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Do lawyers have to honor verbal agreements?

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mrgordan

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?
Florida

I have been paying over $800/month child support for the last year and I am the one that is raising my kids. (The mother is 5 states away) This money is automatically deducted from my check. The mother pays for no expenses and she has made only one weekend trip to see the kids.

I hired a lawyer to help me stop the child support from being taken out of my check and to help me get permanent custody of my children about nine months ago. At that time, he made a verbal agreement to file a motion to allow me to stop paying child support while the kids are living with me. He also told me that he would return my phone calls by the next business day if I left a message with his secretary. He later told me that he had filed the motion and he expected it to go through in August of 2005. However, after he received my $3000 retainer fee he stopped returning my phone calls and I ended up discontinuing his service because he was really hard to get a hold of.

The child support still gets taken out of my paycheck so I recently called the circuit court. They told me that no such motion has been filed. I am very upset because I payed my lawyer $3000 and he didn't even do what he verbally agreed to do.

Is he negligent? Can I get part of my $3000 back?
 


mrgordan

Junior Member
Yes, I do have receipts. No, to the best of my knowledge, I never received or signed a retainer agreement. I simply sent the check with the requested information. (I live out of state)
 
Last edited:

kdf41

Junior Member
Well then go and camp out in your lawyers office with the receipts and anything that you signed.
 

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