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15 Oct, 2024 by Andrew samuelson
26 Sep, 2024 by Sonja brooks
10 Jul, 2024 by Ryan o'riordan
A warning to out-of-state attorneys. I have paid and applied to take the Bar this month. Just found an email in my junk folder stating I need a certificate of good standing or else my application will be cancelled and no refund given. From where I don't know. there is no contact information. No correspondence on my applicant portal. After paying over $3000 I am astonished how poorly this process has gone. My application and admission to Minnesota was nothing like this. Impossible to talk to someone on the phone. All this after my application was not accepted because there was no button to submit statements on the application. Incredibly poor performance.
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15 Oct, 2024 by Andrew samuelson
26 Sep, 2024 by Sonja brooks
10 Jul, 2024 by Ryan o'riordan
A warning to out-of-state attorneys. I have paid and applied to take the Bar this month. Just found an email in my junk folder stating I need a certificate of good standing or else my application will be cancelled and no refund given. From where I don't know. there is no contact information. No correspondence on my applicant portal. After paying over $3000 I am astonished how poorly this process has gone. My application and admission to Minnesota was nothing like this. Impossible to talk to someone on the phone. All this after my application was not accepted because there was no button to submit statements on the application. Incredibly poor performance.
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21 Sep, 2024 by Anonymous
Atty Rodel Rodis was a professional lawyer.He helped me in to winning my divorced case. He is also accommodating and so selfless. He is also generous .I owed Atty Rodel Rodis partial payment and was not able to pay him back. He did not put me in collection because he understand my financial situation. He is very respectful and very knowledgeable in handling his profession. Thank you so much Atty Rodel Rodis for your kindness .You will always be a part of my history.
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08 Jan, 2021 by Anonymous
This guy is supposed to be an attorney but he implicated an innocent man on social media based on hearsay and without evidence.
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17 Mar, 2017 by Jake
We hired Atty Rodis to represent my wife and I at an Immigration hearing in Reno, NV. He didn't show up!! No phone call, nothing. Yet, he had the gall to charge us $1,500. This guy's a joke of a lawyer.
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13 Sep, 2024 by Anonymous
DO NOT HIRE MELISSA POLK! She is an extremely dishonest person who doesn't know how to do her job. She frequently makes mistakes and instead of accepting responsibility to fix them, blames everyone else except herself - the judge, her paralegal, and worst of all, her own clients. It's unbelievable she is still able to practice law. As is apparent in the reviews, she has harmed many people, ruined their cases, abandoned them at critical moments, and still refuses to admit any fault. My favorite is that she claims on some negative reviews that her clients "were happy with her work". So why would someone write a negative review who was happy with her work? Absolutely disgusting. She cares only about billing her clients high rates for terrible work, with zero empathy or consideration for the outcome.
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22 Aug, 2024 by Linda
Melissa Polk has handled my Restraining Order matter and the subsequent ongoing divorce case with all the professionalism, attention to detail and clearly defined goals necessary to handle two very contentious situations.
I have worked among many other attorneys for 14 years while managing my (ex) husband's law office: Ms. Polk is better than any other lawyer I know. Melissa far exceeds my expectations and she has the compassion and knowledge of the law that I needed when I became desperate and highly stressed.
I trusted her from the start; she came into the midst of me trying to represent myself and file my own court documents against the man I put through law school and had supported for 28+ years.
I can't give her more stars than Avvo allows; I would if I could.
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15 May, 2024 by Anonymous
Worst attorney ever! Melissa lied to my face. You cannot trust a word she says. She obviously doesn't know the law because I found out later that much of the "advice" she gave me was completely wrong! Why tell a client something as fact when you don't know what you are talking about??? She didn't help me with my case and in fact, made it far worse. Her bills contained many errors, including billing me for discussing the mistakes she made which she never fixed. Rude, unknowledgeable, and a complete waste of money. I wish I had never, ever hired her. Don't make the same mistake I did!
