Need attorney advice

[ILoveMyGelding]

I've been in a custody battle for my son since July. I hired an attorney who was recommended by two of my co-workers and he seemed great at first. He did a few legal papers for me and that is the last time I've heard from him. I've left a few messages for him but never received a response. I did get a letter in the mail from him, it was a propsal from my ex's attorney. He stated in the letter that he "thought" he had mailed it to me but it must have gotten filed and forgotten. I wrote my response and mailed it back. That was back in October. So I tried calling him today and they told me he is no longer there! They gave me his phone number and said he is working for the county now. He is no longer doing private practice. I tried calling him but got his voicemail. What do I do? I'm upset over this because I'm not getting child support and things are tight right now. I will have to come up with another $1000 retainer for another attorney. Should I go after him for my retainer back?

 

[AppyLover2]

I don't have any advice, just wanted to wish you luck with your custody battle. Hopefully the result will be what's best for your little one.

 

[FoRebel]

I'd call the county and complain to them. I'd also find a new attorney and see if the new attorney would go after the old attorney for the retainer since he didn't do his job! Good luck!

 

[Charlene]

if he isn't returning phone calls and he is ignoring you, it's unlikely you will see any of your retainer. depending on how much your retainer was, he can "pad" his bill so that he can claim to have used up whatever you paid him. it's very doubtful that another attorney will be of much help in this regard. i've worked for attorneys my entire adult life (too many years to count) and i have rarely seen a retainer refunded and even when it is, it is only a partial refund.

do you have any sort of legal aid facilities? i don't know what state you are in but here in illinois, we have legal aid that will take divorce/custody cases at a fraction of the cost of hiring a private attorney and they do a pretty good job.

is the proposal something you can live with or is it totally out in left field? as for child support, if it is already court-ordered and he is refusing to pay it, for each week that passes, he will be that much behind. if this is an actual case filed with the court, you could write a simple letter to the presiding judge asking that he set a date for an emergency hearing on child support issues. if you do this, you will need to include an explanation as to why you are writing yourself rather than going through your attorney.

your attorney, even though he is doing nothing for you, is still an attorney of record and the court *should* demand that he appear if a hearing is set. i feel bad for you because most people don't know the technicalities of how the system works and are more or less helpless when it comes to drafting proper pleadings.

something else you can and probably should do is to file a complaint with your state attorney registration and disciplinary commission. this guy sure didn't do you any favors!

 

[Slinkky]

Listen to Charlene....

She's a wealth of information on the legal system.

Hi Charlene!

 

[Charlene]

good morning, slinkky!

ya know, it's attorneys like that guy who give the good ones a bad rap! i've worked for liz for almost 5 years now. not only does she have a private practice but she is also the public defender here. i have known liz to give money to a client in jail so he can buy snacks and i've seen her, more than once, give a ride home to a client after court because he/she didn't have a valid driver's license nor a friend in the world. she's one of a kind!

 

[Tam VanderWerf]

"So I tried calling him today and they told me he is no longer there"

This leads me to believe your former attorney may have worked for a law firm with other lawyers. If so, my suggestion would be to first to review the retainer agreement (providing you and your former attorney had one). Hopefully, it will spell out the details of his representation of you. Another plus would be if the law firm name was included within the retainer agreement. Next, I would contact that law firm - better yet go there in person. Ask to speak to one of the firm's attorneys or the office manager. Don't leave until you speak to someone of authority. Explain to them the lack of communication with your former attorney and since he was an attorney with their firm, your file should have either been turned over to one of the remaining firm attorneys or you should have been informed he was leaving the firm and given options for handling your case. Your case should not have been just left to languish after he left the firm.

