Posts by htsyl

Don’t Sign Without Reading the Small Print!

By htsyl, 27 December, 2010, No Comment

Here’s a shocker. I met another lawyer today that was a real jerk. And I told him that we was a jerk and that I was going to write about him on my blog – he naturally thought I was just blowing smoke, so I gave him my blog business card and told him to check it out in a day or two to see what I said.

The real moral of the story is not that I met another jerk lawyer or that all lawyers are jerks – you can go with that if you like, but there is a point to be made here. I got a call from a friend tonight who said that she and her husband were refinancing their house and that the lawyer who was doing the closing wanted them to meet him at the local McDonald’s to sign all the papers at 7pm in the evening. She asked if I would meet them there to look over the paperwork. This lawyer was obviously very threatened by having anyone there looking over his shoulder or questioning his procedures and he got very defensive with me, just saying over and over again that he was an attorney, and just who was I, and he has a license, and they just need to sign the papers. They just need to sign the papers now, this is the last day in 2010 that you can sign papers for a mortgage to fund in 2010. You just need to understand that this is how it is in 2010 in the mortgage business, you just have to sign now.

I found his manner so offensive, that I excused myself and left my friends there to deal with him. Here’s the lesson – don’t let anyone – a lawyer, car salesman, real estate agent or the man in the moon – tell you that this offer will never be available again, you have to sign now, don’t bother reading the small print, we just have to get this done, it’s now or never.

Here’s what’s now or never – once you sign the papers, it’s really, really, really hard to take it back. Don’t let anyone give you the bum’s rush. Don’t sign without reading the small print, especially if you’re being given the bum’s rush. And if it’s a lawyer rushing you and acting all defensive because you’re asking questions, then just tell him (or her) that you just don’t feel comfortable signing right now under these circumstances and if it costs a few dollars extra in the long run to do things the right way, then that’s what you want to do.

Actually, it’s the same “advice” I’ve been handing out since I started this blog – DON’T CHECK YOUR COMMON SENSE AT THE DOOR!!!

That’s it for 2010. Next year, I’ll tell you the story of how I sued my pest control company in small claims court and won without even going to court!

Ethics Complaint – The End

By htsyl, 18 September, 2010, No Comment

Well, I am not at all surprised that despite the allegations set forth in the ethics complaint I filed against an attorney who let a client he snared from a women’s shelter work for him for four years without pay has been DISMISSED by the powers that be. This is the body of the letter:

The Office of Bar Counsel has considered your grievance regarding Attorney X. After reviewing the information received and communicating with Jane, Attorney X’s former client, it has been determined that any professional misconduct in this matter could not be proved by “clear and convincing evidence,” which is the standard of proof required in disciplinary cases…Accordingly, the grievance has been dismissed and, as such, this matter is closed. The decision by our office, however, does not affect any private remedies that might be available to you…Thank you for bringing this matter to the attention of this office.

And that, my friends, is that. I have encouraged my friend to continue following up with the Labor Board regarding her back wages as this is a “private remedy” that is available to her and which could put some money in her pocket (unless Attorney X declares bankruptcy). Even if she wanted to retain an attorney to sue Attorney X for malpractice, Attorney X does not carry malpractice insurance! It is highly unlikely that she could even find a lawyer willing to take on Attorney X in a lawsuit, but even if there was a lawyer who practiced in this area, taking a case where there is no insurance policy to go after is a loser.

So, unless the Labor Board catches up with him, and he has to pay Jane some back wages (at the rate of minimum wage because there was no agreement as to what her hourly rate of pay should have been), Attorney X has got a pretty good setup. He gets clients referred to him by the women’s shelter. If they can’t pay for his services and they have any skills at all, he has slave labor at his disposal. He can’t get sued for malpractice because he doesn’t carry insurance and he can’t get disbarred because it’s “too hard to prove.”

Frankly, my impression of the position taken by the disciplinary board is this — if they think they can get away with not pursuing the matter, and if the victim is low profile enough, and the attorney hasn’t done something “outrageous” like stealing client monies from the trust fund, they just put it in the “lack of clear and convincing evidence” shoebox, knowing that the person will have nowhere to turn for a “private” or “civil” remedy, and it’s just over.

It’s just wrong.

Lawyers and Clients and Social Media

By htsyl, 10 July, 2010, No Comment

I would actually like for my lawyer to have a general awareness and understanding of social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, to name a few). This would mean, hopefully, that they were not a total stick-in-the-mud and had some awareness of current events and technology.

That having been said, lawyers need to be very careful about using social media – and you could be the victim of their ethical breaches on the web. If a lawyer or law firm is using social media simply to promote their services in a general way, i.e., basically pointing the consumer to their website for more information, or providing links to articles that educate, that is okay. On the other hand, an individual attorney could certainly end up in social media quicksand by posting confidential information on what they think is a “personal” facebook or other social media account.

If you, the consumer, haven’t already figured out that the Internet in general, and social media sites in particular, are not confidential, you have some catching up to do. But, if your lawyer (in a professional or personal capacity) hasn’t figured that out… A lawyer’s activity on the Internet is governed by the Rules of Professional Conduct…they should not be making promises or guarantees, they should not be bragging about “wins” or griping about clients in any way that could breach confidentiality or other rules. Attorneys are also responsible for the content posted on law firm sites or social media pages by non-attorney staff in their offices.

And another very important point, and this is about YOU! Lawsuits and other legal matters are being won and lost with information about plaintiffs and defendants found on social media sites. THINK before you POST! Your social media life is an open book, and if you are ever involved in litigation, that book will be read. The printed word will draw a picture of you in a court of law that words cannot erase. If you are having any trouble imagining what this could mean, here’s an example. You are separated from your spouse and involved in a divorce, including a fight about the custody of your children. It’s a stressful time in your life, you go out with friends, you party, you drink, you drive, you report your whereabouts and activities to your “friends” on Facebook or Twitter. You claim the life of a monk in court and next thing you know, your social media posts are blown up on a poster at a court hearing! It’s not just between friends, it’s EVIDENCE. Ditto for a worker’s compensation claim, personal injury suit, etc.

If you wouldn’t want to see it on a poster in a courtroom, don’t post it! Simple. Period.

It works both ways — if you have doubts about your lawyer, or you are looking for a new lawyer — check them out on social media.

That’s it for now – don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @htsyl.