The Average Cost of Divorce in Oregon

The average cost of divorce in Oregon can vary depending on various factors, such as the complexity of the case, legal representation sought, and court fees. According to legal professionals and family law attorneys in Oregon, the average cost of an uncontested divorce ranges from $5,000 to $7,500, while contested divorces can incur significantly higher expenses, potentially exceeding $20,000 or more.

How Much Does a Divorce Cost in Oregon?

The cost of divorce in Oregon can range from $1,000 for uncontested divorces and up to $20,000 and more for contested ones, depending on the specific circumstances of the marriage termination case. Some of the potential expenses include:

• Filing fee – approximately $300
• Petition response fee
• Services of a lawyer – from $200 to $500 per hour
• Parenting classes – starting at $25
• Personal property, business, and pension evaluation – depend on a particular case.

These and other fees may be a part of the total cost of your divorce. The main reason for the differences in divorce prices in Oregon is the type of marriage termination process you initiate – contested or uncontested.

Contested Divorce

Getting a divorce in Oregon can be quite expensive, with prices reaching $20,000 and much more in contested cases. In addition to the mandatory court fees, such as filing the papers and serving your spouse, you will likely need to pay for the services of a lawyer and other specialists in evaluating the property, child custody matters, mediators if required, etc.  

Solving each divorce issue with a lawyer may require a long time, and the more disputes to resolve, the higher the price. Divorce attorney rates in Oregon are pretty high and range from $200 to $500 per hour. The fees attorneys charge for their services differ based on the specialist’s professionalism, experience, and location.

Thus, the total price of a contested divorce will depend on:

• how long it takes spouses to reach an agreement;
• how many disputed issues they have to deal with;
• whether they need to involve other experts except lawyers.

Uncontested Divorce

On average, an uncontested divorce cost in Oregon is between $1,000 and $5,000. If all divorce issues are fully resolved by spouses without contestation, and they deal with the paperwork and legal process on their own, they will only need to pay the mandatory legal costs, such as court filing fee, petition response fee, trial fee, etc.

The cost of an uncontested divorce may also include the money paid for an attorney’s consultation or limited-scope representation if required. If your divorce is uncontested and you want to save money and time on paperwork preparation, consider addressing an online service for help. This way, you will be able to get a full set of divorce forms for your case without spending hundreds or thousands on a lawyer’s help and many days or even weeks searching for and filling out all documents on your own.

How Much Does It Cost to File for Divorce in Oregon?

To start the divorce process, you will need to cover the mandatory Oregon divorce filing fee, which is currently approximately $300 and may slightly differ depending on the county. You can check the exact price by contacting the court’s clerk in the county where you will file your petition.

Under certain circumstances, the court may cancel filing fees or defer payment to a later date. It is possible if you apply for deferral or waiver of fees and prove your financial difficulties to the court.

Another investment-requiring step when filing for divorce is notifying the other spouse that the divorce process has started. You cannot give summons to your spouse on your own but need to hire a sheriff or a private process server to deliver the papers. This service will cost you from around $50 on average.

How Much Does a Divorce Lawyer Cost in Oregon?

The average cost of a divorce lawyer in Oregon is between $200 and $500 per hour. A lawyer is a professional who knows all the intricacies of the divorce process and can help spouses resolve disputes, come to a mutually-beneficial agreement, or represent each party’s interests in court.

The typical divorce lawyer fees directly depend on several factors:

• the complexity of the divorce process;
• location of a lawyer – in big cities, fees are higher;
• work experience;
• number of successfully completed divorce cases.

Some lawyers in Oregon provide free consultations for informational purposes, explaining to spouses the main stages and procedures of the divorce. It may be a good option for low-income couples or those who would like to reduce divorce expenses; however, it is necessary to check in advance if such free consultations are available in your county.

Some spouses try to save money on legal representation and go through a divorce process on their own. While it may work out for uncontested cases, in contested ones, spouses may make mistakes during different stages of marriage termination and end up going to an expert anyway. If your case is contested, it is worth finding an experienced, professional, and knowledgeable divorce lawyer as soon as possible to finalize the divorce process faster and cheaper.

What Affects the Cost of Divorce?

Many factors influence the price of divorce. The ones complicating the process and increasing its costs are:

• Presence of minor children. If spouses have kids together, they must decide on custody, parenting time, and child support. Accordingly, the costs of divorce increase due to the need to involve third-party experts such as custody professionals, child support evaluators, family therapists, etc.
• Conflicts between spouses. The presence of disputes between parties greatly influences the divorce price. The overall costs will depend on the time needed to resolve them. In a highly contested case, where you need to pay for many hours of lawyer’s work, divorce usually gets expensive. It is better to compromise with your spouse if you want to complete the divorce process without huge time and financial investments.
• The amount of marital property, businesses, assets, and retirement accounts. In almost every divorce, couples should decide on the division of marital property. Spouses will likely need to hire experts to evaluate their assets properly. The average cost such property evaluators charge can range from $500 to $2,000.

To sum up, the cost of each divorce case can vary significantly and depends on many factors, such as whether you need legal representation, which attorney you hire, how difficult the case issues are, the willingness and ability of parties to negotiate, etc. For a cheap divorce in Oregon, try to resolve all divorce issues with your spouse in advance. The divorce price can be well below $1,000 when you do not require a lawyer’s help and prepare the documents yourself or turn to online services.