Douglas Gardner

I don't typically take the time to write reviews, bad or good, but am now to endorse Douglas Gardner and Davis Miles. There's plenty said about the challenges of divorce, but getting on the other side of it allows for the opportunity to reflect more clearly - and Douglas' sincere and direct approach... was awesome. The law is messy and never seems fair, but Douglas brought clarity to all of that and worked expeditiously as requested. He's not interested is burning up billable time, but about doing what's right and what's needed. And he's backed by a professional and equally competent team. Highly recommend him and his firm.

I retained the services of Mr. Douglas Gartner because I wanted to assure that I had done everything in my power to get the best possible outcome for all parties involved, I also wanted to be fair. Douglas has all the legal prowess to get you what you want and understanding to get you what you need.... His services are worth every penny. Do give him a call.

I know that Douglas is a highly skilled attorney. I hired him for my very simple and easy divorce case but soon realized I didn’t need someone so skilled as he was charging me a lot for doing absolutely nothing with my case. He has other less expensive attorneys at the firm and he could have matched ...me with someone who wouldn’t overcharge for such simple legal tasks. My first consultation with him I asked what the cost looks like total without it being contested. He said $3,000 to start and it could be more depending on what happens throughout the case. I was understanding of that. I hired him. Fast forward 4 months into my case where I’ve essentially put the whole thing on hold. There were no court appearances, I hadn’t sent him ANY paperwork from my end, and no movement was made at all. They had already charged me $16,000. When I called the billing department they said I have to talk to Douglas to discuss switching attorneys. After looking at my itemized bill and seeing that a phone call with him is a couple hundred dollars, I refused to speak with him again. I called the receptionist at the firm to ask who I could speak with that wouldn’t charge me and help me determine what attorney is best for my case at that firm. She said “I don’t know what you want me to do, talk to Douglas!” And I explained that I will not due to him finding MANY different ways to charge me for practically nothing. She was unhelpful and I was getting angry at that point of being charged so much, I hung up. She told Douglas I called, Douglas called me, I was not going to risk getting charged another couple hundred dollars so I didn’t answer. He emailed me that he can withdraw as my attorney so i went through with that and switched to an attorney who handled my entire case for under $2,000 :) attorneys can choose to rob people or not. If you have plenty of disposable income, hire Douglas. I know he would help me win my case if I was able to afford him. My feedback to him is when a potential client asks what just the BASE costs are, don’t just quote the deposit of $3,000, quote what just the legal filing fees are added up together which is actually more like $30,000 minimum. I wonder how much I would have spent total if I kept him as my attorney through the end of my case.

When I got blindsided with divorce papers I was dumbfounded and had to find an attorney. Just before my dad died he bought me a house. Being the husband I was I put it in both our names and she wanted half of its worth. I new I needed an aggressive experienced attorney in my corner. I called severa...l off the internet explained the situation and wasn't comfortable with them after the initial phone consult, they all said the same thing. Arizona is a community property state, you will have to sell the house. Then I was told about AVVO I will admit I went through the list looking at the photos of the Attorney's and none of them sat right with me until I saw Mr. Gardner's photo. My gut (which I rely on heavily) said this is your guy. So I called late in the afternoon and left a message. He got back to me first thing the next morning and was prepared to discuss things in the free 15 minute consult. I asked him if instead of the phone consult could I get 15 minutes with him in person, I saw him at 11:30 the same day. After explaining to him that I wanted to keep the house and Douglas explaining to me how divorces in Arizona worked and that 99.9% of the time the Judge ordered any marital assets (community property) sold and the proceeds split in half. Then he looked me straight in the eye and said "But 99.9 is not 100%" then he got serious and said, "I can't promise you I can get you to keep the house but if you retain me I will fight tooth and nail for you to try and make it happen." And that is why I wanted a face to face with him. We shook hands and I walked out of there knowing I had found "My Attorney." As my wife had moved out and wanted back in the residence, she tried on three different occasions with three different reasons to have the judge remove me from the premises so she could move in and "get the house cleaned up and ready to go on the market." Each time Douglas was able to shoot holes in her request and get the Judge to rule in my favor. The first time the judge ruled on the spot, the next two times the judge took it under consideration and issued rulings in my favor. Then after several extensions filed for by her Attorney came the day we went to court. The two attorneys were called into Judges chambers and came out about 20 minutes later. And at that first meeting when Douglas said 99.9 is not 100% was true because he did it. He pulled it off, he made it happen like he said he would, he fought for me tooth and nail. I am a baseball umpire, when a batter steps up to the plate and points his bat on an elevated angle towards the outfield he is saying I am going to hit a home, he is "calling his shot." In my view when Douglas said 99.9 isn't 100%, he called his shot! And beyond a shadow of a doubt, I am 100% certain that had I gone with any other attorney I would have lost the house. Douglas, even though my account with you is settled in full I will forever be in your debt. Thank you for all you did for me sir you are the best in your field!

I made a decision to hire Douglas Gardner back in September 2020 after consulting with several other highly recommended divorce attorneys. I found him to be, even in contrast to others I had interviewed--or even retained--strong, competent, experienced and specialized, and at the same time creative,... professional and with integrity. He got the job done well and I had no complaints at the time, but what really compels me to leave this review is when almost 3 years later I found myself having to enforce the Decree he initially drafted. Two idioms come to mind: 1) "You get what you pay for." And 2) "You don't know what you don't know." Suffice it to say Douglas' work was and continues to be worth every penny. Go for value, friends.