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22 Aug, 2023 by Kreyer family trust
This man is a horrible lawyer, as far as I’m concerned he is a criminal, and a bully - he billed my family over $80,000 and didn’t fight to present crucial evidence when it came down to the wire..
He is a liar, a megalomaniac, a horrible person, and I would absolutely NOT recommend him unless your willing to waste tens of thousands of dollars to listen to him lecture and insult you while telling you crucial evidence is worthless. He abandoned me twice during hearings he promised to appear for, as he said he would not leave me out to dry - yet abandoned me day of the trials/hearings and I lost horribly due to his malpractice and misrepresentation of his skill set
I went in on my own for trial and was ten times more effective than he was in all three years of his representation combined!
I will gladly share more information with anyone considering hiring Wallace. Unlike him, I’m not scared to present it. He has threatened to sue me for defamation when he knows he’s failed me as an attorney - the only thing he did well was a deposition - which Yorker a ton of evidence he never presented.
This man is a joke and a hot head - do not waste your money or energy depending on him to do the honest Abe ethical thing.
Feel free to message me for further detail and evidence.
I’m reporting him to the bar and trying to recover the money wasted on this man’s ego.
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21 May, 2018 by Matt
In my assessment, Mr. Buenaventura is a competent *trial* attorney. However, I cannot give him a positive review. He dragged out a complex multiple misdemeanor case out for over a year. He was unresponsive to text messages, phone calls and voicemails. When we eventually did get a hold of him, he would give us inconsistent advice that just seemed to push the case later. As an innocent person, I found his extremely poor professionalism created additional and unnecessary extreme anxiety for me and my family.
Additionally, Mr. Buenaventura seemed strongly motivated to push my case to trial over settlement. He was evasive and dismissive of us when we asked if he would negotiate a deal with the DA. In retrospect, we are suspicious he was financially motivated to push the case to trial to receive another $5k + $250/hr fee. We sought outside counsel and ultimately fired, Mr. Buenaventura. Thank God we did.
The other attorney (Mr. Steven Chase) was able to use the expert witness report to get ALL CHARGES DISMISSED before the the next pre-trial conference.
The proof is in the result. Ray did not treat us well and was an objectively inferior lawyer to Mr. Chase, by every measure.
Mr. Buenaventura receives 2 stars because he was initially attentive to our case and was responsible for identifying our expert witness who was key in proving my innocence and dismissing all charges. I genuinely wish Mr. Buenaventura well and hope he learns to treat his clients with more respect and integrity in the future.
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10 Oct, 2022 by Jordan
Let me start off by saying what a disappointment this woman is. My husband and I hired her about 8 years ago to help him get his green card. We took all the step she suggested to us, after a while though, she stopped responding to our requests. Come to find out, we still owed her money, had no idea as the amount we agreed upon had been paid. It hadn’t, unbeknownst to us.
We went months and months without hearing anything back from her. Finally, my husbands green card interview date had been mailed to us. We then made more attempts to get in touch with her to no a veil. So he decided to go to Ciudad Juárez anyway and do the interview. When he arrived, the agent told him that the paperwork we had was filled out incorrectly and that he was not permitted to enter the US for 10 years.
I have since moved to Mexico and uprooted mine and my families lives. However, joke is on her because we are happier here in Puerto Vallarta than we ever were in the US. Irina is a disappointment and a joke of an attorney. I would rather hire Barney that Irina Ribeiro.
I am now taking my case to the state bar of CA. She needs to be held accountable for her terrible actions. Being an immigration attorney requires you understand that your clients lives and families are on the line. She has no regard for these families and people.
Look elsewhere and don’t trust her with your immigration journey.
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18 May, 2022 by Anonymous
It is incredible that CA State Bar allows people like Irina Ribeiro to practice law. What's even worse is that the CA State Bar allows her to misconduct when practicing immigration law: money and dreams are being robbed from people arriving to a new country, people trusting the values of our great country US, families looking for asylum, people looking for a new life, individuals looking for the so called American dream.
As mentioned by others, Irina will take your money, will not do any work on your case, will not respond to you emails, call or texts. She will create excuses about not responding to you and will not return your file or money. I urge you NOT to hire her legal services.
