I'm looking for a Family Law attorney for a single mom who really needs help, but from my past experiences, I'm wondering if she would be better off hiring one from out of town who would be a real fighter, and willing to come to court in Brazos County. How does she go about finding one that will be a real barracuda and will fight for what's best for the children?

She's had recommendations for three rather consistently. One is her X's, one is the one I had so much trouble with, and the third was offended when she mentioned it appeared to her that the first two were in bed together (not literally).

This is a huge amount of money for her, and she's GOT to have someone that everyone respects and will listen to. Her X has lied to the court on record, the school district is involved and it's a big mess.

Suggestions?

[This message has been edited by Txagclan (edited 12/17/2010 8:37a).]

[This message has been edited by Txagclan (edited 12/17/2010 8:40a).]

Oh no...they got a few of them here. The one that comes to mind in particular is the one that defended Chris Olsen with Billy Carter. I can not remember her name, but you better hope the opposing side hasnt called her first. I think her name is Michelle Esparza, but I may be way off. This women is WHOA. You do not want to mess with her in the courtroom I assure you.

Does Michele practice family law? I know she's a criminal defense lawyer..

I think she specializes in family law. Probably only does defense, but it would be worth a call.

Ann Cofer is who you want.

There have been plenty of threads on here about this and they usually end up as "Ann Cofer or Larry Catlin".

I have personal experience with Ann Cofer and she did a TERRIFIC job.

I called and she just does criminal law. Thanks, though!

It's been a while since I've posted in here. Does private messaging no longer work? When I click it, the screen goes to the main page.


Thanks.

I know of another single mom who had Anne Cofer. She told her this long list of things she was going to do, and charged $3500. Then after payment was made, said that only covered the money things. When it was all said and done, that $3500 only covered one Attorney General meeting, and she got $15 more per month in child support from having Anne Cofer than what the Attorney General's office was going to do automatically. Then Ms. Cofer got offended that this single mom, who used up all of the last of her resources to pay this fee, wasn't pleased and thought she'd been ripped off.

Recently I've been hearing from various Divorce Care groups that Anne Cofer and Larry Catlin ARE the best, but if they are opposing each other, that neither works hard for their client, though Larry fights harder than Ann.


I don't think Anne Cofer is an option. I'll find out about Larry Catlin.

Thanks!

Kassi Horner at Peterson Law Group. 703-7014

Larry Catlin and Ann Cofer are two of the best. I would think that its possible that the folks who claim they have had bad experiences with either may not have realistic expectations of the role the attorney plays in the process.

Good luck to your friend.

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It's been a while since I've posted in here. Does private messaging no longer work? When I click it, the screen goes to the main page.


Thanks.

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PMs are only available to people with stars (people who have paid).

Unmadebed - you may be right, but for the attorney to take the last of the woman's assets, you'd think she'd make clear that she was charging $2000 more than other attorneys do for the exact same job. That's more than twice what others charge for that kind of thing.

Tman - thanks for letting me know. I didn't know there was a paid option.

Also, how does one get into the Aggie forum?

I used Larry Catlin and my ex used Anne Cofer. My experience with Larry was professional but I never felt like he was my advocate. He takes forever to get back with you and his assistants (although very nice) are not helpful because he keeps his own appointment book. He and Anne are the best of friends and he won't do anything to upset her, even if it would benefit his client. I would not recommend him.

I don't generally respond to these threads, however I can't resist this time--we'll see if my post gets deleted for advertising. I practice family law in Brazos county, though I haven't been around as long as some others and spend most of my time in CPS and AG court. My name is Courtney Allen. Other attorneys that I would recommend are Jana Foreman or Celeste King.

A big +1 for Michelle Esparza! Used her several years ago and I will just say that I am glad she was on my side!

Ann Cofer and Larry Catilin are by far the top of the list. Robterson Neil is a very close second. You also might try Rusty Russ out of Hearne. He is as slick as they come but awsome if he is on your side.

Ann Cofer and Larry Catilin are by far the top of the list. Robterson Neil is a very close second. You also might try Rusty Russ out of Hearne. He is as slick as they come but awsome if he is on your side.

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Ann Cofer and Larry Catilin are by far the top of the list.

This isnt what the person above you said. Uh....like nothing like what you said. I dunno. Someone is stretching the truth.

To "Seriously" - That's what I've been hearing about Cofer and Catlin, that they are best of friends outside the courtroom, and won't upset each other when on opposite sides of a case. I've also heard that Robertson Neil is a tight third best friend.

I know attorneys probably have a smaller pool of friend possibilities because of their expertise and confidentiality issues, but still. I'd like to think this is still Aggieland, and we as a community, Aggies or not, still live by the Aggie Code of Honor: we will not lie, steal, cheat, or tolerate those who do.

Thanks for all the recommendations - I'll forward them to her.

http://pwwfamilylaw.com

A friend of mine highly recommends this attorney from Houston. She did a good job for him.

I have to say that I do not know "aggielawyer96" but I think a recommendation from an attorney would be something good to check out. For example, a dr.'s recommendation of another dr. etc. is always a plus.

[This message has been edited by firefly1204 (edited 12/17/2010 6:09p).]