I would also contact your state's Bar Association and find out about filing a complaint against the attorney and/or the firm. I would be armed with this information for filing a bar complaint BEFORE going to the former attorney's law firm. Have all your case information in hand too, such as when you paid your retainer, correspondence to and from your former attorney. If you signed a retainer agreement, it may have the name of the firm on it in addition to your former attorney. That, in my opinion, would put the firm on the hook for seeing to the resolution of cases left behind by your former attorney. Before filing a bar complaint, I would give the former attorney and/or firm an opportunity to make things right with you. As Charlene said, be prepared that your bill may have been padded to deplete all your retainer...... this is where the retainer agreement and correspondence from the former attorney may help you.

I've worked in a law office all of my working life and I can tell you there is nothing worse than a disgruntled client showing up at the office to complain about the way their case was handled and camping out in the lobby until they get some answers and satisfaction. Be calm, yet steadfast to get some results. The calmer you are and the more patient you are waiting in their lobby, the greater the chances of getting some assistance from the former firm. I've had this happen to me more than once and it is frustrating to have a upset client in the lobby..... you do anything to satisfy them and have them leave!

In my past experience in Florida and here in Tennessee, an attorney is required to contact the client to inform the client he is leaving private practice if their case is pending. That is why I think the bar association in your state might be interested in the way your case has been handled (or not handled), should your former attorney and/or his firm not make things right with you. A bar complaint may be your trump card - every attorney shudders at the thought of being turned into the bar.

I'm sorry you're going through this. I hope this helps.

Tam

 

[Charlene]

excellent, tam!!! i often forget that most people deal with these sorts of problems in a larger city. i've always worked in small offices with only one or at the most, two attorneys. the only large practices i've worked in were corporations...honeywell and northrup/king seed.

i handle only the criminal cases here. a big advantage for me is that most of my clients are either in jail or on the lam so i don't have too many problems with disgruntled clients hanging around the office. LOL

 

[ILoveMyGelding]

First I wanted to say THANK YOU for all your advice! It really made me feel better. I finally did get a hold of my attorney. He called me back after I left a very stern message for him. He said that he is going to remain on my case but he did close his private practice. He was in with his wife who did mostly real estate. So he was basically the only attorney there.

After reading your posts I do have a few questions if you don't mind me picking your brains?

my suggestion would be to first to review the retainer agreement (providing you and your former attorney had one).

We didn't have a written agreement. All he did was take my check. So should I push for him to write one up? That really scares me because what if something does happen in the future?

is the proposal something you can live with or is it totally out in left field? as for child support, if it is already court-ordered and he is refusing to pay it, for each week that passes, he will be that much behind. if this is an actual case filed with the court, you could write a simple letter to the presiding judge asking that he set a date for an emergency hearing on child support issues.

As for the proposal, there are a few things in there that I didn't agree with. He wanted to be able to claim our son on his taxes every year. He hasn't paid a dime for this child since he was born and he's 15 months now. So I put in there that provided he was paying child support, half his medical premiums (he's on my plan), and school expenses, then he could claim him every other year. My dad paid double the amount of child support that my ex will have to pay and we were on his health insurance, and he never was able to claim us. Am I asking for too much? Also, I did file with child support recovery but they won't do anything because the case is already filed. So can I still push for a hearing to get child support going?

I've worked in a law office all of my working life and I can tell you there is nothing worse than a disgruntled client showing up at the office to complain about the way their case was handled and camping out in the lobby until they get some answers and satisfaction

.Oh that is scarey! I wouldn't do anything like that but it is amazing that people actually do. I was just more scared of having to find another attorney and the money to pay for one! I'm just so thankful he called me back. I think I'm going to be less laid back about things regarding the custody battle. This has been going on since July '08, we weren't married so there's no divorce to worry about so I'm sure why things are taking so long. Thank you all again for your advice and support. Much appreciated!

 

[Tam VanderWerf]

Hi Cassie

I'm happy you were able to get a returned telephone call from your attorney. At this point a retainer agreement probably won't be forthcoming from him, but no biggie. What I would do is memorialize your conversation with him in a letter to him and tell him you are looking forward to a hearing, a counter-offer, etc..... whatever he told you with regard to moving your case forward. That way, you have a written communication for your records. ALSO since you have not received any child support since your son has been born, in your follow-up letter to your attorney I would request that he set this matter for hearing to get child support and arrearage established. I mean, how long are you supposed to go on with no child support? Your attorney should have made this his #1 priority on your case.

