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Meta Ridley posted:And realistically, if it did go to trial, wouldn't they be able to bring up the fact that I "plead guilty" before withdrawing it? That would look really bad. I am not guilty of this charge, I just wanted it to be finished and dealt with. Jail is unlikely, unless there are prior crashes or drugs/alcohol involved. Try the PD first. They will do a better job than a $1000 lawyer. CO has a good, dedicated PD system. (One of my old interns (one of the awesome ones) is a CO PD, but not in the El Paso/Teller Co office)
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Jan 25, 2012 06:56
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joat mon posted:no, he would not. Thank you very much for this reply, especially citing the rules of criminal court. I definitely learned a lot. I read the rules of traffic court, however I was wondering if it could be amended without me being granted a continuance. In this case a continuance, with 30 days notice, would put me over the 180 days speedy trial. Can you get a statement of particulars for a traffic case?
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Jan 25, 2012 08:00
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Ok now I found out the restitution clause..which the DA told me "Your car insurance took full care of that" holds me liable for a lot more than my insurance would cover. Pain and suffering, out of pocket expenses, lost wages, etc. Is this correct? I can't believe what a lying rear end in a top hat that DA was.
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Jan 25, 2012 09:11
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Lord Gaga posted:Thank you very much for this reply, especially citing the rules of criminal court. I definitely learned a lot. I read the rules of traffic court, however I was wondering if it could be amended without me being granted a continuance. In this case a continuance, with 30 days notice, would put me over the 180 days speedy trial. Traffic rule 6.165(b) "The court shall grant additional time to the defendant for the purpose of preparing a defense if the amendment has prejudiced the defendant." Basically, if the amendment changes the allegation so much that you cannot defend yourself, you get a continuance. Since you were aware that it was either going to be because your car was too loud or because your car was too loud, you probably wouldn't get the continuance. For the same reason, your request for a bill of particulars would probably get denied as well. Generally, additional time that you ask for does not count toward a speedy trial clock. (Traffic rule 6.325(b)(1))
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Jan 25, 2012 14:05
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ibntumart posted:I second Ashcans's advice: see if your Representative can help cut through this red tape. Thirding this advice. Your Senator is also an option - most of them (probably all, but at least all the ones I've worked for) have casework services where they will help you deal with federal agencies. Typically they do this for immigration issues, but SSA would completely qualify. Make sure to contact the *local*/state office. I'd recommend calling them on the phone - if you just contact via webform, you'll probably get routed to the right person eventually, but it may take some time and occasionally stuff gets lost. (I don't do casework but I have done some constituent mail work and look, you get a lot of mail, okay?)
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Jan 25, 2012 14:29
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Is it illegal for private businesses such as a photographer or caterer refuse service to a prospective client? And if so, do they need to give a reason?
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Jan 25, 2012 17:43
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Meta Ridley posted:Ok now I found out the restitution clause..which the DA told me "Your car insurance took full care of that" holds me liable for a lot more than my insurance would cover. Pain and suffering, out of pocket expenses, lost wages, etc. Is this correct? Get a lawyer. The answer to every question you've asked is "you need a lawyer, preferably before you enter a guilty plea, but if not, as quickly as possible after"
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Jan 25, 2012 17:59
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Generalisimo Halal posted:Is it illegal for private businesses such as a photographer or caterer refuse service to a prospective client? And if so, do they need to give a reason? This sounds fun, more facts please! And as a general matter, a private business can refuse a client for wearing purple shoes or whatever, so even if the business refuses service based on some suspect reason (like race or sex), it's nearly impossible to prove. So, if you are the business, go ahead and refuse service and then cite a silly reason like you thought the client was a jerk-face. If you are the client, forget about the whole thing and just go on with your life.
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Jan 25, 2012 18:15
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It was rhetorical, needed to know for a piece I am working on. Thanks so much though! I figured that was the case.
