Reviews

Hired Chris for a character and fitness matter. He gave me very vague pointers, took him many weeks, and many emails and calls just to respond for a few questions I had. He is a hard man to chase down once you pay him. For someone who purports to be an ethics attorney, he should know the number one cause of ethics complaints is unresponsive attorneys such as Chris.

I was assured by Chris that he would successfully handle my ethics matter. I paid him a fee upfront. He then was an hour late to an important conference, slow with production of documents (like pulling teeth) and his "valuable experience" consisted of stock answers. Beware.

I used Mr. McDonough to assist me with a character and fitness issue. I found him through his website. He was interested in helping me out and sold me on his experience and knowledge of the system. However, once I paid his legal fee, I found that there was a substantial drop in his attentiveness to my case and did not find that he added much value overall. He was slow with responding to emails, and anything he sent to me were basically standard templates with typos. I hired him because I needed help with a sensitive issue and scary process, and found that overall I would have been better without him. Everything worked out fine from my end, but not at all because of Mr. McDonough's efforts. If you are a new attorney facing a character and fitness issue, despite Mr. McDonough's assurances and seemingly calming nature, I would strongly recommend not using him.

Chris is one of the best attorneys I have met. He sees the problem then works for a realistic outcome. I highly recommend Chris is you get that special letter.

I contacted Chris regarding a potential concern I have with my character and fitness committee application. I initially reached out to him via message on Avvo and he responded promptly with an email and invited me to call him. He was extremely kind and very thorough in his advice. He answered each and every concern I had and even offered me sound professional advice for the future. If I end up needing assistance with the character and fitness committee, I will certainly retain his services. He truly encompasses what a professional, ethical, and compassionate attorney are all about. Thanks again Chris! God bless you.

Mr. McDonough gave me thorough assistance helping me to prepare for a second appearance before the NY Bar Character and Fitness committee, and reviewed drafts of documents I submitted to the Committee. The Committee had made an issue about my losing a law job and a pending legal complaint I had filed seeking redress. I was then admitted without having to have a full hearing, as I had feared. I am not sure this would have happened without his assistance. He also helped me under a generous financial arrangement.

Responded back and forth by email and never provided actual written proof of the work done in the form of a formal report of his opinion even when it was requested. At first the explanation was that it was sent attached to an email and that the email couldn't be retrieved and then an explanation that the office computer server crashed and all was lost was provided. At this point doubt was cast as to whether an opinion was rendered based on MY specific case because when pressed for a response the final email opinion was VERY generic and contained no facts to MY case. It also felt like the original work requested was not completed especially when he asked that the entire file be re submitted to him so he could take a look at it again. He also failed to provide a formal written bill of how the retainer, albeit a flat fee, was calculated. Sure he quoted his vast years of experience and his hourly rate but no dates and hours and minutes spent in formulating the opinion as is customary in the legal profession. Further more it seems that either the firm throws hard copy records away after they are scanned into the computer or he lost all of the documents that were sent because requests for a return of hard copy papers submitted were met with scepticiscm that they can be found. Finally when these questions and remarks were posed to the attorney he promptly offered a referral to another attorney.

I contacted Chris with a problem. He gave me great advise and cleared up my problem right away. He even offered to follow up in another matter and never asked for a fee. I will definitely retain him if this matter requires a lawyer who specializes in attorney ethics matters as he is the top man in that field in the state by all accounts. I highly recommend him to any lawyer who has a problem with a client or an ethics question org review center as he answers his phone right away and is willing to give consultations over the phone.

I have been a client of Mr. McDonough for the past five (5) years and I have been provided with the utmost level of professionalism each and every time. He is exceptionally knowledgeable and an expert in his field and has provided extremely valuable advice to both me and my firm. I would highly recommend his services to anyone seeking legal advice in the area of Ethics and Professional Responsibility.

Chris has helped me out with multiple matters and has gotten fantastic results. He is very good at communicating with his clients and it definitely felt like he had my back throughout the process.

Having a high volume matrimonial practice, matters do come up that have required me to appear before the Committee. He has always had my back. I endorse Chris, and have referred clients to him, and have never heard a negative word.

From the moment I met Mr. Mcdonough, I knew I had hired the right man. Mr. Mcdonough was extremely thorough and his knowledge as to how my case would proceed was spot on. He was available whenever I needed him and made each and every appearance personally. His ability to steer my case in the right direction put me at ease throughout the course of the case. I would recommend Chris Mcdonough in a heartbeat