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Dear Soc,

Again thank you so much for all you do here.  I can't possibly put into words how much your responses, both to me and to others, have helped.

 I strongly feel that my attorney did not represent me diligently.  This matter should have been wrapped up months ago, and from the getgo was a slam dunk.  It is still dragging on due to her inaction.  

When I asked her why on earth she didn't file a motion to dismiss after the OC had been shut down by facts, her ONLY response was "Because I thought you wanted to do this cheaply, and that would have cost money."  Ummm... yeah, but losing due to her inaction and indifference will obviously cost way more than filing a simple motion in a timely manner.  (Further, I never said that I wanted to do it "cheaply".  I, of course, wanted to avoid the expense a full blown trial if possible.)

Nonetheless... Sorry for rambling... I spoke to another attorney today, and now I will be paying another retainer because I can't take this for one more day.  When I asked him what he thought the judge would think if I switched attorneys mid stream, he told me outright that the judges at the court house aren't at all surprised to see my former attorney's clients fire her in the middle of a case.

I've read and copied some of your comments to others in the past regarding attorneys and recovering fees.   The advice that you gave for disputing charges was advice that I'd like to take.  The problem is that I have never received a bill from her, so I've nothing to dispute item by item.

I paid a $1000.00 retainer back in January.  She may have used it all, but I've no way to know and I seriously doubt it.  In 7 months, I have never received anything from her in writing.  I would like to be able to recoup a portion of the retainer, if possible, so that I can apply it to the new attorney's retainer.

Additional word on the street is that this attorney has well known substance abuse issues, and although I didn't believe it at first, from what I've experienced I'm no longer doubting it.    I realize that it is pure conjecture, however I now believe that the OC knows I have an incompetent attorney, and that this, coupled with the fact that I am 800miles away, is what has caused this lawsuit to continue well beyond reasonability.  

I have documented every event ad nauseum, and feel that I have a strong case to dispute any charges beyond the retainer amount, possibly even a portion of the retainer amount.  I have no desire to take anything from her that she has rightfully earned... I have no idea how to proceed.  Perhaps I should just move on and cut my losses... any advice you have will be followed word for word.

1)  Should I request that she send me a final bill?

2)  Should I tell her up front that I plan to dispute all past and future  charges, or should I get a bill first and THEN inform her of the dispute?

Thank you for your insight.  I'm still confused, though, because a pre-trial conference was already held, during which the judge DID tell the attorneys how he was likely to rule should the case go to court.  (Which was in my favor.)

He said in the PTC that if the child did not have at least a 2.0GPA (college) that he was going to "pull the plug on the whole deal."  (His words)  OC refuses to accept this, and continues to pursue in spite of the fact that the agreed order explicitly states that if child fails to achieve a 2.0 then the entire order becomes null and void.  

Child did not achieve the required GPA, therefore the agreement is null and void.  I cannot for the life of me understand what there is left to debate.

I believe that my attorney should have filed a motion to dismiss once the grade report was in, and she failed to do so.  In fact, my attorney received a letter from opposing counsel stating their intentions to continue pursuing this matter, and she did not respond to the letter until 28 days later, nor did she ever inform me of their intent to pursue.

I am 800 miles away.  There is now a new court date for a status hearing, and although my attorney continues to be unreachable I am assuming that I must appear.  (Yes, I am getting a new attorney TODAY.)

The OC has expressed that the child does not even want to attend school in the fall, but that they wish for me to agree to pay if she ever DOES decide to attend in the future.  (?!?!)  I'm wondering if the status hearing is a way to coerce me into capitulating to that request, as negotiating a settlement will save me travel costs.

Sooo in trying to sort this all out, I've only one question:

1) Is the status hearing something that a judge orders independently, or is it something that is requested by counsel?


Thanks again -

Dear Soc,

I am involved in a court case that just won't die...  :(

1) Under what circumstances is a status hearing usually ordered?  

2) What is the benefit to the court?


Thanks for your time, hope your vacation was great!

I heard from my attorney last night.  Looks like it's going to be over!  Apparently at the pre trial hearing on Monday, the judge said that if she didn't get a 2.0 he was going to pull the plug on the whole deal.  Since she got a 1.72, that's it.  It's done.  

The fat lady still needs to sing, so no big celebrations yet, but my attorney strongly believes that once opposing counsel gets those grades in her hands she'll drop the whole thing like a hot potato.  In the final analysis, the CP is walking away with nothing other than thousands of dollars in attorney's fees.  All for no reason other than that she thought she was going to "teach me a lesson" by filing a contempt motion because I refused to jump through her hoops... After so many years of this nonsense, it's an incredible feeling to finally be free.

Thanks for everything, Soc.  I wish you all the best.

Dear Soc,

I had a contempt charge filed against me in January 06 regarding college support for my 19 year old daughter.  Although the charge was completely without merit, the opposing counsel has remained steadfast and unwilling to negotiate for the past 4 months.

The case has not yet gone to court.  Instead, a pre trial conference was held yesterday.  Coincidentally, the child's final semester grades were also released yesterday, and the child's GPA has dropped to a 1.72.  The signed agreement clearly states that if child fails to maintain a GPA of 2.0, the agreement becomes null and void.

I've not been able to reach my attorney to find anything out about the pretrial conference, however it states on the county's website the following:  "Agreed Order to be submitted OTC"

1)  What does "OTC" mean?

2)  In the event that "OTC" means the judge wants to send the case to mediation, can I refuse this?

3)  I am assuming that since a trial date was not set at the PTC that the contempt charge has been proven invalid.  Is this a safe assumption?

Thanks so much,
Hazel

Hi Soc,

I am the defendant in a motion for rule to show cause.  The state is Illinois, and I currently live 900 miles away.  By the time I received the motion against me, I had only 3 business days to either get to Illinois to attend the hearing, or retain an attorney to appear in my absence.

I did manage to retain counsel, and she did appear in court at the appointed time.  This was 18 days ago, and I have not heard one word from her since then.  I have left messages and have spoken to her assistant.  The assistant only states that "court went well" and tells me not to worry about it.  The plaintiff has not dropped the charge and there is a new court date "sometime in March".

There have been 3 scheduled phone conferences with the attorney, but every single one was missed by her because she was "held up in court".  She appologizes profusely through her assistant, yet has done nothing to remedy the situation.  I realize that I am not her only client.  I am only looking for a 5 to 10 minute phone call to let me know where I stand.

My gut feeling is that perhaps she is too busy to handle my case, but it's possible that since the new court date isn't until March that it just isn't a priority for her.  I'm struggling with whether or not to continue on with her, or just make the break and find someone else - not an easy task from 900 miles away.

Are my expectations reasonable?

eom

Things are going pretty well.  Strangely enough, it might be that having this contempt filed against us is the best thing that could've happened.    The opposing side has nothing to gain now, and will most likely lose some of the ground that they previously had.  She will also have to pay for her attorney's fees.  I can't imagine what they were even thinking.

We would REALLY love to get our attorney's fees back from the Plaintiff, as it would send a loud message to not ever pull a stunt like this again.  Plus, the money would buy a lot of future books/tuition/fees.

Our attorney feels quite confident about us recouping the fees, and says that the contempt charge won't even be an issue.

1)  Would it be unethical or insulting to offer the attorney a bonus if she is able to accomplish reimbursement of costs for us?


(Yes I do realize that YOU should actually be the recipient of said bonus, but that is not possible due to your anonymity.  LOL)

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