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Jan 25, 2012 18:27
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What is the ideal way to express dissatisfaction with an attorney? I know full well I'll never get any of my money back, but I want to let others know how incompetent, dishonest and utterly stupid and unprofessional she was. She handled my divorce through which I got fairly hosed and I ended up paying a shitload more than what I'm thinking I should have paid. In 18 months of being her client I received 4 statements even though her contract said I was supposed to receive one every month. In the statements I did get, after scrutinizing the poo poo out of them, I realized that in later statements, she had gone back and increased rates for things that had already been done and charged for, to make the bottom line retainer remaining less. Her interactions with me were always incredibly stressful -- she was basically more of a stress then my actual ex-wife. She was basically a colossal bitch who had me by the balls once the whole divorce was rolling. I didn't have the money to start all over with another attorney so I stuck it out with her. I can go on an on about the lovely things she did or didn't really do. What can I do that this bitch will actually take notice and care? I am so utterly pissed at how I was treated and how it was handled that I need some loving outlet. Am I justified in making a complaint with the state bar association about her incompetence, sketchy billing practices and my general dissatisfaction? Can I post a google business review? Is that considered libel? I can't express to you how much of a bitch this women was. At one point, when I expressed frustration with yet another request for money with no backup statement or anything, she basically threatened to increase it from a $700 payment to $1000. My emails and written letters to her regarding the billing questions were either ignored or met with one line, indignant responses. My fear is that if I file a complaint or post some review or something, this crazy bitch will come after me. I imagine she has all the time and resources in the world to file some libel lawsuit against me. Am I just being paranoid? I just can't seem to drop this. I'm so loving pissed at her.
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Jan 25, 2012 20:40
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Your state bar's website should have information about filing a bar complaint. This part in particularvisuvius posted:I realized that in later statements, she had gone back and increased rates for things that had already been done and charged for, to make the bottom line retainer remaining less. sounds like something the bar would be very unhappy about.
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Jan 25, 2012 20:50
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What state is it?
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Jan 25, 2012 20:54
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Non-legal responses could definitely include a google review and a yelp review. I knew an attorney who had one yelp review put up by a disgruntled client from 8 years prior, and the yelp review still popped up in the top 10 google hits for the attorney's name. That's a pretty frustrating thing. If she agreed to send you bills every month and you only got 4 during the entire 18 months of representation, then sure you can report her to the bar. Additionally, retroactively messing with billed hours and rates and things is a big no-no.
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Jan 25, 2012 21:06
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However you choose to vent your dissatisfaction you need to make an effort to make your complaint much less colorful. Right now you kind of sound like an angry lunatic and most people would probably disregard whatever you had to say by the second 'bitch'. A complaint where you go into detail with exactly what she did wrong with examples would be much more powerful than just calling her names.
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Jan 25, 2012 21:10
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euphronius posted:What state is it? California. Robo Olga posted:However you choose to vent your dissatisfaction you need to make an effort to make your complaint much less colorful. Right now you kind of sound like an angry lunatic and most people would probably disregard whatever you had to say by the second 'bitch'. A complaint where you go into detail with exactly what she did wrong with examples would be much more powerful than just calling her names. Okay thanks guys. Hahaha yes clearly I will not be flipping out in my correspondence with the California State Bar. I figured I could let out a little steam in the SA legal thread. My main concern was posting a google or yelp review and getting a libel lawsuit 6 months down the line. As long as what I say is truthful, I'm guessing I'll be okay.
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Jan 25, 2012 21:35
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Family law I think in New Jersey. My parents divorced when I was an infant. My mom told awhile ago that their divorce agreement stipulated that my dad pay half my college tuition. My moms now destitute and estranged and I've relatively recently talked to my dad. I don't really want to bring this up with him directly unless I actually have something that could enforce it. ....How do I find out how true this claim about the divorce was/enforce it? Keep in mind I essentially have no money.
