Have You Ever Needed a Lawyer?

[qtlaw]

Serious question. 30 yrs into it I’ve heard all the jokes and seen the movies but never get any real sense of what people think about my career in reality. Only feedback is from clients.

Do you have a view of what we actually do on a typical day, etc.

So I thought I’d ask. Thanks.

 

[3_Octave_Fart]

Never once. I attribute that to luck more than anything.

 

[The Big Ragu]

I know that most lawyers work a ton of hours.

They need to, in order to take simple matters and make them drag on for years of billables.

 

[BTExpress]

Barely.

Used an immigration lawyer once. $1,700 and a little internet searching later, I decided I could do the rest on my own and save what would have exceeded $2,500 more to complete the process. Wound up paying $100 for a paralegal to look over everything I compiled and write a fancy cover letter.

Used one to get an apostille. Currently using one to handle probate.

 

[Liut]

Until a few years ago, all I knew of the law profession was from John Grisham novels and subsequent films.

However, becoming power of attorney for my now late mother and the current process of settling the estate has given me an appreciation of lawyers.

On a reporting level, I've always enjoyed talking to them. One guy, in particular, is a zero-BS cusses-some straight-shooter type of personality. To this day if I ever need counsel for a legal defense, I'm calling him.

EDIT: Also consulted an attorney for a book I researched and wrote. He was helpful, and did not charge an arm and leg.

 

[FileNotFound]

Didn’t use a lawyer for my divorce. Really should have. That’s the one piece of advice I’ll give to my dying day: If you’re facing divorce, hire the damn lawyer.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

I bought two houses and sold one. I made a will with trust provisions for my children. I have used more than one lawyer. I'm surprised others haven't, just in the course of life.

 

[Webster]

I know that most lawyers work a ton of hours.

They need to, in order to take simple matters and make them drag on for years of billables.

The billable hour certainly has its warped incentives, but so do fixed fee arrangements. When I was in-house, I hired a well known firm to do a couple of arbitrations on a fixed fee basis and felt that they were always cutting corners. Then again, I’ve had matters where firms have billed ten of thousands of dollars on takers with marginal utility.

 

[Driftwood]

Being a lawyer is sort of like being a teacher but better paid.
Everyone thinks they know how to do your job better than you until they have to try.

 

[qtlaw]

The billable hour certainly has its warped incentives, but so do fixed fee arrangements. When I was in-house, I hired a well known firm to do a couple of arbitrations on a fixed fee basis and felt that they were always cutting corners. Then again, I’ve had matters where firms have billed ten of thousands of dollars on takers with marginal utility.

It’s very much relationship based and trust. I’ve always done my best to make client feel they are getting their money’s worth to extent possible.

First meeting, I’m not a cheerleader, drinking Kool Aid, saying everything is gonna be fine.
secondly, litigation and fighting is expensive. But I’ll spend as little as possible to get you where you want to go. You want vindication? It’s gonna cost.

 

[Webster]

When I litigated employment cases, except for high profile matters and class/collective actions, the amount of money it cost to litigate well almost always well exceeded what it would have cost to settle.

I had a sexual harassment/retaliation case for a large company which cost close to $1 million to defend and we won the case on summary judgment before trial. The plaintiff made $50k but it was extremely complicated and had a litany of depositions and discovery disputes. I had another ADA case which cost about the same because the former employee’s lawyer was a colossal asshole and dragged everything out. Needless to say, the clients were very unhappy despite us winning both matters.

It’s one of the reasons why I stopped litigating — I just didn’t love it and felt that I was always being unproductive.

 

[MileHigh]

Yup because of my sister's family's estates that I named a executor of in their wills. And the four estates -- well, more my sister's and brother-in-law's -- had A LOT in them and trying to sort it all out took a lot of work. And their lawyer was the one who wrote it up years earlier.

Multiple rental properties. A large business that we eventually sold with a lot of negotiations. But even as we went along in the process, other things kept cropping up all over the place.

She's a one-person shop and has other clients, but it's been a very long, very slow process. I get it. There's been a lot to it and it's taken years off my life, especially dealing with five other beneficiaries that has been more positive than negative.

No chance in hell I could have done it without her.

