To fire my lawyer or not to ..... opinions please?

[katie3234]

Hi!

I have been having trouble with my lawyer. I had decided to hire one, because I was thinking that the lawyer would be there to answer questions, help with the paper work, and guide me through the process - basically take the stress off me. Also my husband had been deported 3 times from a European Country for not having a visa to be there. My husband and I have been together since October 2009. I have been to visit him 6 times. And we lived together with his family for 5 months before I had to return to Canada. I have met all his family, we have lots of photos, phone bills, tickets from me visiting him, emails. My dad is going to meet him in October when my dad and I travel together to see him...... So its obviously a genuine relationship, and I would think a VO would realize that.

My lawyer however has been more of a pain than anything.
#1.) I have never actually spoken to the lawyer, all communication has been with the lawyers consultants. Since June 2010 I have dealt with 6 different consultants.

#2.) The consultants who I am dealing with don't reply to emails. The only way I receive a response is to send the email multiple times, and then I will usually receive a response in about 6-10 days. At one point I had flown to visit my husband and while there we were going to work on the visa application. I was there for 2 weeks, and emailed my connsultant numerous times, and never received a response. And so it set us back a few months because we then had to fill out the forms over the phone, and the postal system in his country sucks.

#3.) When I do finally receive a response it usually doesn't answer my question, or is just a couple of words …. So I am left still being unsure. And the last 2 emails I have received have been blatantly rude.

#4.) The first consultant I spoke with said that the last payment would be due once my husband was granted PR, which makes sense that I wouldn't pay everything until the process was finished.

#5.) Since sending the application. I have changed jobs, and there have been other minor changes to the application - all of which I was told not to inform CIC of until the interview ... which to me seems like bad advice.

I just am unsure what to do. I have already paid $2000, which was difficult since my husband was unable to financially help. And now the lawyer is wanting the remaining $1000, even though I had been previously told it was not due until he received PR. I had sent her a kind email explaining that I had been told it wouldn't be due until the end, and received an email back saying that it is due because I was approved as a sponsor.

So I suppose my questions would be. With all the facts I have stated. What are peoples opinions? Would you pay the remaining? Or should I just cut my loss and fire her? The thing with firing her is that I suppose I would then just loose out on my $2000……..... Has anyone ever fired a lawyer, how do you get their name off all your forms?

 

[Kedeisha]

if yoyu fire the lawyer just send the VO a use of representative form and remove the lawyer name

 

[CharlieD10]

1) It's not unusual to deal with subordinates/associates in a professional setting, it is rare when the actual lawyer does the work! For example, in accounting firms, you will find that it is in-house accountants and auditors who do the actual auditing and bookkeeping while the partners sign off on the work and meet with the clients to schmooze more business.

2) That's just plain bad service.

3) Also bad service.

4) It doesn't matter what any of them said, what matters is what the terms of service agreement you signed with them says. If you haven't read it before, dig it up and read everything, including the fine print. When you reply to their email, quote the exact section in the terms of service agreement referring to the payment schedule.

5) CIC should be informed of changes affecting the application, they specifically advise you to do so.

I dunno if this far in I would fire my lawyer, $2000 is a heckuva "sunk cost". I would, however, make sure I check the terms of service I signed regarding when payments are due. I would also complain mightily to whoever oversees this particular lawyer, i.e. whatever law society or immigration consultant council he belongs to.

 

[sunnysybarite]

hey katie
my advice is not to fire him.......bcos if in near future u got stuck somewhere wid ur file.........u ll again have to hire someone else.............that means that lawyer or consultant will might charge u more money bcos he knew that u r stuck rite now...........sponsorship approval doesnot guarantee ur husband visa.....it means only u r eligible to sponsor your husband..........dont take me wrong but if u hav trusted him till now......let him handle the case.............

 

[canuck0469]

Katie, I went through a consultant and found them very receptive so sorry to hear yours sucks. I would stick with him as you have signed to allow them to represent you, although you can inform CIC you are changing to represent yourself, this may delay your file. I paid, $1,000 for them to put the file together, a second $1,000 when it was sent and paid the last $1,000 once we had confirmation the visa was issued and in our possession. I would not pay it yet and remind them of the original agreement, do you have a record of the agreement?

 

[katie3234]

I do have a record of agreement. And sorry the last instalment is actually $500.