If you were also a client of Irina Ribeiro and would like to make a formal complaint with the CA State Bar and to the courts, to attempt to recover some of your lost time and money, please contact me. We will share stories. Maybe we can join forces.
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17 Oct, 2020 by David
Irina is NOT the immigration attorney that you want to hire or trust to be on your side. She does not return calls, text, or emails at all. If you hire her and give her your file containing your important documents, good luck in getting your file back. She will not return your file, calls, texts, or emails. She is quick to collect the fee if you hire her, but will abandon you at a heartbeat without any notice or warnings. Stay away from The Law Office of Irina Ribeiro if you have an immigration case that needs to be handle with care because naturalization is a very personal matter that should only be handle by a qualified immigration attorney. The Law Office of Irina Ribeiro is NOT qualify.
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28 Sep, 2017 by Jakub
I worked with Jim’s firm twice. Both for E-2 Visa for my startup. First time was pretty good though wasn’t smooth at the consulate. The second time, I trusted that he will put the same care and focus to my case like at the first time. Boy was I wrong...
First of all, they postponed my case for few months, because they were super busy preparing for H1B’s in April. I was running out of time! Finally, my startup got approved to the most prestigious startup accelerator in the U.S. and we had several other successes on the way... but our case wasn’t approved! When we met with Jim in his office a week after the denial, his only advice was: leave the country! We found another lawyer and within 2 months got approved! A few months later my wife got approved for a green card and we’re all set. He never looked at solutions out of the box, though our cases were really no problem for other lawyers.
Don’t have to tell you how much stress and anxiety it cost me. He refused to return my money, even though I wrote him super to the point letter pointing out all the mistakes. He responded 3 months after, saying that they were busy with H1B’s... A JOKE. Deja vu! Don’t work with them if you care about your immigration issues and life in the U.S.
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23 Jan, 2016 by Ron
Do not waste your time or money with James Mayock or EM Visa. My fiancee had selected Jim as her attorney and he is 100% useless, Between Mr Mayock and his staff they do nit provide due diligence, an attorney who submits paperwork to USCIS should at a minimum ensure the firms are correct and SIGNED before submission, he failed to do this. the forms submitted were incomplete, unsigned, and USCIS requested additional information was not submitted within the time frame dictated by USCIS. this firm will nickel and dime you to death, and leave you in limbo. if i could give them negative scores i would. Run from them they are inept, unprofessional and incompetent.
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23 Apr, 2022 by Anonymous
She reviewed my case with me and confirmed that she could help me win employment case and it is covered by my insurance. None of that happened. She refused to bill my insurance on my behalf. When pressed, she would do it and I had to pay for extra for billing insurance.
I paid her lots of money and got nothing in return.
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25 Mar, 2015 by Anonymous
I engaged this lawyer and after one year of no action a mediation was planned and no result. Later the my case was proven in arbitration and that settled a million.
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23 Sep, 2024 by Anonymous
Lewis has represented either myself or my family more times than I can count and has succeeded any expectations I would have of an attorney, he has shown up in other cities when I was far from home, he has held the hands of attorneys I had to hire because I lived out of state, he even helped my sister with a smoking citation when she was a teenager, well below his capabilities but show his capacity for caring about his clients. He is always there when we need him no questions asked and myself and my family owe him such a debt of gratitude. There is no better lawyer to have on your side.
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28 Jul, 2022 by Anonymous
Was facing a gun charge. Kept calling him and he never responded despite promising me he will. Mind you I am a black man so he picked up the phone one time after I tried to keep calling him and called me a cotton picking worthless n***er and said to stop calling him. I for sure wont be calling him again.
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23 Sep, 2015 by Shayna
I paid a ton of money for this lawyer who basically failed to help me in any way after he was hired. My court hearing was completely dropped because I was innocent. He was hired with the agreement he would help me to clear the arrest record and find the other party to sue them. Nothing ever came of it. The biggest loss I experienced was the money I lost to him. No response to emails.
