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Law school: Seattle University School of Law

Career highlight: Hook is the driving force behind her firm鈥檚 annual Dress for Success clothing drive, which collects business-appropriate clothing for low-income women.

Noteworthy: Hood was 鈥減rincipal for day鈥� at a local elementary school as part of her participation in the 2004 Leadership Portland Class run by the Portland Business Alliance.

Laurel Hook saw the law as a better way to help people.

As a psychology major, she worked in the Domestic Violence Crisis Center and saw the range of problems faced by people in tenable family situations. After graduating from Seattle University Law School, she worked for two years in the juvenile prosecution system, then became eager to leave that sector and considered transactional law, which she found fascinating. Fortunately, she met Portland attorney Jody Stahancyk.

Stahancyk impressed upon Hook that with her background, she was perfect fit for practicing family law.

Hook joined Stahancyk, Kent and Hook in 1999, and became a shareholder in 2004. Her professionalism is apparent in her performance as a litigator and specialist in pre- and post-nuptial agreements and related services.聽 She has been listed as a Rising Star in Oregon for the past four years in Superlawyers Magazine. Her pro bono community involvement with Legal Aid of Oregon contributed to her recently being named by the Portland Business Journal as one of the 鈥淔orty Under 40.鈥�

Hook successfully manages clients鈥� interests through estate planning and providing comprehensive counsel before, during and after the marriage dissolution process, which requires that she possess a high degree of empathy and attentiveness in what are often highly emotionally charged events.

鈥淚 help my clients calm down and look at the practical things,鈥� she said. 鈥淧art of the process is helping them to feel a little more in control in a situation where they have no control.

Outside of the office, Hook loves to travel and cook, combining both in a recent cooking tour of Tuscany.聽 鈥淐ooking is an opportunity to create exciting things and I like the idea that I鈥檓 getting better at something outside of my practice.鈥