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  • Free Legal Help - NOT (Long)

    As a bit of background, my boss is a nice guy, sympathetic and always, always, tends to give people a break on their fees, especially if their case is something that will run on the pricey side. I've seen him discount bills, not charge for time he spent, etc., just because he feels bad for someone. And he's not a wealthy man, either. He's a sole practitioner in a small town. Some months, we have to scrape to meet the office expenses. Anyway, here's two stories from just this past week:

    I'm not paying, but I want you to do more work for me!

    Had a client come in in November, needed to file for bankruptcy because they were behind on their mortgage and car payments. The normal fee for that kind of case is 2,000.00 plus costs (and you won't find it cheaper anywhere!). His policy is 1/2 up front and the rest to be paid through your bankruptcy plan. These people said they couldn't come up with that much, so he allowed them to pay the filing fees only and agreed to file their case with the understanding that they would pay the 1,000.00 by the end of December (this was the client's proposal).

    After weeks of having to chase them down, they still, today, owe $500.00 on the original agreement. So the client calls up in January and says she got served with a bad check charge and wants my boss to "handle" it for her. He told her that he couldn't commit to taking on more work for them until they paid what they owed. So this week, still not having paid, the wench calls and says she's not paying and they don't want him to represent them anymore because his refusal to "help" her with the criminal matter "cost her hundreds of dollars!". Hello, what do you think you're doing, you entitlement whore???

    Running up a bill and taking off

    Another client with a divorce that has dragged on for well over a year has been carrying a 900.00 balance since last fall, awaiting a decision on his case. We finally get the decision last week and he says he wants to file an appeal. We prepare the paperwork and then, 3 days later, get a letter from another attorney saying he wants us to withdraw from his case and that he's going to represent the client. The only good part is that we're under no obligation to withdraw or turn over the file until the bill is paid, which is now over $1,000.00. Best part though, is that the appeal is due Monday and the client hasn't given us the rest of the information we need and so it's not going to happen. Sucks to be you, but you shouldn't have tried to be sneaky and run up a huge bill and then think you're going to just slink away to someone else and not pay.

    I hate the deadbeats with the entitlement attitude worse than anyone else!

  • #2
    Most people think all lawyers are rich, but most of them are just keeping their heads above water, like everyone else.

    It's nice your boss wants to help, and I'm sure that in the long run it usually pays off, but it sounds like he needs a bit more of a spine. My MIL's a solo, and it took her a couple of years before she learned that she couldn't keep practicing if her clients weren't paying.

    She also had to cut way back on the pro bono, because they were driving her nuts. Talk about entitlement whores! Help somebody out for free and they just want more and more. They DEMANDED more and more. They expected that whenever they needed legal advice she would give it to them and for free. So that had to end.



    Really like the avatar!
    Labor boards have info on local laws for free
    HR believes the first person in the door
    Learn how to go over whackamole bosses' heads safely
    Document everything
    CS proves Dunning-Kruger effect

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    • #3
      The first woman really sounds like a jerk, but I can still sympathize. Bankruptsy can consume your entire life as you try to stay just enough afloat while still paying towards the lawyer and trying to cancel collection calls. My parents and sister went through it and another sister is in-process. Their lawyers wanted money up front to do all of the filing, I think your boss was very generous. I agree, he should be firm about his terms and not keep giving and giving. His time is worth something, too.

      Now I have to ask. Being that he's a lawyer and all, is he better able to MAKE this vile woman pay her bill (forgive my ignorance if that came off as very rude. I have never worked in a law office, so I may again be falling prey to stereotyping)
      A lion however, will only devour your corpse, whereas an SC is not sated until they have destroyed your soul. (Quote per infinitemonkies)

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      • #4
        Lawyers use collection agencies, just like any other business would, unless the amount is large enough for them to go to the trouble of filing suit.
        Labor boards have info on local laws for free
        HR believes the first person in the door
        Learn how to go over whackamole bosses' heads safely
        Document everything
        CS proves Dunning-Kruger effect

        Comment


        • #5
          Quoth bainsidhe View Post
          The first woman really sounds like a jerk, but I can still sympathize. Bankruptsy can consume your entire life as you try to stay just enough afloat while still paying towards the lawyer and trying to cancel collection calls. My parents and sister went through it and another sister is in-process. Their lawyers wanted money up front to do all of the filing, I think your boss was very generous. I agree, he should be firm about his terms and not keep giving and giving. His time is worth something, too.

