Lawyer turned out to be liar and thief

[jomustard]

Thank you for posting this. I had forgotten this was posted here. There was no probate. My brother and I owned the house as joint tenants. I have since transfered into my name. My brother didn't have any other assets and there are no other relatives

Now I would like to be able to sell the house, but the solar ucc1 lien is going to make it difficult

 

[jomustard]

1. Who are you in this matter? You reference your brother twice. Was this your brother's solar contract or yours?
2. Who is the personal representative for your brother's estate?
2a. Who is the attorney handling your brother's probate?
2b. Why is that attorney not handling it a part of the estate?

It sounds like this was your brother's contract and you gave hime $3k to hire the attorney. Then your brother died.

Regardless, you contacted the Bar Association several times and turned the matter over to them. And now you are not happy with how they are proceeding.

I'm not sure the OP has standing to sue.

DC

I didn't say I wasn't happy about how the bar is proceeding, I was wondering how long it is taking. I have never done this before

 

[quincy]

Now I would like to be able to sell the house, but the solar ucc1 lien is going to make it difficult

It can be more difficult to sell a house that has a lien - but mortgages are property liens and houses are sold with existing mortgages all the time. The difficulty mostly comes with the buyer’s ability to find a mortgage lender willing to lend money on a house with an existing lien or liens.

Although liens can be paid off at any time prior to the sale of the home, liens often (maybe more frequently) are paid off at house closings from the proceeds of the sale, before the house seller receives any money.

You should speak to an experienced real estate professional to discuss the sale of your house and how best to handle the lien. I know you are in the process of fighting the solar panel company that placed the lien on your property but this legal fight can continue even if you find it necessary to pay them first and sue them later.

 

[jomustard]

It can be more difficult to sell a house that has a lien - but mortgages are property liens and houses are sold with existing mortgages all the time. The difficulty mostly comes with the buyer’s ability to find a mortgage lender willing to lend money on a house with an existing lien or liens.

Although liens can be paid off at any time prior to the sale of the home, liens often (maybe more frequently) are paid off at house closings from the proceeds of the sale, before the house seller receives any money.

You should speak to an experienced real estate professional to discuss the sale of your house and how best to handle the lien. I know you are in the process of fighting the solar panel company that placed the lien on your property but this legal fight can continue even if you find it necessary to pay them first and sue them later.

Do you think I have a good chance of winning?

 

[TigerD]

Thank you for posting this. I had forgotten this was posted here. There was no probate. My brother and I owned the house as joint tenants. I have since transfered into my name. My brother didn't have any other assets and there are no other relatives

I am confused. In the 2022 thread you stated you owned the property with your sister.

5. Property is in both names (my sister and myself). The salesman came back the next day rushing me through it…when Joanne wasn’t there.

My sister, Joanne Teping and I, are co-owners of the property on {XXXX Deleted for Privacy XXXX}. Nowhere is her name or signature on the solar contract with esp.

So I must ask again - Who are you in this? What happened to your sister?

We were both impressed and told him to come back later and we would consider it.
.... My sister was not here. He rushed me into signing the contract on his tablet without going over it with me.

So, you signed a contract in 2021and regret it. Talk to an attorney about the contract. You may still have a cause of action in California - I don't know California law and am not going to look it up.

Or sell the property, pay the liens, pocket the profits and move on.

DC

 

[quincy]

TigerD, Joanne was quoting her brother Joe’s statement in his complaint to ESP.

jomustard, the poster here, is the sister and Joe is the (now deceased) brother who signed the solar panel contract.

I agree that selling the house can still be done, even with the lien, but it requires more work and can require cooperation with the buyer of the house.

jomustard, I don’t know what sort of success you will have in challenging the lien or in a disciplinary action against your attorney but, from what you have described, it appears a legal action is not without merit.

 

[jomustard]

I am confused. In the 2022 thread you stated you owned the property with your sister.

So I must ask again - Who are you in this? What happened to your sister? I am Joanne, Joe's sister, Joe passed away June 6, 2023


So, you signed a contract in 2021and regret it. Talk to an attorney about the contract. You may still have a cause of action in California - I don't know California law and am not going to look it up.

Or sell the property, pay the liens, pocket the profits and move on.
I am going to continue to try and release the contract and lien.

 

[jomustard]

TigerD, Joanne was quoting her brother Joe’s statement in his complaint to ESP.

jomustard, the poster here, is the sister and Joe is the (now deceased) brother who signed the solar panel contract.

I agree that selling the house can still be done, even with the lien, but it requires more work and can require cooperation with the buyer of the house.

jomustard, I don’t know what sort of success you will have in challenging the lien or in a disciplinary action against your attorney but, from what you have described, it appears a legal action is not without merit.

thank you it made it harder with that attorney I hired. Hope to get that money back so I can hire a decent attorney to get the lien released

 

[quincy]

thank you it made it harder with that attorney I hired. Hope to get that money back so I can hire a decent attorney to get the lien released

It can take up to 6 months (sometimes longer) for California’s State Bar to handle a complaint against an attorney, so if you can find the money to hire a new attorney now - to work on getting your retainer money refunded, your case file reviewed, and the lien taken care of - that would be most helpful. Perhaps a legal aid clinic offering low-or-no cost legal help could be of assistance.

State Bar Complaints:

https://law.justia.com/codes/california/2022/code-bpc/division-3/chapter-4/article-8/section-6140-2/