"$ 500 CAD is the 3rd installment which is payable upon approval in principal of person being sponsored by immigration authorities"
Wouldnt that mean that once my husband gets the visa I pay the $500?

Also I think she sneakily threatned to fire ME:
"You will note however in your contract that the third payment indicates an approval in principle which is when the sponsorship approval is issued from the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga. I am sorry if this was a misunderstanding between yourself and XXXX (another consultant), however the contract is very clear in when this amount is due. You will also note that in the contract section 2 (i) refers to the recourse that you have in regards to a refund. Please note that the payment is now due and we will require that you provide us with the amount owed of 500$."

Section 2(i)XXX agrees to refund to the client all fees paid by the client to XXX, except for the first installment referred to in paragraph 1) hereinabove, in the event that the issuance of a permanent resident visa is refused, unless said refusal results from the submission of fraudulent or false documents by the client and/or failure or refusal by the client to provide and submit additional documents requested by Immigration Canada. Furthermore, the agreement by XXX to refund said fees shall be void and of no effect if the client fails to respect any of the provisions of paragraph 3 hereinbelow (Undertaking of client). RSS shall not be obliged, under any circumstances, to refund to the client the first installment of fees payable upon receipt of this contract or to refund disbursements, fees paid to third parties, and/or Canadian Government Processing Fees.


I am glad to hear that you had a good experience, I am sure that most people do. I had put a lot of thought into who I would hire, I called Immigration Lawyers from around Canada before making a decision. And I suppose I made a bad decision. lol.

 

[CharlieD10]

I do have a record of agreement. And sorry the last instalment is actually $500.

"$ 500 CAD is the 3rd installment which is payable upon approval in principal of person being sponsored by immigration authorities"
Wouldnt that mean that once my husband gets the visa I pay the $500?

Also I think she sneakily threatned to fire ME:
"You will note however in your contract that the third payment indicates an approval in principle which is when the sponsorship approval is issued from the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga. I am sorry if this was a misunderstanding between yourself and XXXX (another consultant), however the contract is very clear in when this amount is due. You will also note that in the contract section 2 (i) refers to the recourse that you have in regards to a refund. Please note that the payment is now due and we will require that you provide us with the amount owed of 500$."

He or she clearly is mistaken. First of all, CPC-M does NOT issue "Approval in Principle" to anyone, that is done by CPC-Vegreville. And AIP is not given by CPC-V until the APPLICANT has been deemed to meet the requirements for permanent residence, more than approving the sponsor is involved in AIP. Your husband has NOT been so deemed, because 1) this is an Outland application, there is no AIP, and 2) an Outland applicant would not be at the equivalent to an Inland applicant's AIP until they have been requested to submit their passport for issuing a visa.

This is a very questionable lawyer, at least so far as their billing practices. No-one needs to pay anybody after a sponsor is approved, that is utter rubbish for her to be demanding payment. If payment were due for getting a SPONSOR approved, no-one would ever need an immigration lawyer or consultant. The point of using an expert is to better your chances at getting the APPLICANT approved.

 

[katie3234]

Thank you CharlieD10,

I agree on all points! I think that I will take some of what you said, and somehow work it into an email. As you had said before, I have already paid $2000, so it would be a waste to wash my hands of her now. But I DON'T want to pay $500 only to have her terminate the contract.

 

[Quince777]

I had a similar situation where I paid the lawyer same like you $2,000 to start my application. I also had bad service like you in the sense that I only dealt with her assistants, each time different one and very slow at getting back to me. At the end I was so stressed out instead of being relieved that I decided to leave that lawyer and forget about $2,000 that they didn't agree to give me back. I went to a different consultant which I liked more, who was very helpful. It was a big difference in service that I didn't regret of paying more money for that. Honestly it's not worth it to stick to the lawyer who doesn't help.

 

[katie3234]

Thank you Quince777,

I have been stressed beyond belief. I just feel that I paid for a service, and I simply am not receiving what I thought I was paying for. I emailed her today explaining why I don't think/understand that the final payment is already due. I am already dreading her response, I just hope that she sees the points that I made (with lots of help) and rethinks her words and actions. Unfortunately if things were not to work out with her, I wouldn't be able to afford going to a new consultant, especially right now since I am leaving in 44 days to see my husband, unless they were to give me a discounted rate seeing as how the application has already been sent. And now after she and I have disagreed, I'm unsure how it would be working with her, and having her rally on my behalf. Hiring a lawyer was meant to take stress away from my husband and I, not add to it.

