Q. I accidentally bumped into the back of a car at a stop sign--I barely even tapped the bumper, I took a picture and you can hardly even see the tiny dent--but now this jerk is suing me for "soft tissue neck trauma," aka whiplash. He is asking for $100,000 for pain and suffering!!! I was laid off about a year ago, before the accident, and still can’t afford car insurance, much less an attorney, even if I could find one who would take my case—I looked and looked! What are people in my situation supposed to do? I did nothing wrong, I could lose everything, and no one will help me! Why won’t the Court appoint a lawyer to defend me? - Sandeep A: We’re all very familiar with the phrase "If yo

Q: I hired an attorney for my divorce, but he hasn’t done anything! Everytime I call his office, he doesn’t answer the phone. I leave messages but he never calls me back, he just keeps asking for more money even though I have already paid him way too much already. How can I get rid of him? Mel A: I'm sorry to hear that! You have a right to discharge or fire your attorney at any time for any reason or no reason at all, even if you still owe him money for the time spent working on your case. It is a fairly easy process, all you have to do is file a Substitution of Attorney form with the court. When filling out this form, you substitute either your newly hired attorney or yourself, if you

Q: I was involved in a car accident. My friends keep telling me to get an attorney, but I am not sure. Do I need an attorney?     A: This is actually a fairly common question. And it is really the wrong question because most people do not need an attorney. In fact, unless you are a corporation suing in court, you are not required to have an attorney. However, as the old expression goes, “A man who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client.”   Auto crashes, which used to be called auto accidents until the CHP stopped using that term, are a type of personal injury case. Generally, a personal injury case is any case in which a person is injured as the result of the conduct of another per

Welcome to my new column. I am sure most of you are thinking “Great, another lawyer writing about the law.” Well, my goal is to be different – to provide you with some insights into the law and lawyers. I have been writing about the law for six years through my two blogs. Now, I get to bring it to you directly through Sacramento Press. I have a practice in Elk Grove, CA. My practice is run by me. I answer my phones, do the legal work and even type my own documents. I have been in Elk Grove since I opened in December, 2003 and plan to stay here for the next 25 years or so! I promise that I won’t be boring and I won’t talk, er, write, like a lawyer. I am a local “consumer law” attorney. Wh

Hina's Tea announced Monday that it will close soon. Owner Hina Soni, who has been in a legal dispute with her landlord, Gary Orr, since mid-2007, learned last week that Orr was entitled to repossess the property until litigation is complete. Soni and Orr declined to comment, saying to contact their lawyers. There are more than 100 court documents attached to the case, number 07AS02841 on the Sacramento County Superior Court's website, some reaching 330 pages. According to the most recent court order, there are several key disputes unresolved. "There is a triable issue of fact as to the amount of back rent, if any, owed," according to the document. "There also is a triable issue of fact

Sierra Forever Families Elects Retired Attorney and Child Advocate Dee Hartzog to the Board of Directors. Sacramento, CA – April 1, 2010 – Sierra Forever Families, Northern California nonprofit and industry leader in youth permanency, elects Dee Hartzog to its Board of Directors. Dee joins the 15 member board led by Eric Ratinoff, partner with Kershaw, Cutter & Ratinoff. Dee Hartzog is a retired corporate attorney, having practiced 23 years with Weintraub, Genshlea & Chediak, a Sacramento law firm. Even before retirement, she began to realize the importance for a child to grow up in a loving and caring environment, both for the child and the community. “I am extremely motivated by Sier

 *   You have likely heard the old joke that lab rats are being replaced by lawyers because the lab workers do not get emotionally attached to lawyers.  Or the one about a thousand lawyers being chained together at the bottom of the ocean being a “good start”.  As these jokes (and the hundreds of others) show, lawyers have a bad reputation.  Personally, I have never had the need for one and only know a few, and I have worked pretty hard at maintaining the status quo on both of those points.  It seemed to me that lawyers are for people who live near secret toxic waste dumpsites.  Recently, my work helping small businesses with marketing led me to a local Law Firm and Real Estate company