Attorneys at Law
Battle Creek, Michigan since 1998
Morrow & Hale is a two partner general practice on East Michigan Avenue. We prepare wills and trusts, carry estates through probate, close real estate sales, and help small owners start and wind down businesses. Most clients come for one matter and stay twenty years, and every file is handled by a partner.
Practice areas
We take on matters we can handle well and refer the rest. Anything outside this list, call and we will point you to someone who does it daily.
A will says who receives what you own and who manages it if you cannot. We name an executor, provide for minor children, and write so the document still reads clearly years later. Where a house, a business, or a child who needs long term help makes probate awkward, a revocable trust may suit better.
When someone dies, the probate court must authorize the transfer of what they owned. We prepare the petition, inventory, creditor notices, and final accounting, and keep the family informed at each stage. If you are personal representative and would rather not do it alone, we act as your attorney and leave the decisions with you.
We represent buyers, sellers, and lenders on houses, small commercial buildings, and farmland. That covers the title search, purchase agreement, deed, and the settlement statement accounting for every dollar. We also review easements, boundary questions, and leases that deserve a close read.
We form limited liability companies and corporations, prepare the operating agreement or bylaws, and file what the state requires. For owners already trading, we review contracts, buy-sell arrangements, and leases, and will say when a document is fine as written. Nearly all of this is quoted as a flat fee.
The practice
Most legal work is not dramatic. It is a set of documents that has to be right the first time, prepared by someone who will still be in the office when the questions arrive.
Ellen Morrow, Partner
We keep a limited number of matters open at once, so you can reach the person handling your file, and our estimates rest on the work rather than an hourly clock.
The attorneys
Partner
Ellen handles wills, trusts, and probate administration, with a steady share of residential closings. She has practiced in Calhoun County since 1996 and still meets most new clients by telephone before anything is drafted. Clients describe her as patient with questions.
Partner
David works in commercial and residential real estate, small business formation, and the contracts between them. He spent years handling closings for a regional title agency, where he learned how many problems are settled before the table rather than at it.
How we work
A person answers, not a form. Tell us briefly what the matter is and we will set a free twenty minute call with the partner who would handle it.
For wills, trusts, and closings we quote a flat fee before work starts. Where that is not possible, we say so and give an estimate with our assumptions written down.
Documents are signed in our office with a notary present, and closings are set with the title company and lender. You leave with copies, and we hold the originals.
Fees
You should know what a matter will cost before you agree to it. These are starting figures for ordinary work, confirmed in writing.
| Wills | From $450 for a single person, $650 for a couple, including the signing appointment. |
|---|---|
| Revocable trusts | From $1,800, covering the trust, a pour-over will, and funding instructions for your accounts and property. |
| Residential closings | From $650 plus title costs, which the title company quotes separately and passes through at its own rate. |
| Probate and business matters | Billed hourly, with a written estimate of hours before we begin. |
The first twenty minutes are free, whether or not you hire us. If the answer is that you do not need a document yet, that is what we will tell you, and there is no charge for the call.
Questions
For many people a will is enough. A trust helps when you own property in another state, hold a business, or want the estate kept out of probate. We will tell you which fits, including when the answer is neither.
Nothing is needed for the twenty minute call. Before the following meeting, gather the deed to your home, a recent statement for each account, the names you want as executor or trustee, and any will already signed.
An unsupervised estate with no dispute and a filed inventory is often closed in seven to twelve months. A tax return, a house to sell, or a disagreement among heirs adds time. We give you a schedule once we have seen the inventory.
Yes. We close property across southwest Michigan and work with title agencies in each county. Where a matter is far enough away that local counsel makes better sense, we refer it.
Bring it in and we will revise it. Handwritten changes on the original, or a separate codicil, create confusion later, and an amendment costs less than the problem it prevents.
Consultation
Send a short note and we will call to arrange a time. Please keep confidential details out of this form, which is not secure.
34 E Michigan Ave
Battle Creek, Michigan 49017
Monday to Friday
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Appointments outside those hours can usually be arranged.