When you changed consultants had you already sent your application to the visa office? Did the new consultants give you a "discount" since a large amount of the work had already been done?

My largest concern with paying the remaining balance is that she could easily terminate the contract at any time afterwards or be even less helpful than she already is.

OK I am done whining! I will just hope for a positive outcome tomorrow morning when I check me email.
Thank you to everyone who responded to me, I have been on this forum for around a year, and I am soooo glad that I found it.

 

[Quince777]

Yes, I can totally understand you, as I've been in the same situation. However I did not proceed with sending an application even though the lawyer was insisting. The reason for that was I consulted another lawyer who gave me initial free consultation who didn't advise me to send my app yet. It was then I started questioning even the advice this 1st lawyer gave me. I wasn't sure if she was competent enough to be my lawyer and after bad experience with getting any advice from her and her assistants I just quit with her. When asking this lawyer to give my money back she refused even though she did nothing on my application. At the end she was actually started being rude with me after which I finally decided not to retain her as my representative.
The new consultant didn't give me discount, as it was a completely different law firm. I just accepted my $2,000-loss as a hard life lesson, even though I don't have much money left. I wish that lawyer chokes one day on the money she gets from people without fulfilling her duties as a lawyer.

 

[rjessome]

I do have a record of agreement. And sorry the last instalment is actually $500.

"$ 500 CAD is the 3rd installment which is payable upon approval in principal of person being sponsored by immigration authorities"
Wouldnt that mean that once my husband gets the visa I pay the $500?

I agree with CharlieD as well that the lawyer's interpretation of this statement is incorrect. The key point in the statement would be "person being sponsored" as approval to BE a sponsor is clearly not the same. You could always make a complaint about the poor service you received to the provincial law society that this lawyer belongs to if you cannot resolve this. Damn, I hate stories like this but, for me anyway, it just goes to show that being a lawyer does not make one better at this work than a regulated consultant.

 

[rjessome]

Yes, I can totally understand you, as I've been in the same situation. However I did not proceed with sending an application even though the lawyer was insisting. The reason for that was I consulted another lawyer who gave me initial free consultation who didn't advise me to send my app yet. It was then I started questioning even the advice this 1st lawyer gave me. I wasn't sure if she was competent enough to be my lawyer and after bad experience with getting any advice from her and her assistants I just quit with her. When asking this lawyer to give my money back she refused even though she did nothing on my application. At the end she was actually started being rude with me after which I finally decided not to retain her as my representative.
The new consultant didn't give me discount, as it was a completely different law firm. I just accepted my $2,000-loss as a hard life lesson, even though I don't have much money left. I wish that lawyer chokes one day on the money she gets from people without fulfilling her duties as a lawyer.

NO WAY would I let this slide! We are retained to do work. Check your retainer/contract letter with the lawyer. Your retainer (or at least a portion of it) should be returned to you in the event that your contractual relationship ends prior to completion of the work agreed upon. If they still refuse, make a complaint to their provincial law society.

 

[katie3234]

Thank you once agin to everyone who responded. I had emailed the lawyer yesterday (with help), and still have not received a response. She usually takes about 6 days to respond, although yesterday she was responding within an hour, until my last email.

Anyways…..
In June I got a new job, its a casual position but I am making more than what I was previously making. When I emailed her my work information (employment offer letter, first pay stub) she said quote, "we do not need to inform CIC of your offer of Employment, therefore I will keep the information in your file" ……. I now realize that this is considered an omission. I don't know what is up with her since she hasn't responded to me, and honestly I have lost my steam and am unsure what more I can say to have her see things for what they are.

Although she is still technically my representative (I think) am I able to just send CIC my new work info on my own? If so how do I go about it?

And is she able to terminate the contract without telling me? Since I have already paid her $2000 I would like to keep her on, despite everything, but I am worried that she will go ahead and terminate the contract without telling me.

Thank you!

 

[JimM]

Really sounds like your lawyer doesn't have a clue. Apart from it being an omission, it would be in your favor to update it, (yes I know there's no income requirement for spousal sponsorship but a better income does show better ability to support). We were advised to update my wife's application when she started selling Avon.

We've been happy with the lawyer we chose although recently we had our contact there changed and response time to our emails has gone from 24 hours to over a week on the last one. This is getting very frustrating as we need some questions answered before we proceed.