Divorce Lawyers

I live in Wisconsin. My divorce was final on Jan. 16th of this year. I was given the house in lieu of my ex's profit sharing and retirement fund. I was given 90 days to refinance the mortgage in my name.

My problem is I have yet to receive the final divorce decree or a copy of the quit claim deed, both which are needed to refinance the mortgage. I've been bugging my lawyer about this, but she just keeps telling me there are problems with my ex's lawyer, ie: he forgot to sign something and it had to be refiled, he sent a fax copy of something to the court and that had to be taken care of, etc., etc.. Now nearly half of my 90 days are gone, and I still don't have the paperwork to apply for a refinance!

Also, I'm being billed for numerous calls from my lawyer to my ex's lawyer, and all the refiling that's being done. My lawyer raked up a $200 bill just last month for these fees. Do I have any recourse in all this? Is there anything I can do about all these extra charges that aren't my fault? Is there something I can do about not receiving my divorce decree in a timely manner? All I get from my lawyer is more excuses. When will this end? Do I have any rights?

Thanks for your advice.

Hi. I'm not an attorney, just have a similar situation going on. Only reversed. My "final" court date was Jan. 6th. My ex is getting the house, but I live in it right now with our 2 kids. He was to have the house refinanced in 60 days, which is up tomorrow (03/07/03). He has not contacted me and won't talk to me about it. My atty was to draw up the final papers and have us sign them after court because our Judge had to leave early that day for a funeral and we couldn't finish it up. So, instead of going back the next day - we read our agreement into the record and my atty was to complete the paper and get them processed. 45 days later she had not done a thing about it. I had called, faxed, written...etc. and yes...been billed for each time we talked about why she hadn't done the work yet!! So I consulted a friend who's an attorney in another county and he advised me to write a letter to my attorney stating what I needed her to do and a timeframe in which I expected it to be done and that if she could not comply with my requst that I would have no choice but to file a greivance with the State Bar Association and request assistance in the matter from my Judge. Funny, I she got the draft of the papers to me that day, and I corrected everything and put in the changes she "forgot" and she sent it off to husband's attorney just in time to give them 10 days to respond which is also up tomorrow!

So, I'd say write a similar letter, or go ahead and call your State Bar Association and file a greivance regarding the lack of service and the excessive fees. Unknown to many, and what they don't want you to know, is - Lawyers also have to answer to someone about doing their jobs properly!

eveelynn said:

I live in Wisconsin. My divorce was final on Jan. 16th of this year. I was given the house in lieu of my ex's profit sharing and retirement fund. I was given 90 days to refinance the mortgage in my name.

My problem is I have yet to receive the final divorce decree or a copy of the quit claim deed, both which are needed to refinance the mortgage. I've been bugging my lawyer about this, but she just keeps telling me there are problems with my ex's lawyer, ie: he forgot to sign something and it had to be refiled, he sent a fax copy of something to the court and that had to be taken care of, etc., etc.. Now nearly half of my 90 days are gone, and I still don't have the paperwork to apply for a refinance!

Also, I'm being billed for numerous calls from my lawyer to my ex's lawyer, and all the refiling that's being done. My lawyer raked up a $200 bill just last month for these fees. Do I have any recourse in all this? Is there anything I can do about all these extra charges that aren't my fault? Is there something I can do about not receiving my divorce decree in a timely manner? All I get from my lawyer is more excuses. When will this end? Do I have any rights?

Thanks for your advice.

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I have to presume that in the absence of a specific date and time stated in the order for refinancing, the t "90 days" begins from the date the judgment is SIGNED by the judge.

Crap happens--particularly after a judicial ruling. The attorneys cannot agree as to what the Judge's ruling was with regard to a particular statement and how it should be stated in the order. As a result, the none drafting attorney will not "approve as to form" the order as the drafting attorney submitted it. I have actually had to file a request for an in chamber meeting so that the Judge could approve the form of the ruling for the order. Sorry but it may not be your attorney's fault. But the attorney is going to charge for additional work unless you fire the attorney. Then you are still going to have a drafting problem, although you personally may not recognize that problem in form until you try to enforce the order!

Actually, the 90 days began with the court date of Jan. 16th. That's how it's written. I had 90 days from Jan. 16th. I just found out that my ex's lawyer didn't even file the quit claim deed until yesterday. Is it legal for my ex's lawyer to fool around with the papers and hold things off this long? Isn't there a rule for this? Doesn't he have to do things in a timely manner?

dianneph

Thanks for your advice. I will probably look into your suggestion. There has to be some accountability. I'm tired of lawyers who just do whatever the heck they want, and then charge ME for it!

Procedures That Work

"Crap happens--particularly after a judicial ruling. The attorneys cannot agree as to what the Judge's ruling was with regard to a particular statement and how it should be stated in the order. As a result, the none drafting attorney will not "approve as to form" the order as the drafting attorney submitted it. I have actually had to file a request for an in chamber meeting so that the Judge could approve the form of the ruling for the order. Sorry but it may not be your attorney's fault. But the attorney is going to charge for additional work unless you fire the attorney. Then you are still going to have a drafting problem, although you personally may not recognize that problem in form until you try to enforce the order!"

In the state of Utah, the Rules of Civil Procedure provide that when an attorney prepares the Order, he may send the proposed Order to opposing counsel to approve as to form. Opposing counsel has 5 business days, plus 3 days for mailing, to file an objection. If he fails to file an objection with the court, the drafting attorney may submit the order for signature. That forces the burden onto opposing counsel to then file an objection to the form of the order, or allow the document to be signed.

Utah Rules of Civil Procedure are consistent with the Federal Rules. More than likely, the same rules would apply to the situation being discussed in this thread.

LegalEagleInUT

Quit necroposting. You just replied to a post that is four years old!

Ohiogal said:

Quit necroposting. You just replied to a post that is four years old!

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Necroposting--love it!! Make sure you get credit when it makes it to Webster's!

IrishLady47 said:

Necroposting--love it!! Make sure you get credit when it makes it to Webster's!

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I stole it from someone else. So I cannot take credit. One of the other seniors came up with it. They should get credit for it.

Necroposting - No longer relevant?

Ohiogal said:

Quit necroposting. You just replied to a post that is four years old!

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OHIOGAL - Honestly, I wasn't really paying attention to the post date. It was the first thread that appeared when I logged into the site.

That being said, I fail to see how responding to a post, whether it be four days old, or four years old, should precipitate any response from you. The issue being addressed is just as relevant today, as it was four years ago.

LegalEagleInUT

***ooops***

Oh how I wish when someone's post gets pulled for spamming that the thread would find its way back into the underbelly of the site. *lol*