Is It Legal to Record a Phone Call in Oregon? (2026)

Is it legal to record a phone call in Oregon?

Yes, for phone calls. Oregon is a genuine hybrid: telephone and electronic communications follow a one-party consent rule, while in-person conversations follow a stricter notice-to-everyone rule. If you are on a phone call with your co-parent, your own consent is enough to record it lawfully. If you are standing across from your co-parent at a custody exchange, the rule flips, and everyone present has to be told before you start recording. Confusing the two is the single most common mistake in Oregon, and it is exactly where a documenting parent can accidentally step outside the law.

The statute and the exact citation

Both rules come from the same section, Ore. Rev. Stat. § 165.540, “Obtaining contents of communications.” Subsection (1)(a) makes it unlawful to obtain the whole or any part of a telecommunication to which you are not a participant, by means of a device, unless consent is given by at least one participant — which is what makes your own presence on a call enough. Subsection (1)(c) separately makes it unlawful to obtain a conversation by means of a device unless all participants are specifically informed that the conversation is being recorded. Same statute, two different consent standards, depending entirely on whether the communication travels by phone or happens face to face.

Penalties

Violating either subsection is a Class A misdemeanor in Oregon, carrying up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $6,250, plus potential civil liability under Ore. Rev. Stat. § 133.739. The penalty is the same whether the violation is recording a phone call with no participant's consent at all, or recording an in-person conversation without telling everyone present — the seriousness is identical, only the trigger differs.

The in-person rule is now settled law: Project Veritas v. Schmidt

Oregon's all-party notice requirement for in-person conversations was challenged on First Amendment grounds and had a genuinely unsettled few years. A Ninth Circuit panel struck it down in July 2023, but the full Ninth Circuit reheard the case en banc and reversed that panel, upholding § 165.540(1)(c) by a 10-2 vote in January 2025. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a further appeal in October 2025, which makes the ruling final within the circuit. The court held the statute is content-neutral, imposes only a “relatively modest notice requirement” rather than a ban, and protects a conversational-privacy interest that extends to private conversations wherever they happen — not just in someone's home. For a parent in 2026, the bottom line is unambiguous: the all-party notice rule for in-person conversations is current, enforceable Oregon law, not a relic of an overturned statute.

Notable exceptions worth knowing

Oregon carves out several situations from the in-person notice requirement: recording that captures a felony endangering human life, recording a uniformed law enforcement officer performing official duties in plain view, and recording at public or semipublic proceedings such as hearings, trials, press conferences, and public speeches using an unconcealed device. There is also a narrower exception covering family members recording within their own home. None of these exceptions are designed around a custody exchange in a parking lot or on a porch, so a parent should not assume one applies without checking the specific circumstances against an attorney.

Using a recording in an Oregon custody case

A phone call you were part of is generally usable as evidence in an Oregon family law matter, subject to the judge's usual assessment of relevance and reliability. An in-person recording made without announcing it to everyone present is a different story: it was made in violation of § 165.540(1)(c), and beyond the misdemeanor exposure, a judge is far less likely to admit evidence that was unlawfully obtained. If you want to document a face-to-face custody handoff in Oregon, say clearly, before you start, that you are recording — it is what the law requires, and it is also what makes the recording something a court can actually consider.

The interstate caveat: when the other parent is out of state

Oregon's one-party rule for phone calls governs conduct under Oregon law, but many co-parenting relationships cross state lines. States including California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington require all-party consent for calls generally, and some courts apply whichever state's rule is stricter when a call spans two states. If your co-parent is often calling from one of those states, treat the call the way Oregon already treats an in-person conversation: announce that you are recording. Given that Oregon itself requires notice for anything face to face, building the habit of announcing consistently avoids two separate traps at once.

How to document a call so it holds up

For phone calls, keep the original audio file untouched, log the date, time, and who was on the line, and never trim a recording down to a single moment before showing it to your attorney. Copareo Secure Line is built for exactly this piece of the puzzle: a private number that automatically records, transcribes and time-stamps your telephone co-parenting calls into a continuous, tamper-evident archive, for a one-time $9.90 with no subscription. It covers the phone side of Oregon's hybrid rule; for in-person exchanges, the discipline that keeps you lawful is simple and free — say out loud that you are recording before you start.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to tell my co-parent I am recording our phone calls in Oregon?

No. Oregon requires only one participant's consent for telephone and electronic communications under § 165.540(1)(a), and you satisfy that as a participant. You may record a phone call without announcing it.

Do I need to announce recording an in-person conversation in Oregon?

Yes. Under § 165.540(1)(c), every participant must be specifically informed before you record an in-person conversation, and this rule is now settled law after the Ninth Circuit's January 2025 en banc ruling in Project Veritas v. Schmidt upheld it and the Supreme Court declined further review.

Is Oregon's in-person recording law still being challenged in court?

No, not at the federal level. The Ninth Circuit upheld the statute en banc in January 2025, and the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in October 2025, closing off further federal appeal in this circuit.

What if my co-parent lives in an all-party consent state?

Oregon's phone rule only requires your own consent, but some courts apply the stricter state's law to a cross-state call. If that applies to you, announcing the recording — the same habit Oregon already requires for in-person conversations — removes the ambiguity.

Bottom line

In Oregon, you may lawfully record a phone call with your co-parent using only your own consent, but an in-person conversation requires telling everyone present first — a rule the Ninth Circuit has now settled as constitutional. Keep phone recordings complete and unedited, always announce in-person recordings, and extend that same habit to any co-parent who is likely calling from a stricter, all-party state.

Not legal advice. This page summarizes Oregon law for general information and is not a substitute for advice from a licensed Oregon attorney. Recording and evidence rules change and courts decide admissibility case by case. Verify against the official statute (Ore. Rev. Stat. § 165.540) and consult an attorney about your situation. See the full call recording laws by state guide for how Oregon compares to neighboring states.