Lawyer Trouble

I don't know about Texas but here a temporary guardianship or conservatorship lasts for one year so you would not need to go back to court until September 2011. Call the office and make an appointment. The attorney cannot ignore you if you are in his/her office. If lack of communication continues send a letter firing the attorney and file a complaint with the bar association. Good luck.

I also want to point out that it is common for attorneys to hold off contact because they are waiting for a document from the court or because they have a 2 week trial or because they can't just drop everything and call everyone who calls them the same day (because everyone wants a return call immediately and sometimes there are 30 voicemail messages when one gets into the office). It is hard to tell from your question whether you have called a few times in the past week or everyday for two months and if, when you do call, you leave a detailed message or ask a receptionist to have the attorney call you (if the latter there is no way of knowing if the messages are getting trough or if the urgency is being expressed). Also, if there is no news sometimes attorneys just don't feel the need to contact you (especially if they have already told you what you want to know several times....as in, your case is progressing we have to wait for the judge, etc.). You could try calling and leaving a message indicating that if you don't hear from them within ten days you are going to contact the bar. That might get their attention.

Bottom line: Failure to contact you within a reasonable amount of time is unprofessional and rude but what is considered reasonable is subjective. If you feel your interests are not being represented start contacting other representation.

Hmmm, I question that complaining to the bar would give you a reputation. I'm going to ask my friend, a lawyer, about that.

Once my divorce attorney didn't do his job, didn't return calls, etc. I told him I was frustrated with it. In fact, we had to get my then husband's attorney to draft the agreement.

When the bill came, I wrote him a letter and told him that I would pay for his time in court and our first meeting and nothing more. I asked him to mark it paid in full but if he billed the balance, I would complain to the bar. (jCourse, now, I would also promise to give him a write up on the internet too) He never sent a bill with a payment due.

All this doesn't help you though. Make an appointment, ask him for his reasons for noncommunicating and what he has done. If nothing, tell him you don't think you should pay for this meeting and that you should get a refund for the amount of money you don't think he has earned. If he has done a lot and wants to continue, ask him what he is willing to do to change your relationship and his effectiveness so that you are inclined (or not) to move forward with him.

Did you look him up on www.martindale.com where they rate lawyers and firms. An A (or B) rating is good for performance and ethics. A C or less not so much. If they aren't mentioned, that's okay. These lawyers mentioned are mentioned by their peers (but not in their own office).

Try Angie's list or google him name to see if anyone has compliments or complaints.

If you call the bar, without naming names, find out what and how they handle complaints and do they do anything to help resolve the problem?

I like the suggestions of going to the office.

I would write the lawyer a letter stating your concerns and tell him that you will contact the bar if things are not resolved. It should be resolved.

I had a similar experience with an attorney when we were going through the same type of legal issue with our son. It is so frustrating and I understand what you are going through. There were several times throughout our legal battles that I felt 'neglected' by my attorney and many times where I felt my attorney missed opportunities that could have changed the course of trial. I made the mistake of complaining to her about it once and she threated to step down as my attorney. I had invested too much at that point and we were too far along in the case to switch attorneys, so I apologized and she stayed on as my counsel. It was so difficult to do, but I had been told by others that it looks bad to the judge if your attorney steps down or you fire your attorney.

I really don't have any advice except to keep being proactive about communicating with your attorney. They have so many cases going on at one time and don't dedicate enough to each one, in my opinion. For the people who hire an attorney, their case is the most important and worrisome thing in their life and they don't ever stop thinking about it until it's settled. Unfortunaltely, for the attorney, your case is just one of many things on their to-do list along with a multitude of their own personal worries. It's never as important to them as it is to you.
Hang in there! Stay positive. If it makes you feel any better, we spent over $10,000 on our attorney and we NEVER even stepped into a courtroom. After 3 years, it was settled out of court. Send me a private message if you want to talk because it sounds like you are going through exactly the same thing as I experienced. (((Hugs)))

The legal system is frustrating and incredibly slow. I find it amazing that you started only in Sept. and you've been to court once. Getting a court date can take many months for some situations. An update may not be available. A phone call from your lawyer will cost you (as most bill by 5 or 10 minute blocks). You could send a letter with a request, and they will bill you for reading it and for responding.

If there is more that you are concerned about with this lawyer, or you are not comfortable with this lawyer, it is your right to switch lawyers. A new lawyer will charge you to get familiar with the case.

A complaint to the bar may only get you a reputation as a difficult client, as another responder has stated.

OMG, this happened to me in a VERY delicate time of the divorce process, I would not sleep at night forthe anxiety I was enduring and that a$$#&£ of a lawyer stopped answering/returning my calls, responding to emails etc...all he was doing was billing me for each call he didn't even answer/make etc..I gave him a retainer of 3000 and NEVER, EVER would have paid a dime more than that, so I wrote him an email where I told him I was not satisfied by his representation, that he was damaging me legally (as I was losing advantage over my ex) and adding more stress to my already stressful personal situation etc.. so I happily FIRED HIM!! He kept sending me bills to my address, I kept ignoring him until he got tired of sending them. So my advice is, if you can at this point, fire him/her, even if you'll spend more money on a new lawyer, keep in mind that this is what money is for: to solve your problems and win your battles. Good luck.

You can file a complaint with your state bar association online. You can also initiate a complaint with the Better Business Bureau (if the lawyer and/or his firm are members). You can also plead to the Judge assigned to your case by a simple written letter itemizing your attempts to reach the lawyer (with dates, messages left, etc.). Occasionally, a Judge will set a show cause hearing to make the attorney appear in court. It wouldn't hurt to send the Judge (or case manager, case worker, whomever) copies of your complaints with the various agencies so that it is documented in your file. Best of luck to you.

Do they have an office? I'd go sit at their office until they give me an answer!

If the lawyer has a paralegal that he/she works with, I would suggest calling the paralegal for a status update. The paralegal should be able to give you some basic information (hearing dates, filing deadlines) right away and call you back with more detailed information, after speaking with the attorney.

Or, if you happen to know the attorney's firm e-mail address, you may want to try sending him/her an e-mail. I've found that some attorney's respond to e-mails a lot quicker than they do telephone or voicemail messages.

A last step you can take is sending a letter to the attorney, letting him know that you have left multiple messages requesting a call back regarding the status of your case and ask that he call you as soon as possible with this information. You shouldn't have to do this though. The attorney should be able to return your call or pass your message off to his paralegal or secretary with instructions on how to respond to your inquiry.

Hope that you get the answers that you need soon.

What exactly do you want from this lawyer besides information on your case? Do you want this lawyer to continue with this case or do you want new legal representation? Personally I think this lawyer is being rude and if you have the additional funds hire a new attorney or speak back with your family member that recommended him or get on Facebook and put this lawyer on blast for lack of professionalism in returning your calls.

You are free to go to the bar about this lawyer's treatment of you but if you ever want legal representation again all lawyer's are practicing under the same rules and may deem you a trouble maker. If you are getting new legal representation, have your new attorney draft a letter and or you write a letter to your attorney and mail it certified mail letting him know dates and times of non-contact and explaning what you are looking for. Ultimately it is better to try to stay sweet as possible to get what you want which is better legal representation while maintaining your own good reputation.