Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in South Carolina
contacting my attorney for non-timely action on my case
I entered into an agreement with an attorney to petition the probate court to appoint me as co-guardian of my incapacated uncle. after 6 months, I had to contact him for the guardianship papers which I the probate court had sent to me before I solicited this attorney and I stated this to him when the Engagement was drawn up; but he sent a new set of guardianship papers to me (which is not the issue here). after another 5 months, with no calls from this attorney, I had to alert him to the fact that my uncle was no longer in the county where the probate court had authority and expressed that he did not know this but ''would get right on it''. prior to this, I had informed this attorney in writing of certain issues which he should have known about but did not. When I initially solicited this attorney, I had offers from 4 other attorneys who were will to take my case. I feel that if I had gone with one of the other attorneys, I would have heard back (via phone, or mail) as to the status of this case. Now, I would like to have this for this attorney to return the balance of my money for the services that he did not perform because I did part of the job which I paid him for
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: contacting my attorney for non-timely action on my case
If you are not satisfied with your attorney, you should:
a. Let him/her know of the specific areas of concern that you have so that they might be addressed/corrected.
b. If things are past that point, then you should release that attorney and find someone with whom you are comfortable, who can handle your case in the manner you deem appropriate.
c. If you believe there are fee issues (such as a refund) which you cannot resolve directly with the attorney, you can go through the SC Bar's Fee Dispute Resolution program.
d. If you believe that the attorney has acted unethically or improperly, you can file a grievance against him/her with the Office of Disciplinary counsel.
Good luck to you,
Ben Stevens
Re: contacting my attorney for non-timely action on my case
This sounds like a fee dispute. Most Bar Associations have a fee dispute committee, to whom you can refer the matter for mediation, presuming that when you contact the attorney he refuses to return your payment. This does not require that you retain an attorney and the proceedings are informal. Have all your documents and agreements when you attend the hearing. You might have an ethics complaint also, and you can check this with the Bar Association as well.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