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Jan 25, 2012 21:58
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visuvius posted:California. Your representation with her is over. Don't use her again. From your story I do not see anything that was too terrible. The threatening to raise a bill is iffy, but you don't have proof she did that. If she really did double bill you than that is a real issue though. Here is where you do it http://www.calbar.ca.gov/Attorneys/LawyerRegulation/ComplaintForm.aspx So to be more specific visuvius posted:Am I justified in making a complaint with the state bar association about her incompetence, sketchy billing practices and my general dissatisfaction? Can I post a google business review? Is that considered libel? She wasn't incompetent, billing practices maybe, general dissatisfaction not really. I wont comment on the libel issue. euphronius fucked around with this message at 22:16 on Jan 25, 2012 |
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Jan 25, 2012 22:04
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euphronius posted:Your representation with her is over. Don't use her again. From your story I do not see anything that was too terrible. The threatening to raise a bill is iffy, but you don't have proof she did that. Regarding the threatening to raise a bill, actually yeah I have proof. It was an email correspondence and when I questioned the amount she was asking me to send and when I told her she had still not sent me a bill in months, her response was, "Yah, you say that every month! you know that's not the case, right? So, you want to send $1,000?" To me, that sounds like she is threatening to raise my bill from an original $700 that she requested, to $1000 because I questioned her. Something I'm curious about...how can you, from where ever it is you are, having never seen the final judgment or not knowing any details about the divorce, just proclaim that she wasn't incompetent? I assume you're an attorney, and you feel that I must be wrong and I have no idea what I'm talking about -- that I'm simply an angry client that didn't get what he wanted in the divorce? Because unless it's just some super basic, knee-jerk assumption, I don't get it. I didn't even get into details on alimony terms or the general proceedings of the divorce, but from what was said, you seem to feel she wasn't incompetent. How can you make that call? euphronius posted:I wont comment on the libel issue. Why? If you won't comment on it, ignore the question. Why post some cryptic non answer. visuvius fucked around with this message at 23:33 on Jan 25, 2012 |
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Jan 25, 2012 23:30
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I said she wasn't incompetent because you haven't posted anything which demonstrates incompetence.
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Jan 25, 2012 23:35
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I'll tackle this too.visuvius posted:She handled my divorce through which I got fairly hosed and I ended up paying a shitload more than what I'm thinking I should have paid. Every person I've ever met that went through a divorce said this. "I GOT hosed. THE COURT hosed ME. MY ATTORNEY WAS DUMB. THIS IS BULLSHIT I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO PAY THAT WHORE/THAT FUCKER, MY ATTORNEY WAS poo poo I COULD HAVE DONE A BETTER JOB MYSELF." quote:In the statements I did get, after scrutinizing the poo poo out of them, I realized that in later statements, she had gone back and increased rates for things that had already been done and charged for, to make the bottom line retainer remaining less. I'm not your lawyer. I don't live in your state. See another attorney. But this is fraud and civilly actionable. If you had a billing agreement (in writing, it sounds like) and she went back and changed her rates without your consent for work already done (e.g., she agrees to charge 100 and then bills 150 an hour) then it's fraud and possibly a deceptive trade practice. quote:Her interactions with me were always incredibly stressful -- she was basically more of a stress then my actual ex-wife. She was basically a colossal bitch who had me by the balls once the whole divorce was rolling. I didn't have the money to start all over with another attorney so I stuck it out with her. I can go on an on about the lovely things she did or didn't really do. You should have come earlier. Some states will let you get the remainder of a retainer back from an attorney. Right now it just sounds like you're butthurt and stressed out and looking for someone to take your rage out on. Sorry dude, divorce sucks. Also, at least in some states, family law courts have a huge amount of latitude. ESPECIALLY community property states like California. Just because you think you got hosed doesn't mean she was incompetent. G-Mawwwwwww fucked around with this message at 00:30 on Jan 26, 2012 |
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Jan 26, 2012 00:25
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CaptainScraps posted:Every person I've ever met that went through a divorce said this. "I GOT hosed. THE COURT hosed ME. MY ATTORNEY WAS DUMB. THIS IS BULLSHIT I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO PAY THAT WHORE/THAT FUCKER, MY ATTORNEY WAS poo poo I COULD HAVE DONE A BETTER JOB MYSELF." This is why I won't practice family law. Ever.
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Jan 26, 2012 04:33
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Incredulous Red posted:This is why I won't practice family law. Ever. Get ready for some stories. You know, when I get more cases. I was hanging out and third chairing a child support modification (which means hanging out behind the bar and looking important) talking to the client. His girlfriend's ex-husband was filing a child support modification and the client was saying "This is loving bullshit, he should totally have to support little man [his girlfriend's kid] as much as possible" and then turned around and said "But poo poo man, any chance you could get me to pay less child support? I love my little girls but it's eating me alive."
