first if child custody is going to be an issue or if you need an order freezing assets.
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Waiting Period. No divorce can be granted until at least 90 days after the date service of the Petition is made on your spouse. This is a minimum interval. Our experience indicates up to 12 months for contested divorces. We will be trying to help you work out the details of custody, visitation (now called parenting time), support, and property division during the waiting period. The Judge will sign a Judgment of Dissolution after the 90-day waiting period has passed.
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Service or Waiver. Your spouse must receive a copy of the Petition after it is filed. One way to do this is to ask the sheriff or private process server to hand-deliver a copy of it to your spouse. This can cause embarrassment and angry feelings. An alternative is to have your spouse come in to our office to pick up a copy of the papers and sign a document called an Acceptance of Service which acknowledges receipt of a copy of the Petition. We will use a private process server unless you tell us otherwise.
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Custody. Oregon law directs the Court to consider the following factors when deciding which parent shall be given custody of minor children: (a) the emotional ties between the child and other family members, (b) the interest of the parent in the child and the parent's attitude toward the child, (c) the desirability of continuing an existing relationship, and (d) the abuse of one parent by another. In practical terms, this means the parent who has accepted the primary responsibility for bringing up the child in the past will probably be awarded the care and custody of the child in the future. The noncustodial parent will be allowed reasonable rights of visitation based on the child's needs. Oregon law calls this time sharing schedule a "parenting plan." Joint custody will only be granted if both parties agree. In general, joint custody will work only if both parents communicate and cooperate with each other. Disagreement over custody and time sharing is guaranteed to put you right in the middle of a contested and expensive divorce. Never bring the children along on your visits to our office.
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Parenting Time (Visitation). The Court will usually approve the plan which you have worked out if you and your spouse can agree to details of how much time the children will spend with each of you. A typical schedule is to alternate weekends, several weeks in the summer, some time at birthdays, Christmas, and other holidays, plus addition or different times as you may agree upon. We encourage liberal time sharing except in extraordinary circumstances.
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Child Support. There are statutory support guidelines which the courts use to determine the amount of child support. The guidelines will be used to set support in your case, unless there are exceptional circumstances present. We will be discussing the guidelines with you as your case proceeds. The Court can order child support be paid up to a child's 18th birthday. Support is extended to age 21 if the child is attending school. Please ask about the formula and types of schools that qualify.
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Property Division. There is no fixed way to determine how you or the Court should divide the property. One thing is clear: debts as well as assets must be considered. Other factors include the nature and extent of the property; the duration of the marriage; and the economic circumstances of each spouse. In some cases, gross misconduct by a spouse (such as supporting a mistress) can be considered. If you and your spouse can agree, and if your agreement is reasonable, it will be approved by the Court. The Court will divide the property if you cannot agree. A wife with custody of minor children will generally be awarded more property than the husband.
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Temporary Relief. The Court will hear your evidence and determine if it is appropriate to enter a short-term order which will be in effect only while the case is pending if your spouse is being physically abusive to you or thechildren, refuses to provide reasonable support, refuses to give you information concerning property, or refuses to share time with the children. The Court can restrain you both from physical abuse of each other or of the children. This restraining order can be filed with the local police to guarantee an arrest will occur if trouble develops. The Court can also order support for the children. Be sure to let us know if you feel you will need this sort of temporary relief.
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"Uncontested Divorce." Your divorce will be contested unless you and your spouse agree to the divorce and to all aspects of custody, time sharing, support, property division, and the payment of liabilities, attorney fees, and court costs. You have a contested divorce and a trial may be necessary if your spouse disputes even one of these matters.
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Spousal Support. Oregon courts can provide for spousal support (alimony) following a divorce. Spousal support is considered as taxable income by the Internal Revenue Service. This means it is possible for a spouse to obtain income tax advantages depending on how the marital property is divided.
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Court Costs. Court costs in Marion county are approximately $[290] if the case is totally uncontested. Your court costs could be $[500] or higher if there are depositions or investigations. You may pay for these items as we go since it is not our policy to finance a case.
