Kelley & Kelley

A Disappointing Experience After an Otherwise Good Representation Don Kelley represented me regarding my aunt’s estate, and the estate process itself went fine. After everything had been completed and he had been paid in full, I received a letter from the bank and contacted him with a simple question about what I should do. His three sentence response was that reopening the estate would involve at least a $278 filing fee, likely another fee to close the estate, and several hours of his time. He also indicated that it was unlikely there would be anything left to distribute. I thanked him for the information and decided not to move forward. I was very surprised when I subsequently received a $100.50 invoice for his response. At no point in his email did he tell me that I would be charged for the brief response or that there would be a consultation fee simply for answering my question. I contacted him about the charge, and he offered to reduce it by 50% if I paid within 10 days. The estate had no money available to cover this expense, so the $50.25 ultimately came out of my own pocket. While I understand that attorneys charge for their time, I believe clients should be clearly informed when a fee will be incurred, particularly for a simple follow-up question after the estate has already been completed and paid in full. I was especially disappointed because I believe the Golden Rule—treating others as you would want to be treated—should apply in situations like this. My experience is being shared so others can ask about billing practices and potential fees before contacting this attorney with follow-up questions.

I had a deeply negative experience with attorney Phil Kelley during a restraining order hearing where he represented my adoptive parents. His behavior throughout the process was unprofessional, intimidating, and deeply disrespectful — particularly toward me as a Deaf individual and as a victim seeking protection.

Instead of maintaining appropriate courtroom conduct, Mr. Kelley went out of his way to sit at my table in what felt like an attempt to assert dominance and scare me. His demeanor was dismissive, rude, and showed absolutely no compassion or understanding toward victims of abuse or toward the Deaf community.

While he may have succeeded in getting the case dismissed on a legal technicality, that does not erase the truth or lived experiences of abuse. His courtroom tactics seemed more about ego than justice. In my opinion, he lacks the integrity, empathy, and respect that any decent attorney should have — especially when dealing with vulnerable individuals.

If you’re looking for a lawyer who values human dignity, trauma-informed care, and basic respect for accessibility needs, I would strongly caution against hiring Phil Kelley.

Highly professional

Not impressed. I emailed Kelley & Kelley for some property advice, received and email back to call them and naively did. Don chatted me up for a while asking where specifically I lived (even though my current address had nothing to do with my question). He googled my house while I was talking then said "well we are up to $93 now for the first 15 minutes"... wait, what? Didn't know he would start charging with the intake call. My bad for assuming a free consultation but wish that had been communicated clearly and less time spent on where he goes to church and how big my backyard is instead of the out of state property I inquired about.

No response never got back to me very poor not recommend.