wlkwithwolf
Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Colorado
First off I'm the CP
I retained an attorney December 2007 for a bogus contempt case against me regarding my children. That case was dismissed, but in the mean time i had sent my attorney everything he needed to know plus some. I paid my $2000 retainer fee and got $150 an hour out of him. But things aren't working. I have sent email after email to him about modifying the parenting plan may 2008 because that's what the judge told me to put on it since the ex had no interest in the kids and i felt the kids needed to see their father. To no avail the attorney never did it. But just this past march 2009 the ex's attorney brings up that the parenting plan states it is good until may 2008 and at that time we will modify and now my attorney asks me why i didnt say anything, i told him i sent him tons of emails about it and he never did it.
We soon started to file a 129.5 and 129 due to other problems (mind you this is in June 2008) it never went anywhere, he never had me notarize it or sent it in. He claims we should just get together and talk it out. Well, we did that at my contempt hearing and wrote up a stipulation agreement and filed it and it was granted but nothing in it is working on the ex's side.
So this year, he started another 129.5 and 129 and i said ok get me one to notarize ( i live in another state) and I'll over night it so we can turn it in with his contempt of no child support, no health insurance and one other item. So my attorney goes to the ex's advisement hearing this past Friday and takes nothing with him. The Ex's attorney says he paid and is up to date my attorney says ok, regardless of what family registry paperwork that i have sent him every day in an email ( to keep him updated) says, the ex's attorney says health insurance will be here this week, my attorney says ok (even though may 7th 2009 email to attorney said it will be 30 days i was told 5 days) and this other issue my attorney has pictures to show proof of a vehicle the ex was ordered to make in "sound running condition" back in may 2007. They told the judge that it is fine and bogus charge and my attorney says ok...now instead of saying i got pictures i have emails where he said this and that 2 months ago and it still hasn't happened my attorney says OK and we have a 2 hour trial date set for the first day of school in august.
I am getting to the point i promise.
My attorney calls me yesterday and is demanding another $1000 by next week.
Can he bill me for all these hours and not be doing anything? I do get a detailed bill and have it on them that he has charged me for all this insane stuff that I AM DOING for him. I find out the details, i do the research and i am informing him but he will not turn in any paperwork to the courts. He's even had me write the 129.5 and 129 2 times and he just copies it over.
My children are in therapy and i got the release forms for my attorney and vice versa, but my attorney will not talk to him (even though my atty requested it) and the therapist is even asking me why my attorney is allowing all this to happen and why he is not doing anything.
I can email details, questions, anything but when it comes down to it he wants money and there is nothing to show for the $5000 i have given him already. Hes gone to 2 court dates. Spent time on doing paperwork on (2) 129.5 and 129 and never turned them in and 3 contempt cases and turned one in that was denied because he didn't mention anything on it that this has been an ongoing issue and some other stuff he "forgot". And than finally got one in i basically wrote for him and the ex got the advisement hearing.
Am i in the wrong here to not want to pay him anymore until i see some sort of results?
I have also talked to him about the overstepping girlfriend, she has taken our children to a dentist without my knowledge, doctors with out me knowing, she tells the kids how much i hurt them and that i am no good, fat, lazy, horrible person. She also had started blogging about how horrible i treat the kids and spread it around the internet which is slandering me (it gets to me because it is that much out there). And that is just a few of the things she has done. Shes told the kids I'm trying to put dad in jail, she will not allow their father to talk to me, email me or even give me a phone number the kids can call.
But my attorney says he can't do nothing about just to let it go.
I guess i need to know if this is normal for attorneys to do (double/tripple bill and see no results as in filing any paperwork just wasting trees, time and my money) and if not what i should do?
I have a chance to get another firm (2nd largest in Colorado for roughly same price) but only if i do not pay my old attorney i am out of money as i had even lost my job (august 2008) due to the ex harassing me. And now I'm am looking at surgery that will more then likely result in disability (it's scary) I'm still behind in child support, the ex's mother sent my attorney a copy of the check and i had to inform my attorney that it was dated may and he is still behind it is a simple mathematical problem. And that the ex's girlfriend needs to learn how to write a check, the written amount was different from the little box amount. But this is what i do for my attorney, i find the problems and tell him after he forwards me everything from the ex's atty/mother/girlfriend. It took me less then 5 minutes to look at the check and look at the family registry that i sent the atty and reply with all the problems and the mathematical calculations with answers to them that match family registry's records of payments.
Uggg i'm just frustrated. Any suggestions, help, criticism or anything?