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Our Fees. The exact fee will vary with the services you require. Our basic divorce services include the preparation and filing of the Petition; preparation of an acceptance of service to be filed by your spouse or arranging for a process server to serve your spouse with a copy of the Petition; preparation of summons and an affidavit of nonmilitary service; obtaining information from you concerning your assets, liabilities, income, and expenses and making recommendations concerning property division and support; preparation of review of the Judgment of Dissolution; preparation of forms required by the Oregon Bureau of Vital Statistics.
Additional fees are charged for additional personal or telephone conferences, negotiations with your spouse or your spouse's attorney, tax planning and advice (such as spousal support arrangements), preparation or review of property division and support agreements, temporary orders of all kinds, and all court appearances.
The Court may order one spouse to pay some of the other spouse's attorney fees if a trial is necessary. The Court rarely orders payment of the full amount of the fee. You are responsible for paying our agreed fees. Any sums recovered from your spouse will be either credited to your account or reimbursed to you.
You will be required to sign a fee agreement and deposit a retainer in our trust account when you hire us. Full payment is due every month. Credit terms can be arranged in some cases. We discussed our fee with you during our first meeting. The fee agreement is a binding contract between us. Please read it carefujlly before signing it.
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Reconciliation. Sometimes divorce seems like the only solution. Often it is not. You may change your mind and try to work thinks out after a divorce action is commenced. We encourage reconciliation.
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Change of Wife's Name. A wife's former name may be returned to her at any time either during or after the marriage without any court action. We generally suggest this be limited to the restoration of the maiden name when there are no children involved, or to a former married name when the children are from a prior marriage. Let us know before we prepare the Petition if you want such a change formally incorporated into a court order.
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Final Divorce. Your divorce will be final after the Judge signs the Judgment of Dissolution if there is no appeal.
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Remarriage. You may not marry anyone except your spouse until the 30 day waiting period has passed and the divorce becomes final.
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Confidentiality. We must have all the facts to represent you properly. You will be asked to tell us everything about you and your spouse. This sometimes can be embarrassing. Your spouse's attorney has probably already been told even your most intimate secrets. Anything you tell anyone in this office is strictly confidential and will not be disclosed without your permission.
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Keeping You Informed. We will make every effort to keep you informed. You will receive copies of all documents prepared or received by us. Please call if at any time you have any question or problem.
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Our Professional Services. We provide an experienced attorney, competent support staff, and modern equipment and research facilities in performing legal work for you. Your legal problems are given our continuing personal attention in an effort to obtain the best results possible in the most reasonable time and at a reasonable cost. Although we are interested in helping you resolve your personal problems, we are not trained to provide counseling services.
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Your Responsibilities. We expect you to be cooperative and truthful. We will fire you as a client if you are not. We also expect you to pay your bill on time. Please notify us of any change of address or telephone number or if you learn anything that may affect your case.
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General Suggestions. Your well-meaning friends and relatives may offer you advice about your case. Such advice is often not accurate. Be cautious in following it. The facts surrounding your marriage, divorce, children, and property are unique and different from every other case.
Divorce proceedings are very emotional, and parties sometimes use them to seek revenge. Sometimes one parent will use the children in an attempt to punish the other parent. Prepare your children properly without poisoning their minds about your spouse. Obtain professional advice if possible. Attempt to cooperate with your spouse where the children are involved.
It is perfectly acceptable for you to discuss support and property division with your spouse. In fact, we want you to. Just do not finalize anything without clearing it with us first. Remember, always be fair.
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New Wills. The Oregon Probate Code will make certain provisions of your will ineffective once the divorce is finalized. You and your spouse will probably need new wills following the divorce. Please let us know if you wish to pursue this.
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Getting Started. Our initial consultation is structured to answer some of your immediate questions give you a general idea of your rights and responsibilities in a divorce action. However, we have not accepted your case and cannot act as your attorneys until you have retained us for that purpose. Call our receptionist and tell him/her you need a "follow-up appointment" to retain us as your attorneys if you wish this office to represent you. We keep time open for those appointments every day so you will be able to get in right away. The follow-up appointment will take about half an hour. You will need to bring to that appointment the signed fee agreement and your check for the retainer.
