Spending over $100,000 on lawyers

By Michael Knight

Thursday 20 May 2010

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Is spending over $100,000 on lawyers what you really want or are you just insane?

In fact it doesn't much matter whether it's $80,000, $50,000 or less, it's still a lot of money and a big chunk of your savings and life's work down the drain, especially when you don't have to spend it.

These figures are both conservative and typical for average families, however fees going upward of the quarter million dollar mark are becoming more common. Paying all this money you would surely expect to get a good return on your investment — but will you? The short answer is unlikely.

It's unnecessary to waste all this money, however if you are terribly messed up in the head or are the gambling at the pokies, casino or races type, chances are you may very well be the one to throw it all away with very little value in return. By involving lawyers you just may end up receiving a negative return far worse than expected.

Usually one is far from getting a decent return on your investment with family lawyers who embark on a fury of litigation, letters, court appearances and funneling your money out to other professionals and colleagues in the system. You end up with the headaches while everyone else ends up with the spoils. It doesn't seem to make much sense, does it? There is certainly no free lunch in the land of lawyers and courts so it's best to harness that common sense and courage of yours and decide not to play those lawyer's games in the first place.

While you would be generally right to think that a professional can do a far better job than you in areas you are not familiar with, this can be far from the truth when dealing with family lawyers. It is extremely questionable over the entirety of a family law proceeding whether they improve your situation or deteriorate the quality of your life so badly that it is barely fit for a trash can. So why be sucked in and spend these ridiculously large amounts on lawyers? Have you been conned?

Well, the trick they play is it never starts of being a big sum of money, in fact lawyers often go to great lengths to bait their unsuspecting prey with no money up front, with a free first consultation usually in the order of 20 minutes being the common ploy.

Whilst you are thinking you will get some great advice for nicks, think again. In this free period the lawyer is actually summing up your financial worth, how controllable you will be as a client and how much fear and naivety is pouring out from your veins. If they privately assess you to be of considerable equity to satisfy their possible involvement, the first piece of paperwork thrust under your nose is usually an authority to lodge a caveat over your property, securing their time and effort ensuring they will not go financially unrewarded.

In addition to them not only securing their bill at the conclusion of what they quietly hope will be a long drawn out tussle of litigation, they just may snag the sale of your property and assets at 'fire sale' prices. In other words cheap as chips. Very similar to a mortgagee's auction where the bank sells your home to often an anonymous buyer at a ridiculously low price to settle the debt. This is certainly no comfort for you or your ex if this was ever to happen as hundreds of thousands can be lost in a blink of an eye.

No matter how it ends up, it usually starts with no or little direct cash from you in the beginning. The first rule of fishing is make sure the fish has caught the bait with the hook firmly in its gob. As shock, grief and loss can last for weeks, months and years causing your faculties to be out of whack for some time interfering with your ability to think and see things straight, a lawyer at the helm of your financial portfolio may just see you on cue for the financial swindle of your life.

Lawyers are also reluctant to give you much information or good advice at the best of times, let alone in a brief 20 minute period where they are just recording the particulars of your matter. There are many reasons for this, however some are they don't want to commit to anything or give a guarantee. Sounds fair on the face of it as situations can often be unique and dynamic making judgment difficult, however there are many times they could share their knowledge but choose not to, as keeping you in the dark and a world of confusion serves them better.

By not opening their mouth too much they can often avoid showing their ignorance alerting you to the fact they may not be doing a good job or your case has no chance, forfeiting their likelihood of further profits as you pull the pin on their services in a flash. Plus there is the matter of negligence. The less said, perhaps the less chance of them being sued or having a complaint filed for misconduct. All in all, an embarrassing path for any lawyer.

What's more the above figures of $100,000 plus are often just for one parent.

One important fact to note is depending on the particular jurisdiction in which you reside, each party usually pays their own costs. This can give you a great opportunity to make enormous savings by not engaging a lawyer to act for you, but rather handling negotiations yourself or with the support of a friend. If your ex-partner is foolhardy and gets financially embroiled in legal fees, it does not mean you have to.

Represent yourself in your own affairs, at the negotiation and bar tables, it's not as hard as you think. In fact it can be quite a laugh if you have the right preparation, attitude and confidence.

Thinking in advance about all the wonderful uses $100,000 could be put toward for both you and your children's welfare and happiness may just stop you from getting suckered in and blowing all this money in the first place. Whilst money isn't everything, it does go along way to providing many creature comforts, so get wise and toughen up.

It must be noted that the above is the opinion and assertions of the writer and not to be misconstrued that every solicitor, barrister or lawyer is cunning, deceitful and a shonk building their own wealth at the demise of yours. I say I don't have to, as it's quite obvious judging from the facts, my experiences and public perception that this is generally the case, however I will leave these judgments up to you, the reader. If some truths have been revealed that allow you to increase your awareness and be in control of these legal professionals and not the other way round, with the ultimate goal of serving your children and family in a more comforting manner, then this article has done it's job.

With love, kindness and peace
Michael