What a Free Consultation With Kirk Actually Looks Like

Free consultations exist because the alternative — charging an hourly rate just to evaluate whether a case is worth pursuing — would put legal advice out of reach for the people who need it most. Personal injury, malpractice, and many employment cases run on contingency fees: the firm only gets paid when the client recovers. That structure aligns the firm's incentives with the client's, and it makes the upfront evaluation a normal business expense rather than something the client has to fund out of pocket.

It also means the firm has to be selective. We can't take every case that walks in the door, because cases require investment of time, money, and litigation resources, and the contingency only pays if the case succeeds. The consultation is partly an evaluation for the client (is this firm right for me?) and partly an evaluation for the firm (is this case one we can handle effectively?). Both questions matter, and both get answered honestly.

If the case isn't a fit for our firm — wrong practice area, weak liability, deadlines already passed, or recovery limited by caps to a level that doesn't justify the investment — we'll tell you. We'll also tell you whether another firm might be the right fit and, where appropriate, refer you to one.

Bring whatever you already have. For an injury case, that typically means: any police or incident reports, photos of the scene or injuries, names and contact information for witnesses, correspondence with insurance companies, medical records or bills you already have access to, and your own written notes about what happened and how it has affected you. For a medical malpractice case, bring records you've requested or received, the names of providers, and the dates and circumstances of the relevant care.

For an employment case, bring the offer letter or employment agreement, any handbook or policy documents you have, recent performance reviews, emails or texts about the issue, any internal complaints you've filed, and the termination paperwork if you've been terminated. If you have specific dates or quotes — particularly of comments that contributed to a hostile environment or retaliation — write them down with the date, location, and witnesses.

Don't worry if you don't have everything. We can identify what else needs to be collected and request records on your behalf using HIPAA authorizations or employer-records requests. The consultation isn't a competition; it's a starting point. Coming in empty-handed is fine; coming in with whatever you have is better; coming in with a thoughtful timeline of events is best.

The conversation typically opens with you describing what happened in your own words. We'll ask follow-up questions — sometimes detailed, sometimes redirective — to make sure we understand both the facts and the timeline. Don't worry about giving the 'right' answers; we're trying to understand the situation, not test you.

From there, we shift to the legal framework. What kind of claim does this look like? What deadlines apply, and where are we in those deadlines? Who are the likely defendants? What evidence already exists, and what evidence will need to be developed? What are the realistic damages categories, and what's a fair range?

We also discuss what success looks like. For some clients, success is full financial recovery; for others, it's vindication and accountability; for others, it's specific changes — a job restored, a settlement that allows treatment to continue, a public acknowledgement of wrongdoing. Knowing what you're trying to achieve shapes how the case gets handled.

And finally, we cover logistics: the contingency fee percentage, how case costs are handled, what your time commitment looks like, what we'll need from you during the case, and how communication works between us. By the end of the consultation, you should have enough information to decide whether to retain us — or to tell us you want to think about it, which is also fine.

Kirk has a reputation for telling clients what they need to hear rather than what they want to hear. Some cases that seem strong on first description don't survive close examination. Some cases that seem hopeless turn out to have angles the client didn't know about. The consultation is the place where this honest evaluation happens.

If your case has weaknesses, you'll hear about them. Pre-existing conditions that complicate causation, deadlines that are tighter than you realized, defendants whose collectability is questionable, fact patterns that juries have historically been skeptical of — all of this gets put on the table. Knowing the weaknesses isn't discouraging; it's the foundation for handling the case effectively.

If we don't think you have a case, we'll say so directly. Sometimes the conversation reveals that what you experienced was unfair or wrong but doesn't fit any actionable legal claim. Sometimes the deadline has passed. Sometimes the damages don't justify the cost of pursuing the case. In those situations, we'll explain why and, where possible, suggest what alternatives — administrative complaints, mediation services, employee assistance programs — might address the underlying issue.

Attorney-client privilege attaches to consultations, even when no representation results. The information you share during the consultation is confidential and cannot be disclosed without your permission. This is true whether or not you ultimately retain the firm, and it's true whether the consultation lasts five minutes or two hours.

Practical implications: you can be candid. You can describe situations involving your employer, doctor, family members, or other parties without worrying that information will travel. You can share things you haven't told anyone else — important context that wouldn't be safe in a non-privileged conversation.

If you want documentation of the privileged nature of the conversation in writing, we'll provide it. If you want to bring a support person — spouse, friend, family member — keep in mind that adding a third party can affect privilege depending on circumstances. We can discuss the right approach for your situation when you call to schedule.

If we both agree the case is one to pursue, the next step is a written engagement agreement that lays out the terms of representation: the contingency fee percentage, how case costs will be handled, the scope of representation, communication expectations, and termination provisions. You'll have time to review the agreement; we don't expect signature at the consultation.

Once the agreement is signed, the work starts. We'll send authorizations to collect medical records, employer records, or other documents we need. We'll begin investigation — interviewing witnesses, retaining experts, sending notice letters to defendants where appropriate. For cases against public bodies, OTCA notice gets prepared and served promptly. For cases approaching deadlines, we move quickly to preserve the claim.

From there, you're kept in the loop. We provide updates as the case develops, particularly when significant events occur — settlement offers, deposition scheduling, expert reports, court filings. Major decisions are yours to make: whether to accept a settlement, whether to file suit, whether to go to trial. Our job is to give you the information and recommendations you need to make those decisions confidently.

If you decide not to retain us — or if we decline the case — that's the end of the engagement, but not necessarily the end of useful information. You'll leave the consultation with a clearer picture of what your situation is and what your options are. That clarity has value regardless of what comes next.

Call us at (971) 406-4500 or fill out the contact form on this site. We'll arrange a time that works — often within a few days for non-urgent matters, faster for cases with deadline pressure. Consultations can happen by phone, by video, or in person at our Lake Oswego office.

If you're unsure whether your situation rises to the level of needing a lawyer, that uncertainty is itself a reason to call. We'd rather have a fifteen-minute conversation that ends with 'this isn't a case' than have you wait six months and discover the deadline has passed on something that mattered.

There's no obligation. There's no pressure. The conversation costs you nothing and either gives you a path forward or tells you definitively that you don't need one. Either outcome is useful.