Patrick William Rawnsley

1411 State Ave. NE, Suite 102, Olympia, WA

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4.2 / 5
Avvo
4.2
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Avvo rating
15 Reviews
Data reflects the status as of the latest update. Updates are typically done monthly.

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Overall rating
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4.2 15 reviews
Avvo 4.2

Anonymous

star star star star star
02 Jul, 2022
My wife and I retained Mr. Rawnsley for a very delicate family law matter. We had been falsely accused of child abuse by my ex wife and an unsuccessful defense of the accusations would have been catastrophic for our family. For reference, I have worked with many attorneys in the past 10 years dealing with my ex so I have an unfortunately large amount of experience in assessing the quality of legal counsel. Mr. Rawnsley was very professional, highly informed about the relevant statutes and had a good understanding and relationship with the judicial officer (something that is very, very important). All of my previous counsel lacked in some area or another. One may have been less competent, where another may have not had the quickness of wit and depth of understanding of the law to successfully represent my interests. I can say with total confidence that Mr. Rawnsley was the complete package. He was, by far, the best attorney I have ever hired for a family law matter and it isn't really close. I am grateful for his efforts and would recommend him to anyone else.
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Brian

star star star star star
09 Feb, 2022
For context: the following stems from a separation/divorce and parenting plan fight that has been ongoing for almost three years. During the first year, I felt that the firm was doing a great job going to bat for me to help me avoid a "pro se" nightmare that I was facing. However, even after the entrance of the divorce decree and final orders almost a year ago, the opposing party still decided to interpret things her own way. A year ago, I warned my lawyer that the opposing party intended to take some actions related to federal taxes. The firm either ignored what I said or chose inaction on the matter, and to this day claim not to have any knowledge of the tax situation despite email chains to the contrary from early 2021. I have now lost out on 2 years worth of tax refunds totaling more than $10,000 because of that one single action taken by the opposing party, even though it is contradicted by what is written in the final court order. No action taken in this instance, but everyone knows if I, the father, had done the same thing to her, I would've been dragged through the coals by the court. Early November, 2021 - I write an email to confirm pickup dates and times for Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks. I am told I'm wrong on both and that I won't be getting to see my children until three days after the day Christmas break begins. I re-involve my attorney to help settle things. It goes to mediation, doesn't get resolved, the day of her lawyer finally confirms with my lawyer that I'll be getting them two days late and "take it or leave it" essentially. The parenting plan was violated when those two visitation days that should have been mine were withheld from me. Opposing party used various excuses and reasonings, but the bottom line is they broke the parenting order. I asked my counsel to hold her accountable, asked if there was a contempt motion we could make. It has been almost two months since those days were lost, and I have been attempting that entire time to get a contempt motion filed against the opposing party, but nothing happened. I tried asking every few days if something had been done; nothing had. It was always "Oh they didn't answer yet" or a message from opposing counsel that said "I just forwarded this to my client, let's see what she says" or "Oh sorry, I didn't see this until three days after you sent it, let me send it to my client". No motion was ever filed, and I have yet to find out if I'm ever going to get my two days back that I lost due to her choices. I pleaded with my counsel to do something. Take action. If it had been me as the father who had done what she did, she and the court would have already shredded me apart. I begged over and over for almost a month, and finally said if something wasn't going to happen soon that I would retain new counsel. That's when I received the professional equivalent of "fine I quit". Complete with self-congratulatory claims referring back to the previous work done from a year ago. To clarify with a mechanic analogy: "The car ran great the day I fixed it a year ago, I can't believe you're upset now that something else broke and I haven't fixed it yet!" If they had done what I had asked, I wouldn't have had to replace them. Two months of back and forth. Hours and hours billed for emails and phone calls, and not a single legal action filed despite several written "threats" to opposing counsel about the intent to file a contempt motion. It was as if the mere mention of the motion would've been sufficient to inspire the opposing party to mend their ways. But it wasn't. And it isn't. By the time I had hired a new lawyer, it felt as if the opposing party had two lawyers and I had none. Don't expect them to explain the reasons why behind the advice they give you. I learned more in 24 hours with the new counsel than I did over the last two years with this firm.
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Anonymous

star star star star star
11 Aug, 2021
PWR law is the worst I would recommend finding better legal help. Patrick Rawnsley is a terrible money hungry attorney that doesn’t get good results for you if you’re not wealthy and willing to pay out your life savings. Starting he charge me a $5000 retainer fee then he burned through it in less than a month after only appearing in court for me one time. Supposed to help me with my parenting plan And charge me another $2000 retainer or he would drop my case, he burned through that and then came up with an additional $3000 of more unjustified charges. He was my attorney for less than 3 months and only appeared in court for me one time. He was supposed to help me get my youngest son into our parenting plan but was unsuccessful in all. He was a waist of $7000 and of course he falsely charged me an additional $3000 then sent me to collections with new charges with a total of over $6400. He would set up in person meetings with me his legal aid then charge me almost twice as much for each meeting. When I asked if we could just meet with the two of us he would still charge me on the backend to discuss the case with his legal aid which would be more expensive he said. 4 years later and I’m still trying to dispute what he’s done to my credit. He didn’t even care that I was broke and using student loans to pay him to help me be in my kids lives. All of this is true and I would highly recommend you use a better attorney that won’t screw you over when you are already suffering. Please tell me how an attorney can charge a poor client over $13400 but only show up to court one time and represent them for only a couple months and leaving their client in the same situation when they came to him.
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Top review highlights

Pros
1
Experienced and knowledgeable in family law, with a strong understanding of the local court system and judges
“With his years of experience in Thurston County, his depth of knowledge of state and local family law, and his obvious skill at both navigating the family court system and interacting with the opposing party, I felt only incredibly lucky to have Pat's representation and counsel.”
2
Prioritizes the safety and well-being of children involved in cases
“It was clear to me from day one that Pat's priority is the safety and wellbeing of the children involved in any given case. This made me trust him immediately.”
3
Provides honest and straightforward advice, even when the reality is painful
“I also deeply appreciated that he was straightforward and honest with me about what I could expect as an outcome in my case, even when that reality was also painful.”
4
Goes above and beyond to ensure the best possible outcome for clients
“He never gave me false hope, yet he fought his heart out, going above and beyond to ensure the best outcome for me and my daughter.”
5
Passionate and dedicated to his practice, with a strong work ethic
“I believe his controlled aggression and cunningness in hunting translates well into the court room.”
Cons
1
Potential issues with billing and cost transparency
“He spent more court time laughing and talking with my ex's lawyer than doing his job. Absolutely nothing changed in my case except being almost $10,000 in debt!!”
2
Potential for neglecting or delaying client's cases
“Patrick took my money and ran, his personal hunting priorities were more important than my case. A whole months worth of time! He lied through his teeth giving me a false feeling of hope that he was able to make things right but instead did nothing and took advantage of me and my situation.”
3
Lack of timely and proactive communication with clients
“It has been almost two months since those days were lost, and I have been attempting that entire time to get a contempt motion filed against the opposing party, but nothing happened. I tried asking every few days if something had been done; nothing had.”

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