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07 Jun, 2024 by Thomas
I believe Vestal attempted (partially succeeded) to leverage our case against us. I am adamant this attorney and his firm Niesar & Vestal be avoided at all costs. Vestal ruins families. CA BAR should do a deep dive. Unfortunately, I lost my ability while hiring replacement attorneys and dealing with the case. Vestal is more of a threat than your opposing attorneys.
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25 Jan, 2015 by Thomas
"...We had an important case coming to an end, and it took up all of our resources..." Well, Peter, then maybe you should not have taken our case, and our money. When your attorney John Kelly submitted his papers to Judge Appel and was ridiculed by him in public, his loss of face was not the most significant damage. We have lost almost everything, and continue to suffer today trying to fend off people that stole from us! If you charge a person for legal service, and charge them to collect information that exonerates them and identifies the bad guys, maybe your firm could use them in court when they were needed and could provide benefit? If you were "too busy," the honorable and ethical thing to do would have been to tell us so that we would have been able to secure other counsel, which was no longer available after your mistake.
I respected your admission to what happened, and we agreed try again. But, you did not offer to fix the huge negligent error, and continued on the same path which damaged us so severely before. You made us look bad to the judge, and denied us the ability to garner good cousel subsequently and reverse the impression YOU made. Not only did you fail to help us, you destroyed us.
Our losses are huge. This has only exponentially damaged me and my family, financially and psychologically. We continue to be punished by criminals. I would advise potential clients to run away from this firm. Completely unethical and immoral. Unbelievable.
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11 Apr, 2023 by Anonymous
Schindler charged for work that he did not complete successfully. Half-assed all the way. Run from this attorney. He needs to retire.
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29 Aug, 2018 by Anonymous
Our family hired this attorney to assist in carrying out the most simplest estate after my father passed. He failed to respond to my many emails, failed to return phone calls, and hung up on me on a couple occasions. I kept all emails from this attorney, at least 4 times he contradicted himself, and when I called him out on what I believe was a lie, he avoided phone calls or had his assistant always say “he’s on vacation again”. Even the people he referred to help us out(appraisers)were very much on the shady side. Apparently, he is known as a very shiesty attorney. I wish we did better research, but he was recommended by a trusted neighbor. I would thoroughly consider interviewing other attorneys, as he was a big waste of time and money. Our estate should have been closed within 6-12 months . It took him 3 years and he still has not provided professional closing docs, nor answered many family questions we still had. All in all he did our family wrong.
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11 Aug, 2018 by Anonymous
I do not know why his name is under Juvenile Law, Family, Personal Injury. We used him for Special Need Education Lawyer.
I got his name from PHP and attended one of his class held by PARCA. I liked him. When I was in need of a lawyer for due process, I talked with him beforehand and decided to hire him. He attained a lot of information for prior IEPs and CCS reports. He asked me what I wanted. I asked him the strategy how I proposed my requests as some parents were telling me to ask for more because district only gave a part what parents/lawyer proposed. He said if my requests were reasonable, he would get what I wanted. So I wrote my proposal and asked him if it's reasonable. He probably just copied and pasted. And then filed due process. He was contacted by the district lawyer. I forgot exactly how long, I think it was about one month after we filed due process. He asked me what to do about the case as it's law requirement we had to indicate what's our next step, drop the case or continue the case. I asked what is his suggestions. He said we could drop the case as the case has started. So I dropped case. Then the district gave me a counter offer which is about 60-70% what I want. He suggested me to accept the offer and see how it work. If it's not working, we would start another due process. He did not even counter offer once. I did not agree. He said he could not work for me if I do not accept his suggestion. So I fired him after that.
I agree with the previous reviewer said he retained his attorney fees on obtaining IEPs and other information. He asked me to get a Psychology report. I did and forwarded report to him. I was charged for all the time reviewing all the information. But when I had conversation with him, I am not sure how much he knew about the case. I have to repeat a few times where the law was broken in this case. I do not feel he knew much about the case nor he had much intention to fight for the case. He did not counter offer at all after the district's offer although I was charged a lot of money.