As to who gets to claim your son on the tax returns, it is customary here that the parent the child resides with gets to claim the child. That may differ in your state. A good question to ask your attorney. But your offer of claiming him every other year is more than fair.

Being less laid-back on your custody fight is a good idea..... doesn't sound like your attorney is very aggressive. darn good thing I never went to law school!

Best of luck to you and Ryder. If we can help, give us a holler.

Charlene..... you lucky dog - never having to deal with clients! I'm jealous!

Tam

 

[Charlene]

i think your feelings about tax exemptions are right on. here, that is exactly how we do it. as long as the non-custodial parent is current with child support, he/she claims the child every other year.

i agree with absolutely everything tam has said as far as communicating with your attorney and that you should be aggressive with him when it comes to asking for a hearing on temporary issues. get something court ordered NOW and it can always be modified later. something else you should keep in mind...if your ex changes jobs ANY time in the future and his income increases, you are most likely entitled to an increase in child support. in illinois, child support amounts are statutory...25% of his take home pay for one child, 28% for two children, etc. if daddy changes jobs and gets a substantial raise, it is up to HIM to volunteer this information but if that ever happens, i'll eat horse poo. just keep track of his employment yourself and if/when he changes jobs OR if/when he gets a raise, ask for more child support because you are probably entitled to an increase.

LOL, tam! would you still be jealous if i told you i have to make a trip or two every week to visit my clients in jail? the only good thing about it is that i have a captive audience...no pun intended.

 

[Tam VanderWerf]

"something else you should keep in mind...if your ex changes jobs ANY time in the future and his income increases, you are most likely entitled to an increase in child support"

YES! Very good point, Charlene.

Cassie - you might snoop around online in your state and see if there are any child support guidelines. Here, there is a web site that you can plug in the income of the parents and other variables such as child care expense and insurance expense, which will calculate your anticipated child support. If that is available, you might gain a little insight as to what your child support might be.

Captive audience........I laughed until I snorted on that one! I wouldn't want that as part of my job description.

 

[ILoveMyGelding]

Thankfully, my ex works with my mom so I'll know if any job changes happen. And he's always volunteering to me when he gets a raise. I did talk with a different attorney before I hired the one that I have. I think there is a website for Iowa too that she typed in to find the amount of child support. It is supposed to be about $330/month. That attorney was great she did educate me a lot, but it was just a consultation. I could not afford her retainer in the short amount of time that I had, so I had to settle on the attorney I got. I had already been served papers and only had 20 days to respond or I lost custody. I'm not too worried about losing custody of my son, so that is good in one aspect. Iowa is pro-mom and my ex's mom has even told me that she would testify against her own son. I just want to Thank You all again very much. I really appreciate your advice. And Charlene...captive audience

too funny!

 

[Charlene]

cassie, i thought about something else...when your attorney files any sort of petition, make sure he includes a clause asking that your ex pay your attorney's fees. i realize you're probably paying "up front" but the court can order that your ex reimburse you. GET IT ON PAPER!!!

most of my legal work has been on the criminal end. (not ME, i mean my clients

). i don't particularly like civil law. most especially since gary passed away, it's really hard for me to have to listen to couples bickering and fighting. when i did do some civil work, the worst case i had was when they were fussing over the custody of...are you sitting down?...TUPPERWARE! i kid you not, they fought over TUPPERWARE!!!

we recently had a case where they agreed to everything (we call those "slam dunks") but they could NOT come to an agreement on who got custody of the DOG. LOL

the worse part of my job, even worse than having to visit the jail, is dealing with juveniles. so many kids in trouble these days and with drugs, most especially meth, being so easy to come by, when kids go downhill, they go downhill fast.