First off I'm the CP
I retained an attorney December 2007 for a bogus contempt case against me regarding my children. That case was dismissed, but in the mean time i had sent my attorney everything he needed to know plus some. I paid my $2000 retainer fee and got $150 an hour out of him. But things aren't working. I have sent email after email to him about modifying the parenting plan may 2008 because that's what the judge told me to put on it since the ex had no interest in the kids and i felt the kids needed to see their father. To no avail the attorney never did it. But just this past march 2009 the ex's attorney brings up that the parenting plan states it is good until may 2008 and at that time we will modify and now my attorney asks me why i didnt say anything, i told him i sent him tons of emails about it and he never did it.
We soon started to file a 129.5 and 129 due to other problems (mind you this is in June 2008) it never went anywhere, he never had me notarize it or sent it in. He claims we should just get together and talk it out. Well, we did that at my contempt hearing and wrote up a stipulation agreement and filed it and it was granted but nothing in it is working on the ex's side.
So this year, he started another 129.5 and 129 and i said ok get me one to notarize ( i live in another state) and I'll over night it so we can turn it in with his contempt of no child support, no health insurance and one other item. So my attorney goes to the ex's advisement hearing this past Friday and takes nothing with him. The Ex's attorney says he paid and is up to date my attorney says ok, regardless of what family registry paperwork that i have sent him every day in an email ( to keep him updated) says, the ex's attorney says health insurance will be here this week, my attorney says ok (even though may 7th 2009 email to attorney said it will be 30 days i was told 5 days) and this other issue my attorney has pictures to show proof of a vehicle the ex was ordered to make in "sound running condition" back in may 2007. They told the judge that it is fine and bogus charge and my attorney says ok...now instead of saying i got pictures i have emails where he said this and that 2 months ago and it still hasn't happened my attorney says OK and we have a 2 hour trial date set for the first day of school in august.
I am getting to the point i promise.
My attorney calls me yesterday and is demanding another $1000 by next week.
Can he bill me for all these hours and not be doing anything? I do get a detailed bill and have it on them that he has charged me for all this insane stuff that I AM DOING for him. I find out the details, i do the research and i am informing him but he will not turn in any paperwork to the courts. He's even had me write the 129.5 and 129 2 times and he just copies it over.
My children are in therapy and i got the release forms for my attorney and vice versa, but my attorney will not talk to him (even though my atty requested it) and the therapist is even asking me why my attorney is allowing all this to happen and why he is not doing anything.
I can email details, questions, anything but when it comes down to it he wants money and there is nothing to show for the $5000 i have given him already. Hes gone to 2 court dates. Spent time on doing paperwork on (2) 129.5 and 129 and never turned them in and 3 contempt cases and turned one in that was denied because he didn't mention anything on it that this has been an ongoing issue and some other stuff he "forgot". And than finally got one in i basically wrote for him and the ex got the advisement hearing.
Am i in the wrong here to not want to pay him anymore until i see some sort of results?
I have also talked to him about the overstepping girlfriend, she has taken our children to a dentist without my knowledge, doctors with out me knowing, she tells the kids how much i hurt them and that i am no good, fat, lazy, horrible person. She also had started blogging about how horrible i treat the kids and spread it around the internet which is slandering me (it gets to me because it is that much out there). And that is just a few of the things she has done. Shes told the kids I'm trying to put dad in jail, she will not allow their father to talk to me, email me or even give me a phone number the kids can call.
But my attorney says he can't do nothing about just to let it go.
I guess i need to know if this is normal for attorneys to do (double/tripple bill and see no results as in filing any paperwork just wasting trees, time and my money) and if not what i should do?
I have a chance to get another firm (2nd largest in Colorado for roughly same price) but only if i do not pay my old attorney i am out of money as i had even lost my job (august 2008) due to the ex harassing me. And now I'm am looking at surgery that will more then likely result in disability (it's scary) I'm still behind in child support, the ex's mother sent my attorney a copy of the check and i had to inform my attorney that it was dated may and he is still behind it is a simple mathematical problem. And that the ex's girlfriend needs to learn how to write a check, the written amount was different from the little box amount. But this is what i do for my attorney, i find the problems and tell him after he forwards me everything from the ex's atty/mother/girlfriend. It took me less then 5 minutes to look at the check and look at the family registry that i sent the atty and reply with all the problems and the mathematical calculations with answers to them that match family registry's records of payments.
Uggg i'm just frustrated. Any suggestions, help, criticism or anything?
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