Grand Rapids, Michigan · since 1986

Counsel that stays.

Most people meet us over one thing — a closing, an estate, a company they're starting. Then they keep the number for thirty years.

Request a consultation Call (616) 555-0142

39yrs

Serving west Michigan families and businesses

Attorneys — the one you meet is the one on your file

½hr

First consultation, no charge, no screener

Areas of civil practice under one roof

Start with what happened.

Most people don't know the name of the area of law they need. They know what's going on. Find the nearest one, or call and we'll point you the right way.

Someone has died

Probate & estates

Opening the estate, dealing with the house, settling what's owed, and getting the rest to the people it belongs to.

Getting affairs in order

Wills & trusts

Wills, trusts, powers of attorney and health care directives, so the people you leave behind aren't guessing.

Starting, buying, selling

Business & commercial

Formation, partnership and buy-sell agreements, contracts, and the paperwork behind a sale or a succession.

Buying or selling property

Real estate

Purchase agreements, closings, boundary and easement questions, and title problems that surface late.

A parent needs care

Elder law

Long-term care planning, Medicaid questions, guardianship and conservatorship when a family member can no longer decide.

The family is changing

Family law

Divorce, custody and parenting time, support, and agreements built to hold up when circumstances change later.

Owed money, or being sued

Disputes & collections

Commercial disagreements, contract claims and collections — settled where sensible, tried where necessary.

Running a nonprofit

Nonprofit & tax

Formation and exemption filings, board governance, and the state and federal requirements that follow.

What happens when you call.

No portal, no chatbot, no form that disappears into an inbox.

STEP 01

You call or write

Tell us in plain language what's going on. If it isn't something we handle, we say so and point you toward someone who does.

STEP 02

Half an hour, no charge

You sit down with an attorney — in the office or on the phone — and leave knowing where you stand and roughly what it would cost.

STEP 03

Scope and fee in writing

Before any work starts, you get what we'll do and what it costs, on paper.

STEP 04

Or you walk away

Decide against it and there's no invoice and no follow-up. That happens plenty and it's fine.

The people who'd actually handle it.

A small firm on purpose. The attorney you meet is the attorney on your file.

Margaret Hale

Founding partner

Estates, trusts and elder law. Has been talking families through probate since the firm opened above a hardware store on Monroe.

Michigan

Owen Warrick

Partner

Business formation, succession and commercial agreements for closely held companies across west Michigan.

Michigan & Illinois

Priya Mehta

Partner

Real estate and commercial disputes. Closings, title questions, and the arguments between businesses better settled than tried.

Michigan

Curtis Bell

Associate

Family law and probate litigation — the matters where the people involved count for as much as the filings.

Michigan

Told to you before we start.

Not everything can be quoted flat — a contested matter depends partly on what the other side does. Most of the common work can be.

Simple will package

Will, durable power of attorney, health care directive, and a sit-down to sign it properly.

$450flat, per person

Forming a company

Filing, operating agreement, EIN, and an hour on keeping the company separate from you personally.

$750flat, plus state fees

Residential closing

Purchase agreement review, title work, deed preparation and attendance at closing.

$650flat

Contested matters

Litigation, contested probate and family matters — written engagement letter, agreed retainer, itemised statement monthly.

Hourlyquoted up front

“Plenty of consultations end with: file it yourself, and call us if it gets complicated.”

— Margaret Hale, founding partner

On Monroe Center, downtown.

Fourth floor of the Ledyard Building, above the coffee shop. Ramp entrance on the Ottawa Avenue side.

Hale & Warrick

118 Monroe Center St NW

Suite 400 · Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Hours Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00. Evenings and weekends by arrangement.

Parking Validated in the Ottawa–Fulton ramp, two minutes on foot.

Phone (616) 555-0142 · text us

Serving Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, Grandville, Rockford, Holland and the wider west Michigan area.

Get directions Book a consultation

Pay a bill online.

Card, debit or bank transfer, using the statement number on your invoice. No account to create.

Retainers go to the trust account and earned fees to operating — the payment page keeps them separate, as the bar requires. Questions about a statement? Call the office and ask for accounts.

Make a payment →

Straight answers.

The things people ask before they decide whether to call.

Do I actually need a lawyer for this?

Sometimes not, and we'll tell you. We'd rather be the firm you trusted than the firm that billed you for something you didn't need.

How much is this going to cost?

For routine work, a flat fee quoted before we start. For anything contested, an hourly rate with a written estimate of the likely range. Either way it's in writing before any work begins.

My parent is losing capacity and nothing is in place. Is it too late?

Often not, but it's time-sensitive. If they can still understand and sign documents there's usually a path. If they can't, the conversation shifts to guardianship or conservatorship. Either way, that's a call to make this week.

Do you handle criminal matters or personal injury?

No. We're a civil general practice. If that's what you need, tell us and we'll give you the names of local firms who do it well.

Is my first call confidential?

Yes — even if you decide not to hire us, and even if we never open a file. Please don't send confidential details through the web form, though; it isn't a secure channel. Call, and we'll take it from there.

Get in touch

Half an hour, no charge.

Tell us roughly what's going on and how to reach you. Someone from the office will call you back — not an automated reply.

The office

118 Monroe Center St NW, Suite 400
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Telephone

(616) 555-0142

Hours

Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00

● Spec build · Hammer & Signal