          Now I have to ask. Being that he's a lawyer and all, is he better able to MAKE this vile woman pay her bill (forgive my ignorance if that came off as very rude. I have never worked in a law office, so I may again be falling prey to stereotyping)
          That's kind of his philosophy. People that need lawyers are very rarely in a "good place" and there are few kinds of cases that are actually "positive" (i.e. adoption, buying a house, etc.) That's why he tries to be understanding. The problem with this one is that she kept making and breaking promises and then would avoid phone calls, not respond to letters, etc. If she had just come and talked to him about it, he would have worked something out. Instead, she did the typical avoiding and lying and then turned around and blamed it on him.

          Sure, he could sue her, get a judgment and then she'd probably never pay it until years from now when she tries to refinance or sell her house. Usually, it's just not worth it.

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          • #6
            hey Skoob... do they call you 'Timmmmm"???? :P

            I get enough pains in the butt for whom things haven't gone well for them - and for the most part, they get narky with us being another one who wants money out of them. BUT... my best customer was one I got quite a few months ago. He 'just let everything go', and stuck his head in the sand (emotional stuff, financial stuff, the works). And when he raised his head, he had thousands of dollars in debt that would have only cost him a couple of hundred if he hadn't've ignored it back then. The good bit?? He just said "Well, ok then, I let it go then, I'll deal with it now". DAMN!!!! One of the ones I would have happily tried to help out (if I could..). I like people who take responsibility for their crap!!!

            Slyt
            When I said "From my research", what I actually meant to say was "Made shit up" - from a thottbot thread

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            • #7
              Lawyers? "Rich?"

              OBJECTION!! I had to stitch up this lil' bugger myself!

              Honestly, I've only dealt with one lawyer and he's been very nice. I think they've gotten a bad wrap. I blame Law & Order.
              You can find me on Backloggery, Facebook, Twitch, Twitter, YouTube

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              • #8
                I blame LA Law.
                Labor boards have info on local laws for free
                HR believes the first person in the door
                Learn how to go over whackamole bosses' heads safely
                Document everything
                CS proves Dunning-Kruger effect

                Comment


                • #9
                  I blame Bob Dole. :P
                  You can find me on Backloggery, Facebook, Twitch, Twitter, YouTube

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Quoth gunsage View Post
                    Honestly, I've only dealt with one lawyer and he's been very nice. I think they've gotten a bad wrap. I blame Law & Order.
                    You lie! Law & Order lawyers are awesome! And cases easily packaged into a one-hour time slot
                    A lion however, will only devour your corpse, whereas an SC is not sated until they have destroyed your soul. (Quote per infinitemonkies)

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                    • #11
                      Well then...I...uh...blame Jim Carrey for his role in Liar Liar!
                      You can find me on Backloggery, Facebook, Twitch, Twitter, YouTube

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Quoth wagegoth View Post
                        She also had to cut way back on the pro bono, because they were driving her nuts. Talk about entitlement whores! Help somebody out for free and they just want more and more. They DEMANDED more and more. They expected that whenever they needed legal advice she would give it to them and for free. So that had to end.
                        Some of the pro bono cases I have handled involved the nicest people who were thankful for any help they got. Most, unfortunately, were the entitlement whore types. When people understand that they are going to have to PAY $150 to $300 or more dollars per hour to speak with the attorney (billed per quarter hour) she thinks through whether the whine about her neighbor calling her a bitch is worth it. Those who think the attorney is free have few issues with taking up the attorney's time.

                        And yes, we had an pro bono divorce client who called us about her neighbor calling her that. The neighbor had called her that name during a phone call argument to which no one else was a party. She wanted to sue for a few million dollars for "defamination". Hoping to talk her down without telling her there was not even the beginning of a case based on those facts, we asked her if her neighbor had a few million dollars. She said no. We asked her how she expected to get a few million dollars from someone who had nothing. She replied that there must be a state fund or something that paid judgments when the defendant was broke.
                        She was REALLY mad when she found out how things really were.
                        Last edited by South Texan; 03-04-2008, 01:50 PM.
                        "Ignorance is no excuse for a law."
                        .................................................. ..................- Alfred E. Newman

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