I would not get a lawyer if I was not frustrated enough by the school/disctrict. His act added salt to the injury. I felt so helpless and hopeless at the time.
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01 May, 2015 by James
Retained attorney for a due process hearing about our son's IEP. Had to pay the attorney an upfront retainer of about $3,400, I believe. Attorney gave the case to an associate who worked from home with a crying baby.
Attorney referred us to a specific pediatric development specialist for an evaluation (expert witness opinion). Had to get on a four-month waiting list for s for that. During the wait, attorney deducted $500 from the retainer each month for "reviewing the file."
We eventually get our son's evaluation. It did not support our case-- in fact, it supported the school district's position more than ours. Attorney was caught by surprise, case was dead. We spent $3,400 for about 1/2 hours of the attorney's time, and maybe 1.5 hours of the distracted associate attorney's time.
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24 Nov, 2023 by Anonymous
I wanted an attorney to pursue claims against a criminal landlord who was acting in collusion with the local PD. This guy was very eager to get paid without providing any proper answers. I did not pay thinking this guy was not worth the money and I am proven right. I have filed the lawsuit without the help of a lawyer like this and have saved the money. Guys like this should be disbarred and not allowed to practice law in this great state.
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11 Aug, 2023 by Metro goldwyn mayer
Terrible! Do not I repeat do not use for any landlord/tenant matters. Hes too newly licensed to have any real knowledge to help you. Will babble hid way to billing you for useless conversations. Thinks he works big law and worthy of over 350+ /hr! He flips out if you question him about his experience. Bipolar! A huge mistake to hire for anything he thinks he graduated Harvard and you have no options. Find someone else. It’s not worth the fact that he has to learn everything on the fly on your dime. Needs to work in a law firm and gain more experience before he has the arrogant attitude he has! I truly believe he has a behavioral problem. Find someone else to represent you.
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15 Jul, 2021 by Anonymous
Allan was doing pro-bono work regarding commercial rental forgiveness. During negotiations with the land lord, Allan Low stopped replying to my phone calls and emails. As a result, none of the commercial rent was forgiven and I must pay full price.
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23 Apr, 2021 by Anonymous
Terrible experience with this lawyer. I feel like he massively overcharged us for the knowledge that was passed on. One of the worst professional service provider experience I've ever had
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22 Jul, 2020 by Anonymous
I hired this attorney, knowing that he belonged to a large firm and hoping that he had the experience that the firm promised for issues that I raised. Despite repeated attempts, I felt that this attorney did not listen to conversation and did not follow through. Several months past without hearing from him.
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09 Aug, 2023 by Anonymous
Not litigator, refuse to act and spent $50,000 on just simple motions. Arrogant attitude probably upset the judge.
90% of attorneys don't want to go to court, but keep demanding more money constantly. Very tough to find lawyers, AI should bring down the legal extortion profession
Legal system is a robbery and bring America production down. Parasites.
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26 Nov, 2012 by Sergio
Mr. Lanctot was hired by my parents to design a living trust. It is disputed whether he adequately explained the long term financial ramifications of having a bank assigned as my mother's trustee (we maintain he did not - he maintains that he did) What is indisputable is that the bank HE chose provides a fee list of their outrageous nickel and dime charges which was not offered to nor explained to my parents until after the fact when it was too late to make any changes.
I feel that it is worth noting that my parents immigrated to this country, and spoke English as a 4th language. One would think that such a situation would prompt a lengthy detailed explanation of a 100+ page binding legal document. When questioned (after the fact) about the bank fees, Mr. Lanctot referred to them as industry standard practices. All well and good when someone is intimately acquainted with an industry, not particularly helpful to someone with a rudimentary command of the English language who worked a minimum wage + tips job.
A meeting with a bank representative was requested through Mr. Lanctot, with an express stipulation that they be prepared to answer specific questions regarding the estate. The representative came to the meeting totally unprepared, with gift bags and coffee mugs, not even having reviewed the documents in question. Mr. Lanctot was more than happy to bill for this useless waste of our time.
