ComplaintsforMcIlveen Family Law Firm

• Initial Complaint

  09/26/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Pay them $12,000.00 for court cost paperwork was not filed in court and they sent me someone else when questioned about my billing.

  

  Business response

  09/29/2023

  ******************** pleadings were filed in court. Please see the attached list of all filed pleadings in her case.  In addition to the 35 pleadings in her case, there were 200 emails exchanged, and 26 pieces of correspondence. The attorney also reviewed numerous documents and send discovery including 31 Request for Admissions, 23 interrogatories, and 21 request for documents. **************** had questions about her billing and wanted to speak with someone in management. She was sent to my Executive Assistant who reviewed every bill with her. **************** also asked for copies of the filed documents. Despite the fact that these had been previously sent to her they were sent again. **************** is unhappy because she could no longer pay for our services and her attorney had to withdraw from her case. The fact is that **************** did extensive work on her case. **************** signed a contract with the firm which detailed the way our firm works and how she would be billed. We send bills every two weeks so that clients always know how much work is being done on their case and so that the client knows how much has been charged. When we withdrew from her case, **************** had a balance owed with the firm of $2042.50.  I'm sorry we couldn't continue to represent **************** without payment. I wish her the best of luck in the future. 

• Initial Complaint

  08/15/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I hired this attorney during one of my most vulnerable times during a custody case and retained ****. He told me everything I wanted to hear. He was empathetic and I TRULY believed he was one cutting me a deal and two cared to help me as much as he wouldve helped a family member. He said for $2500 he would be able to close my case. After paying the $2500 which was kept as a security deposit he proceeded to bill me on a biweekly basis. I paid him for the next year. The bills were itemized with things such as meetings that occurred in the office in coming up with strategies for my case, printing fees, storage fees for files, and conversations where they would promise to file things for my case but never did. In a year and a half nothing was filed, drafted, or no appearance was ever made in court. I spent $15,000 in total before he bailed on me two days before what wouldve been his court appearance. His paralegal calls and threatens if I dont pay another $5000 two days before the court date hes going to withdraw from my case. Long story short because he dropped me we went from 50/50 custody to I only see my 3 year old 24 hours in the course of a month. The opposing attorney attacked while I was unrepresented claiming my 5 year old tried to assault my 3 year old. *** spent the past year without any representation. Since the past year dad has called dss on me 7 times all of which investigations have been cleared but I still dont have my daughter back. McIlveen law stole all the money I had to defend me and my child. I sobbed on the phone with **** and begged him to do the right thing and his only response was Im sorry I cant unless you pay another $7500. I realized I had been scammed out of $15000 and just had to eat the HUGE mistake I made by hiring them. I have reported them to the bar, but not had any justice yet. **** actually submitted to collections that I owed him more than $5000 in addition to the 15 grand I already spent for zero representation.

  

  Business response

  09/15/2023

  Please find attached the detailed contract signed by ********************** detailing our billing practices, rates, and charges. She was well aware that she was paying a trust contract and that the trust amount was to be used as a retainer for Mr. McIlveen's services. We send detailed bills to clients every two weeks. The bills describe the work that is being done on in the client's case, the person who did the work, the amount of time the work took, and the total amount for the work. She left the firm owing money which has been written off.  ********************** had a difficult custody and contempt case. During the time we represented her, there were 40 pieces of correspondence sent, 326 emails exchanged, and numerous pleadings drafted. ********************** retained new counsel on 2/1/2023 and her new attorney filed a substitution of counsel. On 2/7/2023 ********************** signed a consent order allowing us to withdraw from representing her, which the court also signed. I'm very sorry that ************************** case went south after she decided to retain new counsel. We no longer represented her at the time of that hearing. I wish her all the luck in the future. 

• Initial Complaint

  10/13/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My name is ************************* I am a client of *******************************. I have asked 4 times to have the card on file removed as the account is not mine and my name is nowhere on it and it never has been. The owner of that account only authorized the original retainer fee to be drawn. He never gave permission for that card to be automatically billed monthly. Each month your firm bills from that card instead of from the $4200 retainer we paid. I was told when I retained your services that work done on my case would be billed from the $4200 and when it got low I would be informed and I could replenish it. What was the point of putting money in a minimum fees account if it wont be drawn from? I want my fiancs card removed my file. And I want to be billed from the money we paid up front as I was told I would be.

  

  Business response

  11/03/2021

  Thank you for giving us an opportunity to respond. **************** is a client of the law firm and therefore I cannot discuss the ongoing work on her case. The contract **************** signed was a minimum fee contract whereby she paid a minimum fee for us to represent her in the case. Anything that is charged above the minimum fee is charged to the client's credit card on file. In looking into her case, I think there are two issues, both of which have been resolved. The first issue was that **************** used her boyfriend's credit card and we had that credit card on file for her. We have removed his credit card from her file and it will not be used moving forward. The second issue was an employee thought the minimum fee had been depleted and charged the card for a ****. **************** had money in her minimum fee and the card should not have been charged. The error was caught and the money charged to the credit card was reversed and refunded to the client's boyfriend whose credit card was on file. We regret that this error happened and we have expressed our apologies to ****************. At this point, ******************** minimum fee contract has been depleted by work done on her case. She has been informed that she will need to pay a new contract in order for the attorney to continue working on her case. 

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