You will find most good attorneys in a particular field will be friends. My best friend since childhood is an attorney and we have faced off against each other in court many times. We fought like dogs against each other but we are mature enough to leave it in the courtroom and remain good friends. Don't ever believe Ann Cofer, Larry Catlin, Robbie Neal or any of these attorneys will not fight tooth and nail against each other. The biggest problem are clients with unrealistic expectations and shallow pocket books. It simply amazes me how many clients want the world but are not willing to pay. When their attorney advises them and that advise is contrary to what they want, they think their lawyer isn't fighting hard enough. When the lawyer takes on the fight and the client gets a huge bill, they get upset. And then, when the case goes the way the attorney originally advised it probably would, the client thinks the lawyers and judges are all in cahoots. That's just stupid!

I don't do family law. I would never put up with the whiny, needy unrealistic clients that those cases have. I'd much rather represent a drug dealer or murderer. Michelle Esparza and Billy Carter are outstanding attorneys but they are wise enough to avoid family law cases. I have tried cases with and against both and we are all friends and have been for decades.

As for the OP, look for a board certified family law attorney. There are several in the Brazos Valley. Anne Cofer, Larry Catlin, Cindy Miller, Joe Falco, III (Navasota) Linda McLain (Navasota), and Lynn Holder (Brenham) come to mind. They are all outstanding, honest attorneys who will not only fight for you but they will advise of the best course of action even when it is not what you want to hear. Of course there are very competent attorneys that do family law that are not board certified but that board certification is a great indicator of exceptional competence in that area.

Cindy Miller is now a Magistrate and Linda McClain has focused her practice on mediation for a year or more. An attorney I forgot to mention above is Wendy Wood. Like me, she spent several years practicing elsewhere, and has come to B/CS in the last couple of years.

ETA: litig8r187, I agree with pretty much everything you said.

I hear people talk all the time about wanting a 'pitbull' lawyer. I tell my clients up front that my philosophy is that the best outcome is one where the parties can come to an agreement. No one will walk away happy, but when it becomes a battle everyone loses and the kids lose the most. If you want me to be a pitbull (or any attorney for that matter) you are going to have to have deep pockets for multiple court hearings. That's where things get expensive fast.

[This message has been edited by aggielawyer96 (edited 12/17/2010 7:55p).]

aggielawyer, I forgot about Cindy Miller's change in jobs. McLain still takes family law cases but she is very selective and only keeps a half dozen or so cases on her books because she mediates so much. Which reminds me; that is how most of these melees end. In mediation with a skilled mediator like McLain.

I also agree about Wendy Wood. She is very good.

[This message has been edited by litig8r187 (edited 12/17/2010 8:45p).]

This won't be popular. It does not surprise me one bit that attorneys are best buddies outside the courtroom. It is because, in my opinion, their smarmy little world does not exist without each other.

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No he didn't!

Temple:

You are wrong. An attorney's world does not exist without people like the original poster's friend. For example, in family law if everyone was mature enough to end marriages amicably, there would be very little need for attorneys to be involved.

When helping a friend through a similar situation in Houston I went with her to interview several attorneys before she decided who she wanted to hire. I am thinking, could be wrong, most of them did courtesy interviews which included dialogue about her situation and concerns plus attorney's explanation of fees.

The process was very helpful in identifying an attorney that matched her needs.

I used an attorney from out of town. He did attend A&M though. From his observations he told me that Brazos county is very up to date on it's technology in it's court house, especially for a "Rural" county and very timely in posting things on it's site.
However, he did say that the judges here did put up with way more "shenanigins" from lawyers than others he's seen.

She got an attorney. This one says they'll do the things Anne said she'd do, only this time it's only $2000.

The difference is in the contract. The attorney told her that Anne probably wrote hers in terms of "retainer" and that's how she could legally take the $3,500 for the short Attorney General's office meeting. It may be legal, but it certainly wasn't ethical. She told my friend how much she respected her (dead) mother, and how she understood that was the last of her inheritance money. Just makes me sick.

Anyway, with this attorney, there's also a contract, but everything is spelled out in a line item style, including what this fee covers, and what this fee will not cover.

So, be sure to know what kind of contract you're signing, what it means, and what it will cover. My recommendation is that if the attorney writes a contract for "retainer" DO NOT SIGN!! Negotiate for a line item contract or hire someone else!

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The difference is in the contract. The attorney told her that Anne probably wrote hers in terms of "retainer" and that's how she could legally take the $3,500 for the short Attorney General's office meeting. It may be legal, but it certainly wasn't ethical. She told my friend how much she respected her (dead) mother, and how she understood that was the last of her inheritance money. Just makes me sick.

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Without being able to actually see the contract, I can't imagine why an attorney would speculate as to what it said. I hope your friend gets what she wants from this attorney, but the reality is that $2,000 won't go all that far when you consider that most attorneys are paid per hour (usually broken into quarter hour increments) and it's unbelieveable how fast that initial deposit can go. One morning in court, out by noon, counting travel time to and from the courthouse, and you've blown almost $1,000 in one morning. Then add the cost of drafting letters and drafting pleadings, the cost of filing the pleadings and making phone calls, then ultimately, the cost of actually going back to court to finalize everything. Unless she's in a case where the other side has no intentions of contesting anything, the actual cost can skyrocket.

Our daughter went through a case in Houston last year that related to access to her child. The attorney got $350/hr, and quoted $6,000 for the case. We finally gve up after we sunk $10,000 into the case and still had no resolution. At this point she still owes the attorney more than $3,000. So a $6,000 cse ended up over $13,000.

+1 to the above poster. At the level of compensation for services quoted, your not going to be pulling top out of town family law representation. It's like arguing what fast food is better, mcdonalds, Bk, or jitb. Sure one might be better than the others, buts it's still just fast food.

Great advice here so far. One question though. How can I tell when my attorney is lying to me?

Lips are moving?