He spoke of my father after his passing as if they were best friends, when in fact the only time they spent together was 2 hours and phone consultation (both billed, of course) I found this nauseatingly obsequious.
During a particularly heated discussion in his offices, he was extremely rude and raised his voice, something I was not expecting when being charged $380 an hour for someone's services.
Numerous written requests for clarification of his billing practices were not directly addressed.
I cannot speak to Mr. Lactot's competence - his http://Martindale.com rating is high. I will however say that I despise him as a person, I despise what he did to my family and the effect it had on my elderly mother, and I would never personally choose to utilize his services.
UPDATE: My now almost 86 year old mom has sent Mr. Lanctot no less than 3 polite, respectful, hand written requests to clarify his "final" bill (which came months after this matter should have been settled) It has been over a year, and he has not had the common courtesy to reply to her or explain from whence this mysterious last bill has originated. I think this speaks VOLUMES about his personal character.
(keep in mind she promptly paid all bills prior, even those including charges to correct his office's paperwork errors, the screaming match meeting, and an hour wasted with the fat cow from Bank of the West and her $6000 coffee mugs)
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06 Aug, 2021 by Anonymous
Stay away from this unprofessional attorney . We reviewed his documents and filed Cal Bar complaint for his unprofessionalism , discrimination base on gender and country of origin and conflict of interest
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20 Nov, 2011 by Anonymous
I hired him to litigate, but he didn't do much but send me periodic bills, with itemization like "review of file."
Eventually it became apparent to me that he was billing me but not getting results, nor even making progress.
I finally fired him and hired another attorney who was successful in my behalf.
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20 Feb, 2013 by Anonymous
I hired David Kaufman to represent a family member (in ICE Custody). Biggest disappointment was he did not meet with his client before the bond hearing (and got denied). I arrived at his office that morning and we were hoping to be in court by 9. For whatever reason the cancellation of removal paperwork was missing and he had to re-do it. He ended up going to court @ 9.45 to a client who thought there was no representation and then cross-examined with no preparation. Actually he first met with the client in court.
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21 Oct, 2022 by Ryan
Was supposed to be providing a check from the family will and never transferred the money.
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18 Apr, 2019 by Anonymous
Rob took over from our other lawyer who retired. And it felt like his response to emails was slow and followup on issues was lacking. Maybe because we were not corporate clients?
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22 Sep, 2014 by Jeff
The one star is for his staff who was extremely polite and accommodating.
Overall Dominic had poor professional conduct. There was a single chair in the corner of his dusty "lobby", nestled amongst poorly stacked books and boxes overflowing with paperwork. He kept me waiting 30 minutes passed the appointment time, with no explanation that there would be an additional wait.
Granted, my immigration case is slightly complicated, but for the most part involves three major forms: and i-130 for an immigration visa for a family member, a k-3 visa for a spouse to then later apply for a i485 adjustment of status upon entering the United States. Dominic had "never applied for an K-3 Visa" and had little knowledge of how it is processed. I had to explain to him that a K3 needed to accompanied by an i-130. To which he replied (and I'm paraphrasing), that I've already researched it more than he ever has.
He finished our consultation by saying that since I've filed several forms already, he'd would have a hard time taking a case like that because he "is such a control freak", which he repeated several times. Besides being creepy, that is completely unprofessional.
His quote to take the case was 5,000 dollars, to file paper work that he had no experience filing. I don't think so. Money wasn't a barrier, but I was quoted 2-3,000 for my case by a Lawyer who was far more professional and experienced than Dominic.
To his credit, he only charged me 1/2 of his consolation fee because he felt guilty he did not know enough to help me with my case.
Bottom line is, there are plenty of Lawyers who will take better care of you.