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Jan 26, 2012 05:00
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CaptainScraps posted:Get ready for some stories. Between that and probate
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Jan 26, 2012 05:09
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Incredulous Red posted:Between that and probate Hahaha guess who's getting ad litem certified for both on Friday Family, probate, PI (including worker's comp) and crim, baby. And then some professional malpractice/breach of fiduciary duty stuff too.
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Jan 26, 2012 05:10
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visuvius posted:Hahaha yes clearly I will not be flipping out in my correspondence with the California State Bar. I figured I could let out a little steam in the SA legal thread. Just in case you needed it, this is the California State Bar's attorney complaint page: http://www.calbar.ca.gov/Attorneys/LawyerRegulation/FilingaComplaint.aspx visuvius posted:My main concern was posting a google or yelp review and getting a libel lawsuit 6 months down the line. As long as what I say is truthful, I'm guessing I'll be okay. In California, an attorney must agree to fee arbitration if a client or former client asks. Contact your county's Bar Association for details (they might also offer mediation). This should not be very expensive, but you can check on this list to see how much it costs in your area. I imagine the cost is split equally between the attorney and client, but don't quote me on that; also, you might be able to get a fee waiver.
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Jan 26, 2012 05:53
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CaptainScraps posted:Get ready for some stories. Three lawyers working on one child support modification?
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Jan 26, 2012 15:45
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euphronius posted:Three lawyers working on one child support modification? One was a newish attorney associated with an older attorney on the case to not gently caress it up and they decided to bring the REALLY new attorney to meet the judge.
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Jan 26, 2012 16:32
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CaptainScraps posted:One was a newish attorney associated with an older attorney on the case to not gently caress it up and they decided to bring the REALLY new attorney to meet the judge. Oh. I was going to say that seemed like overkill. Congrats on some of your first cases!
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Jan 26, 2012 16:33
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With the way the economy is, I was guessing the firm had a Buy-Two-Get-One-Free offer going. 
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Jan 26, 2012 16:38
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Kalman posted:Thirding this advice. Your Senator is also an option - most of them (probably all, but at least all the ones I've worked for) have casework services where they will help you deal with federal agencies. Typically they do this for immigration issues, but SSA would completely qualify. Thanks for all this advice. I sent a few emails to various places for info and am waiting on a call back from my representative's office. My rep's site even says they help with issues with federal agencies such as Social Security, so maybe this will work out!
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Jan 26, 2012 18:18
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I am hoping for some general advice for a friend who is a little overwhelmed and not quite sure what to do. This morning she was slowing to stop at a yellow light when she was rear-ended at 40mph. Needless to say, that part sucked. The bumper caught most of it, but it was enough force to crumple part of the sides. With all the adrenaline, she didn't realize until she was driving away that her back hurts like hell. She had never been in an accident involving another person before, so she didn't know to call the cops and just wrote down some of the other person's information. She got him name, address, phone number, insurance policy number, and license plate number. She was too shaken up to remember to write down the name of his insurance company. Don't worry, she has been thoroughly lectured on accident procedure since then. Apparently he did not ask for any of her information. The problem is that none of us friends have experience with what happened next. She called to get the name of the company, he stalled and said he would call her back. When she called later, he admitted that his insurance had actually lapsed earlier this week. He made a payment today (right after her first call) and the insurance is supposed to kick in tomorrow, so he told her she would "have to" call the insurance company tomorrow as if the accident happened tomorrow. She declined. She was already planning on going to the police station after class to report the collision, so she said that she was going today no matter what. She probably should not have mentioned that since all it did was make him angry. She is a little frazzled since we are in professional school and midterms begin next week. This is a new process, so any advice on what to expect along the way is appreciated. She would like to have her back checked out, but apparently our student health insurance won't cover collision related injuries?? I wasn't the one who talked to the health center, so I'm not 100% sure what the deal with that is. It sounded like maybe they expected her to front the whole bill and then sue the guy, so they wouldn't have to cover any of it at any time. Is that the generally accepted way to go about things or is that weird? Any expectations as to what is going to happen to this guy? I'm sure that he would have been ticketed if she had called the police to the scene, but can they do that after the fact? What about the whole "let's commit insurance fraud!" thing? It is sort of hesaid/shesaid, but considering the fact that he didn't have insurance and made the payment today, is it enough to get the interest of the police? She was pretty insulted by the demand and would feel better about the whole ordeal if there were some consequences. edit: Forgot to mention that we are in Ohio, if that makes a difference. Asstro Van fucked around with this message at 23:02 on Jan 26, 2012 |
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Jan 26, 2012 22:57
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This is about subleasing in New York City. New York Real Property Law 226-b is the subletting law that says that a landlord can't "unreasonably" withhold your request to sublet your apartment, and if he does or if he doesn't respond that's permission. Also, the caselaw shows that almost any ol' denial of your request to sublet is unreasonable, so it pretty much (although not entirely!) gives tenants the right to sublet their apartments. Trouble is that it says in that statute that this particular provision only applies to buildings with four or more apartments in it. I live in a brownstone with three apartments and I reallllly need to get a sub-lessee for my last three months of my lease, but I have a feeling my landlord isn't going to be thrilled about that. I'm aware that this law doesn't apply to me (less than four units), but does anybody know what statute or regulation WOULD pertain to me? I've done a lil Westlaw'in but so far I'm not sure how to proceed.
