c/ask-attorneys

23

abbyc33•10h ago

Can we talk about how much easier estate planning got once I found the right checklist?

After my aunt passed in Des Moines last fall, I spent 6 months sorting through probate without a lawyer, then found a free online checklist from the state bar that cut my time down to 3 weeks, has anyone else used one of those templates for a simple will or trust?

19

aaron_ellis42•1d ago

Caught my landlord lying in court testimony last month

I was in small claims over a security deposit at the county courthouse in downtown Portland. When the landlord said she sent receipts by certified mail but the tracking number she gave was from a package I shipped to myself three years ago. Judge caught it too and I won the full amount back. Has anyone else had a landlord try to pull fake evidence in a hearing?

17

ericfox•1d ago

Hot take: I chose an aggressive lawyer over a nice one and it actually worked out better

I had to pick between two attorneys for a property dispute in Denver. One was super friendly and explained everything calmly, the other was a total bulldog who barely returned my calls. I went with the aggressive guy because the other side had a big law firm. He got my neighbor to settle after 6 months instead of dragging it out for a year. Sometimes nice doesn't cut it when the other side plays hardball. Has anyone else taken the mean lawyer and regretted it or been glad they did?

5

jesse_cooper•3d ago

My lawyer buddy said I was picking the wrong attorney for my LLC setup

I was looking to set up an LLC for my small handyman business outside Nashville. I figured any attorney could do it cheap so I went with a general practice guy I found through a friend. He charged me $800 and it took him 3 weeks to file the paperwork. Then my buddy who does corporate law told me I should have gone with a business attorney who handles LLCs all day. He was right. The first guy missed a clause about member management that could have caused issues later. I had to pay another $350 to fix it. Has anyone else made this mistake with picking the wrong type of lawyer for a simple business filing?

13

skylercooper•3d ago

Spent 6 weeks fighting a copyright claim that was total BS

I uploaded a video talking about fair use in legal documents and some random company in Florida claimed it as their content. Took me 43 days and 4 counter notices to get it sorted out through the court system. Has anyone else had a bogus claim take forever to fix?

23

roberts.jordan•3d ago

Pro tip: my brother in law told me not to sign that quick settlement and he was dead right

Back in 2017 I slipped on a wet floor at a grocery store in Denver and broke my wrist. The store's insurance called me within 3 days offering $5,000 to settle right then and there. My brother in law who works as a paralegal told me to wait and see a real doctor first because the offer was too low. Turned out I needed surgery and physical therapy for 6 months, and the final settlement came out to $38,000 after the lawyer took their cut. Has anyone else had an insurance adjuster try to rush a payout before you knew your full medical costs?

22

christopher_flores46•6d ago

Small firm lawyer defending a landlord made me reconsider eviction cases

I had a case last month in Cook County where I was representing a tenant facing eviction, and the landlord's attorney was this older solo practitioner named Bill. He was super respectful and even pointed out a technical error in my client's filing that worked in my favor, which made me realize not all opposing counsel in housing court are out to screw tenants. Idk, maybe it's just me but I think we rush to demonize landlord attorneys when a lot of them are just doing their jobs fairly. Has anyone else dealt with an opposing attorney who actually helped your client's case by accident?

12

oliver_mitchell•6d ago

I always thought filing your own taxes was a bad idea until I actually tried it

I used TurboTax for like 5 years straight. Paid them $60 every April. But last year my buddy who does accounting said I could just use Free File through the IRS website. I gave it a shot with my W-2s and a 1099 from some freelance work. It took me maybe 45 minutes total and I got the same refund as before. Has anyone else had a similar experience ditching paid software?

17

emeryfox•8d ago

Got burned by a cheap escrow service last month in Phoenix

I was buying a small piece of land from a guy I met on Craigslist. Found a random escrow company online that charged way less than the big guys. Long story short, they sat on the paperwork for 3 weeks and almost killed the deal when the seller got impatient. I ended up having to pay a real estate attorney $300 to rush a corrected deed through. Has anyone else dealt with a flaky escrow outfit or got tips for spotting the bad ones before you wire money?

11

the_william•8d ago

Watched a court hearing in person last Tuesday and noticed how much the lawyers relied on their paralegals

I sat in on a civil case at the county courthouse in Cleveland and was surprised how often the attorneys would whisper to their assistants during testimony. One lawyer even had a paralegal hand him a specific binder with tabs mid-questioning. Has anyone else noticed how much prep work actually happens live in the courtroom?

3

angela_flores•10d ago

Can we talk about that convo I had with a court clerk last month?

I was waiting at the courthouse for a hearing on a small claims case and this older clerk told me most people lose because they don't understand the other side's argument, not their own. She said it hit me hard because I realized she was right about my own case. Has anyone else had a legal pro drop some simple truth that changed how you approached things?

12

patriciam22•10d ago

That traffic stop in Columbus taught me a hard lesson about right turns on red

I was sitting at a light near Easton Town Center last month and I made a right turn on red without coming to a full stop. Cop pulled me over almost instantly. I argued with him for like 5 minutes about how I slowed down enough, but he wrote me a $175 ticket anyway. My attorney friend told me later that in Ohio you have to stop completely before the crosswalk or you can get cited. Has anyone else had a similar ticket that seemed unfair but was totally legal?

24

emeryfox•25d ago

Switched from paper files to digital scanning at my practice

Used to keep everything in manila folders. Had three filing cabinets full of client docs. Took up half my office space. Around last April I started scanning everything into a secure cloud system. Now I can pull up any document in under a minute. Client intake forms get scanned same day they sign. Saved me about $200 a month on storage supplies alone. Anyone else made this switch and regretted tossing certain paper originals?

14

spencer_moore39•1mo ago

Just hit my fifth year as a solo attorney and I'm still torn on whether flat fees or hourly billing is more fair to clients

I billed a client $3,500 flat for a simple estate plan last month but another client with the exact same work paid $4,200 on hourly and I can't figure out which one felt like a rip-off to who... what do you all think works better in practice?

4

verac39•1mo ago

Looking for a reliable local lawyer who won't ghost me

I'm in need of some legal assistance and honestly, the last attorney I hired was a nightmare. They barely returned my calls and dragged everything out for months. Can anyone recommend a good, responsive lawyer who actually communicates with their clients?