 

[micropolitan guy]

I never have, but one was very helpful to parents, in getting their estate in order, and to my brother, who was the executor of my parents' estate when the time finally came.

Same brother runs his own contracting business. He also has a guy who handles stuff for his business. Again, very helpful.

Micro Jr. is a first-year law student. Hard work, but he is really enjoying it.

 

[Matt1735]

I have, and apparently will need to again later this year.

The previous matter, a fair wage claim, was dumped by one firm because it wasn't enough $$ to pursue. The solo practitioner they referred me to did just enough to earn his percentage.

I am now looking at a accident injury case (non-automotive) and it looks like the company will not settle, which means pushing forward.

 

[Spartan Squad]

I got my paper sued because I wouldn't give in to a guy pissed off about a story about the death of his son. There was a legit mistake because of a false-positive on a drug test following an accident. Guy wanted a full retraction. I offered a follow up story only. Guy sued for libel but the case got tossed for, among other things, a lack of standing. Of course the case was not dismissed before our company's lawyer got official statements, went through records, got the case moved to federal court and filled several motions. Cost us, I want to say, close to $50k to sort out. My publisher called me into his office, showed me the bill and said basically you were right but next time just do what the guy wants. We can't pay that much everytime.

 

[Batman]

I think I went my whole life without needing one, and then in the past 18 months we've had to consult several after my father in law died. One for some probate matters, and another to file a wrongful death suit that's winding its tortured way through the legal process.

 

[ChrisLong]

Twice.
The first for an out-of-town incident. Hiring a lawyer -- in the town where this happened -- allowed me to skip going to court 4-hours away. Lawyer cost me his $500 fee plus $125 for the adjusted fine.
Second was a routine living will to set up my daughter with all of our assets.

Opinion: Passing the bar gives you guys the right to lie to judge and juries -- on the record -- while everybody else is charged with perjury. I know that from watching lawyers interviewed on the news and the TV lawyer shows.

 

[Cosmo]

Once, because I was dumb enough to get a DUI 20 years ago. Because I was on the line between extreme and regular DUI (a HUGE difference in Arizona, as far as punishment goes), I hired one to get me on the regular side of it. One day in jail and a 30-day license suspension versus 10 days with an interlock device and a much longer suspension was totally worth it. I can't believe that was 20 years ago...have not repeated the mistake since, thankfully.

 

[ChrisLong]

I have a great newspaper lawyer legal story.

We had a kid photographer who used to hang out at the junior college near his home. He took photos for the coaches and gave them away. He was always around and everybody knew him. Before the Montreal Olympics, USA Volleyball set up training camp at this same junior college. Kid was there taking photos. Just before the Games, the director of USA Volleyball told him they get to bring a photographer in their official entourage and they invited him.
He sent a few photos to the local paper. The paper told him that after the Games, they would run a 4-page tab of his photos, the sports he shot and random photos from the Olympic experience.
One of the photos was a guy outside Olympic stadium, holding bunches of tickets above his head. The caption said something like: "Scalpers were very busy at the Olympic Games."
Oddity of all oddities: The guy could have been from anywhere in the world, but he lived in our city, 3,000 miles away. More: He worked at a bar called Sweeney Todd's Pub. So in our paper, we called this guy who worked at Sweeney Todd's a "scalper." He filed a lawsuit, claiming he was suffering mental distress and it was affecting his work.
We're ****ting bricks over this, but then someone asked the publisher if the lawyers were pissed over this issue. He said, no, they are laughing their asses off. This is unusual and exciting for them.
I think it was settled by a followup story clarifying the situation, and gave everybody a good laugh.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

Once, because I was dumb enough to get a DUI 20 years ago. Because I was on the line between extreme and regular DUI (a HUGE difference in Arizona, as far as punishment goes), I hired one to get me on the regular side of it. One day in jail and a 30-day license suspension versus 10 days with an interlock device and a much longer suspension was totally worth it. I can't believe that was 20 years ago...have not repeated the mistake since, thankfully.

I'm a little confused. Did you take the day in jail and the 30-day license suspension, or the 10 days with the interlock device and the much longer license suspension? How long was the other license suspension?