Your Attorney

An Attorney is simply one who can act on your behalf. He or she is trained and legally permitted, to "stand-in" for you, protect your interests, and defend your rights.

American attorneys use the term "lawyering" to refer to the art of practicing law. Most academic legal training is directed to identifying legal issues, how to research facts and law, and how to argue both the facts and law in favor of either side in any case.

Once accepted by the bar association of a state, an American lawyer may file legal pleadings and argue cases in any court in that state (except federal courts, which usually require a separate admission), provide legal advice to clients, and draft important legal documents (such as wills, trusts, deeds, and contracts).

In some states, real estate closings may only be performed by a lawyer, even though his role in a closing mostly involves notarization of documents and disbursement of settlement funds through an escrow account.

Practicing law can be broadly generalized as:

Interviewing the client and identifying what is their legal matter or dispute
Identifying the discrete legal and factual issues embedded within the client's larger problem
Researching systematically each issue
Deriving a solution that resolves some, if not all of the issues
Executing specific tasks like drafting a contract or filing a motion with a court

Remember the most expensive lawyer is not necessarily the best one for you. Nor is a "bargain" rate always a great deal. Look for the best balance of experience and cost. You may want to ask your lawyer if a junior lawyer or paralegal can perform some of the work to lower your costs.

Lawyers are subject to state ethics rules and are required to charge reasonable fees; if you think your lawyer didn't treat you fairly, represent you adequately, or charged you too much, communicate with him and try to work out some resolution.

If trying to resolve the matter directly with your attorney is unsuccessful, consider filing a complaint with your state or local bar association. - "This lawyer walks into a bar...",uh, well, that's another story.

Lease cars take away the worries associated with buying and selling a vehicle (a good lease deal requires almost no down payment).

Whether buying a new car, or a used car, or selling a vehicle; first check KBB (Kelley Blue Book), Black Book, Red Book, or the NADA Used Vehicle Guide.

What's the latest legal news? Stay up to date by subscribing to our
Attorney Feed.

Next >>

Attorney RSS Feeds

Jackson Sought Out Anesthesia

Michael Jackson made the rounds at L.A. doctors' offices, often getting anesthesia for minor outpatient

Mug Shots Of The Week 7/2/09

We're celebrating the 4th of July with this week's mug shot roundup, which kicks off with the below group of patriotic perps.

Inappropriate Relationship, Fur Sure

Colorado woman allegedly had a sexual relationship with a teenage boy with whom she was part of "a social group known as 'Furries' who dress up like animals," police charge.

In The Driver's Seat

Responding Tuesday evening to a report of "people having intercourse" in a mall parking lot, cops in Fergus Falls, Minnesota were en route to the crime scene when they noticed suspicious activity in a...

Stern "Wack Packer" Nabbed In Madoff Taping

A member of Howard Stern's "wack pack" was cited yesterday for violating federal court rules by recording the sentencing hearing of swindler Bernard Madoff.

Chips And Dip

An Oklahoma woman copped a plea last week to a prostitution charge for accepting a box of Frito-Lay chips in exchange for oral sex.

"Jersey" Girl's Sordid Past

Now that Bravo is milking additional episodes out of "The Real Housewives of New Jersey," the cable network's hit series about a quintet of Garden State lovelies, we've decided to join the examination...

RSSbox powered by rssinclude.com

This website is best viewed in:
Google Chrome
Firefox
Opera

Attorney RSS Feeds

DOJ Wins Rehearing in Suit Alleging Unlawful Wiretap, Surveillance

Tooley’s suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that he has experienced intermittent clicking on his phone line as well as frequent detention and searches at airp...

Settlement that required an employer to pay ...

The Ninth Circuit recently enforced an NLRB order approving a settlement that required an employer to pay liquidated damages to undocumented workers fired in violation of the NL

Is Mother's Day Discriminatory Against Men?

"I'm surprised he didn't want his free mammogram, too. Personally, I find Mr. Rava as odorous as a bag of dyspeptic hamsters. He's a greasy manipulator who has found a small leak in American law and s...

Judge Weinstein on mass torts

... to cut off the handgun suits, and lays blame in multiple directions for the many failures of asbestos litigation. And he speaks up strongly at several points for judges' obligation to prevent the ...

Thoughts on litigation financing

...describes how our current system of litigation encourages what she calls "abusive litigation." She defines "abusive lawsuits" as those that have "have little legal merit, regardless of the magnitud...

"It's always a good time to invest in litigation"

Don't you love that "God's-eye" wording, with its premise that God wants us to bring lawsuits when we have legal grounds to do so, and is disappointed when we instead decide to forgive, or shy away fr...