Divorce & Family Law

Divorce is especially complex when kids are involved. While parents typically both want what’s best for their children, each may have a different definition of what “best” means. Our expert child custody lawyers do everything in their power to protect your rights to your children. Our team is here to help you understand your options and likely outcomes, and to help you achieve the best possible result.

The amount of time each parent will spend with his/her/their children after the divorce is known as “parenting time.” The parenting time schedule is based on what is considered to be in the best interests of the child, which is often not cut and dry. Determining parenting time has become increasingly difficult to manage post-COVID, and our attorneys have helped numerous clients negotiate or renegotiate parenting time to accommodate their families in issues related to the pandemic.

Spousal support, sometimes known as “alimony,” is one of the most difficult elements to assess in a divorce. These payments are designed to help ensure that both parties are able to maintain a lifestyle similar to the one they had while they were married. Whether you are seeking spousal support or being asked to pay it, our experienced Oregon divorce attorneys will represent your best interests and pursue the financial resolution you are seeking.

Financial support for the children of a divorcing couple, usually paid by one parent to the other, is known as “child support.” Our attorneys can provide valuable guidance regarding what is required and what you are entitled to when finalizing your divorce. We also regularly help clients with child support enforcement actions, should your ex-spouse fail to make his/her/their required support payments. In more complicated cases, issues such as paternity may arise, and our experienced family law attorneys can represent you throughout that process as well.

Divorce meditation has become an increasingly popular method for resolving issues that arise during or after a divorce. With over 90% of participants reporting successful outcomes, there is good reason to consider this method. Our mediators facilitate the parties’ exchange of necessary financial information, ensure that no important issue specific to the couple’s situation is missed, work with the couple to negotiate a resolution of the issues (usually, though not always, together with the mediator in the same conference room), and then document the resolution in a marital settlement agreement. If a divorce case has not been filed and the parties so desire, our mediators draft all necessary judicial documents for the parties as co-petitioners and shepherd the papers through the court. (NOTE: Although our mediators provide balanced legal information based on their years of experience in practicing family law, they do not represent mediating parties. Mediation is not a substitute for effective legal representation, which our mediating clients are encouraged to obtain while they are in mediation.)

If you have substantial separate assets you want to protect, are about to embark on a blended-family relationship, or desire to make a joint investment with a spouse or partner, the use of a clear and comprehensive agreement can be financially, personally, and professionally invaluable. Our attorneys can assist you in drafting or reviewing agreements of this sort.

In Oregon, you and your spouse’s assets and debts will be subject to distribution during the course of your divorce. Frequently, real estate, retirement accounts, and business interests will be subject to division and distribution, and many factors determine a fair asset division. Our family law attorneys have the depth of experience to help protect what is rightfully yours.

Our attorneys have helped clients protect themselves by obtaining a restraining order against an abusive party, or in defending themselves when a restraining order is placed against them.