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11 Jan, 2019 by Anonymous
Very bad experience. I hired this attorney. There are so many lawyers in the Bay area, I wish I had read a review on him and so would have chosen someone that actually defended my interests and be on my side, that was really not the case. This was a stereotypical corporate lawyer who is about billable hours (and you will pay!!!), but he certainly did not work for me. Be careful, he also kept forgetting important elements of my case, even losing crucial documents. I hope that this helps someone else in need of a real estate attorney.
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19 Oct, 2023 by Anonymous
We hired him. He got all money, but never responded to us. Some of his team members were too rude on the phone. They lost our documents. There are some negative comments on his service on the internet as well, google review, etc. Read them.
Don't waste your time, money.
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12 Aug, 2023 by Anonymous
Despite negligence from Mr. Small, I was able to get my green card with the help of three other attorneys who all pointed out gross negligence on how my case and especially my case was handled. I am glad i was able to identify 3 of his mistakes, the consequences ultimately was "only" to have my wife fly abroad to renew her visa and for me to be unable to work for a few weeks. When I brought some of the junior mistakes his team did in filling for my visa his immature reaction was threatening and he was yelling on the phone.
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05 Feb, 2011 by Anonymous
Charles K. Lewis changed the Trust of an incapacitated 98 year old woman and destroyed a family. Charles K. Lewis embezzeled over $2 million dollars from the estate of one of his clients.
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22 Sep, 2011 by Anonymous
I was a client of Ms. Gilman at Farella Braun and would not recommend her for the following reasons:
- Lack of knowledge & information
- Lack of responsiveness
- Lack of professional guidance
- Lack of accountability
- Lack of client service
- Very expensive
I have been extremely dissappointed with Ms. Gilman and expected a lot more from lawyers at Farella Braun, given the firm's reputation.
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23 Oct, 2013 by Gabriel
My ex-wife and I hired Deepa to mediate a divorce settlement and help us through an already difficult process. She failed in so many ways and made the whole situation many times worse, drew out the process by many more months than was necessary, and ultimately had the agreement we spent months crafting returned by the court for it's countless errors, at which point we were required to hire independent attorney and begin the difficult process again. Of the many ways in which her conduct was unprofessional, the most egregious was her outright lies to us on the most basic and pertinent of facts; the submission of our settlement. She did not turn in our settlement to the court for months after she told us she had done so, and only then when I had my attorney call her. During the interim months when we were wondering on it's status, she compounded the lies by stringing us along with more lies about checking on it's status. Only later when we searched the court records did we learn that while she was supposedly checking it's status, it had in fact never been submitted. Even more unusually, the court let my ex pull the settlement once it had already been submitted, based on the numerous errors contained within and the fact that proper protocols on being made aware of necessary family law forms were never shown to either of us.
Throughout the process she was largely unavailable, taking weeks to respond to emails and often citing "illness" for her lack of communication. The result was that it took months to do what could have been accomplished in a couple of intensive sit down meetings. Even then the result was disastrous as the final MSA was rejected by the court and we were required to begin again, this time with all the weight and frustration of the failed process to contend with as well.
In the process of trying to sort this mess out, I consulted with a few other family law attorneys who were appalled not only at Deepa's behavior towards us, but also by her rudimentary drafting skills and poor use of legalese. Family law legal matters are too crucial to be working with someone who doesn't even understand the language of their trade! Hindsight for me should be warning for you.
Lastly, Deepa has refused to acknowledge any of her mistakes and try to make amends in any way. She has also not provided me with any sort of trust statement in many months, which is unprofessional. The amounts are not great, but that is no excuse for not providing a client with a clear and current statement of trust.
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FAQs
Questions? We have answers
Top Questions to Ask a Lawyer
When meeting with a lawyer for the first time, it's important to ask the right questions to understand their expertise and determine if they're the right fit for your legal needs. Here are some top questions to consider:
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What experience do you have with cases similar to mine?
Ensure the lawyer has relevant experience in the specific area of law pertaining to your case. -
How do you charge for your services, and what are the estimated costs?
Understand the fee structure, including hourly rates, flat fees, retainer fees, and any additional expenses. -
What potential outcomes can I expect from my case?
