If the lawyer is unresponsive and the matter involves a lawsuit, go to the courthouse and look at your case file, which contains all the papers that have actually been filed with the court. If you've hired a new lawyer, ask her for help in getting your file. Also, ask your state bar association for assistance.
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Oct 16, 2013 · Here are some practical tips for dealing with a difficult lawyer: 1) Be Prepared – As the boy scouts say, “Always be prepared.” More often than not, the difficult lawyer is trying to distract you from effectively representing your client. No matter what that lawyer does, focus on your client, the facts, and the law.
That question would prompt an immediate objection from the plaintiff's lawyer, the attorney who represents the injured patient. There are many legal reasons why an attorney would make an objection, but the first one is likely to be “Your honor, that's irrelevant!”. The next objection would likely be that this question was “Palpably ...
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If you're not satisfied with your lawyer's strategy decisions or with the arguments the lawyer has been making on your behalf, you may even want to go to the law library and do some reading to educate yourself about your legal problem.
If the lawyer is unresponsive and the matter involves a lawsuit, go to the courthouse and look at your case file, which contains all the papers that have actually been filed with the court. If you've hired a new lawyer, ask her for help in getting your file. Also, ask your state bar association for assistance.
A lawyer who doesn't return phone calls or communicate with you for an extended period of time may be guilty of abandoning you -- a violation of attorneys' ethical obligations. But that's for a bar association to determine (if you register a complaint), and it won't do you much good in the short term.
If that doesn't work, as a last resort you may need to sue your lawyer in small claims court, asking the court for money to compensate you for what you've spent on redoing work in the file or trying to get the file.
If you lost money because of the way your lawyer handled your case, consider suing for malpractice. Know, however, that it is not an easy task. You must prove two things:
A common defense raised by attorneys sued for malpractice is that the client waited too long to sue. And because this area of the law can be surprisingly complicated and confusing, there's often plenty of room for argument. Legal malpractice cases are expensive to pursue, so do some investigating before you dive in.
Every state has an agency responsible for licensing and disciplining lawyers. In most states, it's the bar association; in others, the state supreme court. The agency is most likely to take action if your lawyer has failed to pay you money that you won in a settlement or lawsuit, made some egregious error such as failing to show up in court, didn't do legal work you paid for, committed a crime, or has a drug or alcohol abuse problem.
Congress has the power to override Supreme Court rulings based on statutory interpretations. From 1979 until her retirement in 1998, Lilly Ledbetter worked at Goodyear Tire and Rubber’s plant in Gadsden, Alabama. Once she had left the job, she learned a disturbing fact.
Ledbetter took Goodyear to court, alleging a blatant violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which guarantees equal treatment in the workplace. But in 2007, the Supreme Court held that the statute of limitations on her claims had expired, and she could no longer seek redress.
She would have had to file her claim shortly after Goodyear hired her, the Court ruled. This was an absurd request—Ledbetter didn’t know how she was being cheated until she neared retirement—and it served to gut the ability of any woman to reasonably enforce the law.
The Court had issued what’s known as a statutory ruling, which is distinct from a constitutional ruling. In other words, the Court had not deemed the law itself to be unconstitutional, but merely ruled that the way the statute had been written rendered it unavailable to Ledbetter.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote a dissent that urged Congress to intervene. The Court’s interpretation, Ginsburg said, was out of step with modern wage discrimination and the realities of the workplace.
Overrides can be passed on an individual basis, as part of larger omnibus bills, or even tacked on to unrelated appropriations or debt ceiling bills. Even the Affordable Care Act, which is currently under judicial review yet again, could be rescued from the Court’s clutches with a simple legislative tweak.
Just as the Court sets the boundaries of congressional intent, Congress can move those boundaries. Since the death of Ginsburg in September, the left has debated various options for reforming what many see as an overly partisan judiciary.
Tell the Truth. If your lawyer doubts you in the consultation, or doesn't think you have a case, while that may change over time, getting over an initial disbelief is very hard. You have to prove your case. Your attorney is not your witness. They are your advocate - but you are responsible for coming up with proof.
Don' t forget that lawyers don't always need to take more cases. Yes, new clients are a great thing, but I don't want clients that will eat all my time and get no where fast. Your tip: keep your communication very simple and to the point.
If you don't pay your lawyer on the day of trial, or however you have agreed to, then while he or she may be obligated by other ethical duties to do his/her best, they won't be motivated by sympathy for you, and it will show in court.
Well, truth be told, neither do I. The difference between lawyer and client is that the lawyer expects it to take a long time and understands. The client typically thinks it's unjustified. So, your hard truth is that each case takes time. Be patient.
While lawyers can certainly take your money and your time and we can file a case that will be very hard to win, if you don't care enough about your life to get a contract, the judge is not very likely to be on your side. At least, not automatically. Oral contracts are extremely hard to prove. What are the terms.
If no one can confirm that the story is true, you will at least need something external, such as a hard copy document, to prove your case. Be prepared.
If you care enough only to wear sweats to the courthouse, then the judge will see that you don't care, and that will be reflected in their desire to help you, listen to you, and decide in your favor. Step it up. Your case depends on it.
Many employers have a hard time believing that discrimination or harassment could be happening right under their noses. As a result, they often fail to investigate complaints, assuming that they could not possibly be true. Unfortunately, failing to investigate a complaint is a surefire way to land in court.
Before the interview is over, go back through your notes with the interviewee to make sure you got it right. Keep a journal of your investigation. Write down the steps you have taken to get at the truth, including dates and places of interviews you have conducted.
Do some research on the law of discrimination and harassment: what it is, how it is proven in court, and what your responsibilities are as an employer. Interview the people involved. Start by talking to the person who complained. Find out exactly what the employee's concerns are.
Most employers are anxious when faced with discrimination and harassment complaints. And with good reason: Such complaints can lead to workplace tension, government investigations, and even costly legal battles. If the complaint is mishandled, even unintentionally, an employer may unwittingly put itself out of business.
If you are concerned your lawyer is not working on your case, write him a polite but firm letter explaining your concerns. If you feel more comfortable emailing or calling him, that would be fine as well. You are under no obligation to express your concerns in a formal letter.
To write a letter to your attorney, start by writing your address, and, if applicable, your email and cell number in the upper left corner of the page. Under this information, include the date and your attorney’s name and address. Finally, include your case number or your full name.
Your attorney's name and address should be placed on the left regardless of whether you are using full block or modified block format. If there is a paralegal that is working on your specific case, you may wish to write to include it in parenthesis next to the attorney's name.