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Jan 26, 2012 22:57
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Asstro Van posted:I am hoping for some general advice for a friend who is a little overwhelmed and not quite sure what to do. This morning she was slowing to stop at a yellow light when she was rear-ended at 40mph. Needless to say, that part sucked. The bumper caught most of it, but it was enough force to crumple part of the sides. With all the adrenaline, she didn't realize until she was driving away that her back hurts like hell. She should call her insurance company immediately after filing the police report (which she should do right now). The insurance company will tell her exactly what to do. Both her car insurance policy and her medical insurance are important here. She may have an uninsured motorist policy to cover the damage to her vehicle and she may have an uninsured motorist bodily injury policy to cover her injuries. If she doesn't, any medical insurance may apply. Basically this guy is going to be liable for a lot of damages but he probably won't have any money. His insurance company isn't going to pay for anything, and she's doing the right thing by not waiting.
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Jan 26, 2012 23:09
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edited - answered
beejay fucked around with this message at 04:42 on Jan 27, 2012 |
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Jan 26, 2012 23:58
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In general, if you mail the notice to the same place you mail your rent and get a receipt from the post office, that is good enough to stand up in court. They don't have to respond.
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Jan 27, 2012 00:25
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Andy Dufresne posted:She should call her insurance company immediately after filing the police report (which she should do right now). The insurance company will tell her exactly what to do. She has been working with her insurance company from the start, they are the ones that told her she needed to get more than just the policy number from him. It looks like they will cover the car, but she'll have to pay the deductible. I assume he is liable for that, but I'm not sure if it's high enough to be worth pursuing considering the effort required and the chances he'll have any money. I'll tell her to ask her insurance about bodily injury coverage, I don't think she told them about her back pain yet. Any thoughts on his legal future?
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Jan 27, 2012 00:50
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beejay posted:If a person can't get ahold of their landlord but need to move out, is sending a notice to vacate by certified mail with return receipt good enough legally? Assume Illinois, lease ended several months ago. Also, there is no "office" locally so to speak. Please don't quote in case this needs to be edited. Frequently residential leases have lines with the address where notice may be sent to the landlord and tenant. Read it, find that address, and send your letter there certified. This is not legal advice, IANAL or your lawyer.
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Jan 27, 2012 01:06
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Feces Starship posted:This is about subleasing in New York City.
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Jan 27, 2012 01:10
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I'm in Arkansas, and before you tell me I already know I'm an idiot. I was in an accident Monday, and received a no insurance ticket. The accident wasn't my fault. I had court this morning expecting just to get a no insurance ticket, and instead the judge tells me I'm facing a class A misdemeanor with up to 1 year and a $2,500 fine, so I plead not guilty. They gave me a public defender, but I'm not even going to talk to her until 5 days before court on a Thursday. I have court the next Monday. I'm starting to freak out a little bit. Should I call a criminal lawyer? I have no previous record, but this is starting to scare the crap out of me...I can't go to jail.
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Jan 27, 2012 04:00
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Iakona posted:I'm in Arkansas, and before you tell me I already know I'm an idiot. Any lawyer someone driving without insurance, who qualifies for the public defender can afford is going to be an incompetent.
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Jan 27, 2012 04:07
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