Need help dismissing my lawyer

[T. Lynn]

I'm going through a divorce and my current lawyer hasn't been doing things properly or within a timely manner. Letters and emails are sent out with incorrect information and her fees are killing me (especially when things are wrong).

I've checked into obtaining another lawyer, which was recommended and is helping me out due to my budget & circumstances

I need to send my current lawyer an email/letter dismissing her. What is the best/polite way to word it?

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

Moving to the Community Board. I hope that someone can help you find the correct wording. Sorry that your current lawyer has not been effective.

 

[Darcy03231]

Dear Attorney X:

I have decided to obtain new counsel in this matter. Please forward a complete copy of my file to Attorney Y at "insert his/her address".

Sincerely,

Your name.

You don't have to offer any explanations and I wouldn't get into any.

 

[padams]

I'm a lawyer, write what Darcy suggested above. Keep it simple, tell her you have retained new counsel, and ask that the file be forwarded to the new lawyer. Give the new lawyer's name and address.

 

[T. Lynn]

My husband is also responsible to pay the mortgage and home equity loans until our house is sold. So far, he has not made any payments.

I know this will affect my credit but I took some of the bills (credit cards and medical bills) and there is no way I can pay the ones he took as well if he defaults. I'd like to draft a letter to the credit bureaus to notate my file. I've always had excellent credit and it hurts me to know that he can ruin it in a matter of months and it's out of my control. I'm so stressed about this...literally making myself sick.

What should I say within this letter? I'm so afraid of him damaging my credit so bad that I won't be able to obtain an apartment for my daughter & I. I'd rather have a letter on file so some places MAY take that into consideration (I figure it's worth a try).

If ex doesn't hold up to his obligations, I will be taking him back into court for breaching it but in the meantime, I want to do everything I can to preserve my good credit.

 

[singnring]

My DD23 is just finishing her divorce.

Same scenario - he was supposed to pay mortgage on house he was keeping.

Decided he couldn't afford it (GF and brother living w/him rent free!!), so he stopped making pmts, not only on house, but on all other debts he was resp for.

Meanwhile, DD paid off all of her resp debts from the marriage.

Creditors didn't care about the divorce. If her name was on the bill, her credit was affected.

In the end, he filed bankruptcy to get out of his debts, and forced her into bankruptcy as well, even though she had paid off everything she was resp for!!

Don't make the same mistake she did. Wait to see what he does before you pay things off.

If we had known he planned to file, we would have let her bills go too.
We were trying to save her credit, because she was in the high 700's before he quit paying his bills.

In the end, she had no money and trashed credit.

Seek good legal advice from a good lawyer who understands what can happen if your ex files bankruptcy.

PS - things were definitely made worse by DD's first lawyer's indifference to what her ex was doing. WHen the lawyer isn't fighting for you, it's time to get someone new.
We went through the exact same thing with DD's. Didn't listen to what she said, filed papers w/ wrong info, couldn't reach her in timely manner, etc. She simply got sick of the case and quit caring.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

My husband is also responsible to pay the mortgage and home equity loans until our house is sold. So far, he has not made any payments.

I know this will affect my credit but I took some of the bills (credit cards and medical bills) and there is no way I can pay the ones he took as well if he defaults. I'd like to draft a letter to the credit bureaus to notate my file. I've always had excellent credit and it hurts me to know that he can ruin it in a matter of months and it's out of my control. I'm so stressed about this...literally making myself sick.

What should I say within this letter? I'm so afraid of him damaging my credit so bad that I won't be able to obtain an apartment for my daughter & I. I'd rather have a letter on file so some places MAY take that into consideration (I figure it's worth a try).

If ex doesn't hold up to his obligations, I will be taking him back into court for breaching it but in the meantime, I want to do everything I can to preserve my good credit.

Unfortunately there is nothing you can do.

Your creditors do not have to honor what the judge says. The judge cannot change the contract.

The only way to get you out of being responsible for it is for your soon to be ex to refinance the house in his name only (I don't think a quit-claim deed will work) and perhaps to transfer balances on cc debt to cards in his name and closing the accounts that have your name attached.

My sister had to declare bankruptcy b/c her ex didn't pay what he should have and she refused to sink any further due to him.

A divorce doesn't release you of your financial obligations unfortunately--no matter if it is fair to your cirumstances or not.

 

[dfchelbay]

I'm going through a divorce and my current lawyer hasn't been doing things properly or within a timely manner. Letters and emails are sent out with incorrect information and her fees are killing me (especially when things are wrong).

I've checked into obtaining another lawyer, which was recommended and is helping me out due to my budget & circumstances

I need to send my current lawyer an email/letter dismissing her. What is the best/polite way to word it?

You actually don't have to do anything. The new lawyer is responsible for filing a Substitution Of Attorney with the Court. The new attorney will call the old attorney and ask her to stipulate to this. Then,new attorney files the document with the Court. Let the new attorney handle it.

 

[squirrlygirl]

My new attorney handled dismissing the old one, as well as filing the change with the court. As for the house, my ex did this to me. It wasn't until I filed for him to be found in contempt of court that he refinanced (a quit claim deed does nothing for this situation BTW) and took me off the mortgage. My credit was already ruined, but I was still able to buy a house after writing a letter for the underwriter explaining the situation and including a copy of the divorce decree. It wasn't the best rate, but after a year of paying my own mortgage I was able to refinance. Of course, that was several years ago so things might have changed.