While no lawyer can guarantee results, they can provide an assessment of possible scenarios based on their experience. -
What is your approach to handling cases like mine?
Learn about their strategy, whether they prefer negotiation, mediation, or litigation. -
Who will be working on my case?
Find out if the lawyer will handle your case personally or delegate tasks to other attorneys or paralegals. -
How will you communicate with me throughout the process?
Establish expectations for updates, preferred communication methods, and response times. -
What is the likely timeline for resolving my case?
Get an estimate of how long the process may take from start to finish. -
Do you have references from past clients?
Testimonials or references can provide insight into the lawyer's professionalism and effectiveness. -
What are the strengths and weaknesses of my case?
Understanding potential challenges helps you prepare and sets realistic expectations. -
Are there alternative ways to solve my legal problem?
Discuss options like mediation, arbitration, or settlement to resolve the issue efficiently.
How to Check the Credibility of a Lawyer
Before hiring a lawyer, it's crucial to verify their credibility and ensure they're qualified to handle your case:
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Verify Their License:
Check with your state's bar association to confirm the lawyer is licensed and in good standing. -
Experience and Specialization:
Ensure the lawyer specializes in the area of law relevant to your case. -
Disciplinary Record:
Look up any history of disciplinary actions or complaints through the state bar association. -
Client Reviews and Testimonials:
Read reviews on legal directories like Avvo, Martindale-Hubbell, or Google to gauge client satisfaction. -
Professional Memberships:
Membership in professional organizations or specialty bar associations can indicate a commitment to their field. -
Awards and Recognitions:
Honors from reputable organizations reflect expertise and a positive reputation. -
Consultation Assessment:
Use the initial consultation to evaluate their communication skills, responsiveness, and willingness to address your concerns. -
Ask for References:
A credible lawyer should be willing to provide references from past clients.
What Should I Prepare for My First Consultation?
To make the most of your initial meeting with a lawyer, come prepared with:
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Relevant Documents:
Bring all documents related to your case, such as contracts, correspondence, legal notices, court papers, or evidence. -
Written Summary:
Prepare a concise written summary of your situation, including key dates, events, and involved parties. -
List of Questions:
Write down any questions you have about your case, the legal process, or the lawyer's experience. -
Financial Information:
If applicable, bring financial documents like pay stubs, tax returns, or bank statements. -
Contact Information:
Provide details of any witnesses or other parties relevant to your case. -
Personal Identification:
Bring a valid ID for verification purposes. -
Pen and Notebook:
Take notes during the consultation to remember important points. -
Budget Constraints:
Be ready to discuss your budget and any financial limitations.
How Much Does a Lawyer Cost?
The cost of hiring a lawyer varies widely based on several factors:
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Fee Structures:
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Hourly Rate:
Lawyers may charge anywhere from $150 to $500 or more per hour, depending on experience and location. -
Flat Fee:
For routine legal services like drafting a will or handling an uncontested divorce, lawyers might offer a flat fee. -
Retainer Fee:
An upfront payment against which the lawyer bills hourly fees. -
Contingency Fee:
Common in personal injury cases; the lawyer receives a percentage (typically 25% to 40%) of any settlement or award. -
Monthly Retainer:
For ongoing services, businesses might pay a monthly fee for a set number of hours or services.
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Hourly Rate:
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Factors Affecting Cost:
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Complexity of the Case:
More complex cases require more time and resources, increasing costs. -
Lawyer's Experience:
Highly experienced lawyers may charge higher fees. -
Geographic Location:
Legal fees can vary significantly by region or city. -
Additional Expenses:
Court filing fees, expert witness fees, travel expenses, and administrative costs may be extra.
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Complexity of the Case:
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Estimating Total Costs:
Request a detailed fee agreement outlining all potential costs.
Discuss any additional expenses that may arise during the case. -
Negotiating Fees:
Some lawyers may be willing to negotiate fees or offer payment plans, especially for clients with financial constraints. -
Pro Bono Services:
For those who cannot afford legal services, some lawyers or legal aid organizations offer services at reduced rates or for free.
