Divorce lawyer advice?

Iam having problems with my current divorce lawyer, at first they said the whole cost would be 3,000$ which I paid at the beginning., now they are sticking me with a current bill for $3000 more, and wanting me to always keep money in a trust fund does that sound right? I was wondering if I could switch lawyers during the middle of this, and if I did would he have to give up all his notes and things or would I have to start over with everything. I am currently in the process of turning everything over to District Attorney in the state of Texas for him not contining my case until I pay the rest of the 3,000$. I dont know what to do? Do you have any advice on anything I can do? They wont continue my case until I pay the other $3,000 they billed me with and to me that doesnt seem right ..but does anyone have any advice on what I can do with all of this?Divorce lawyer advice?
Lawyers can and will charge you for everything, you can report him to the local bar association, But he is not breaking any laws. you can always change lawyers, but the next guy will also want money. This advice is coming from Illinois. so the laws may be differ ant. what is the hold up? some attorneys offer free advice initially, but ultimately they will all want money, it is nothing but a job them.Divorce lawyer advice?
This sounds right, the attorney does charge you for every fax, every phone call, to you to his attorney every piece of paper that is copied..


I know that it does not sound right, but that is how attorney's make their money..





Now you know why so many people call them blood suckers..


Sorry hon, you will have to pay the bill. and no the attorney does not need to turn over any of his paperwork to someone else. they usually do as a professional courtesy.





Best of Luck
OK in my case to TAKE the divorce the first trust was $5,000 and then I had to put up $10,000 more. The trust is not a bad thing. If anything is left you get it back. Remember that before you call him and ask some silly question, he will charge a minimum of 1/4 hour.





I got some of the trust back.





Now if your husband has money he is going to get a lawyer and the court fees are going to rack up fast.





With that said, lawyers will cover each others butts so unless your lawyer is already under investigation pissing him off is going to make things harder for you.





Ask other people you know who got divorced if they were happy and who they used. If you go with anyone let them know you can put ';x'; in the trust and if you have to pay more they will have to wait until the settlement. I do not imagine many lawyers will take you up on this but I have heard of people doing it.





Hope this helps.
Most lawyers do charge you for every little thing. They also usually do ask you to pay ahead, and they keep the money in an escrow account until they've earned it . . . . That way, they don't have to try to find a way to sue a former client for unpaid bills without violating confidentiality rules.





Now, whether they are overcharging you, or violated their contract with you, is another question. Did they put the original $3,000 estimate in writing? Tell you their hourly rate?





If you did hire another attorney, they should have to turn over your file. But then *that* attorney will charge you for the time it takes to get familiar with your file.
You aren't getting screwed over and if you fire this attorney and hire another one, not only will the new attorney have to backtrack and charge you for it you will also look like you are unreasonable to work with in the eyes of the court and be at a disadvantage.





He has every right to hold off on continuing your case until you pay more. The DA will do nothing on that to help you. He can prove he billed your hours past the initial $3000.





Your lawyer gave you an estimate based on what you told him in the beginning. Look at it like a bathroom re-model - anyone can quote you a price, but once you get into it and realize the pipes are rotten - it's going to cost more than you originally thought.





If your husband has stalled on things, if his attorney is hard to reach, if more needed to be done in your case than originally thought, the cost goes up - it is just what happens in contested divorce cases.





Come up with the $3000 and get your divorce settled. Don't switch attorneys and don't try to take legal action against your current attorney as he will withdraw from your case, and you will have a very hard time getting anyone else to take your case, as lawyers talk to each other - and if you bring a frivolous action over a legal bill - no one is going to want to represent you. Be careful.
It all sounds legit - except that you should be able to make payments on your balance. My atty did not require me to do so ahead of time, but other attys i know of do. In the end, my ex had to foot the bill :)