Posted by steelmagnolia25 on May 29, 2004, at 21:36:46
In reply to Re: legal action ??? » toomuchpain, posted by Racer on May 28, 2004, at 21:00:21
I'm not a lawyer, but I work in the legal field so my opinion might be worthwhile. It is DEFINITELY unethical for an attorney to solicit a client out of the blue. You should immediately question this attorney about his actions (if you even speak to him/her again) and gauge his explanation knowing that he definitely acted outside the boundaries of ethics. In my opinion, his solicitation is especially worrisome given that your situation, which apparently he knows about, stems from an exploitation of your vulnerability -- without making any assumptions, you should at least consider that this attorney might perceive you as an "easy target."
Additionally, if you want to pursue a civil suit, there is nothing wrong with lawyer shopping. When I had to choose an attorney for a personal injury case, I was very upfront with the 10 or so attorneys that I spoke with about the fact that I was "shopping around." This actually led to some interesting competitive bidding as well as good referrals when one lawyer felt another would be more suited to the case. In fact, you might seek ways to check out the attorney(s) reputation (association membership/officership, peer opinions, friend's opinions, extent of experience) and that can inform your decision.
The bottom line is that you have a choice and you should try to take every step possible to make one that will make you feel comfortable with your advocate.
poster:steelmagnolia25
thread:350388
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040522/msgs/351996.html