Solicitor chasing me for money.
Hiya people. About four years ago I was (wrongly) convicted for having no insurance. The first I knew about this was when I spotted my name and address in the local rag informing the populace of my transgression. I wasn't too sure about what to do so I (more fool me) went to see a solicitor for some advice. Spoke to the solicitor and she asked for my insurance cert and said she would be in touch. Okay so far. The solicitor rang me a while after to say my appeal had been lodged and that I should call in to see her the day before the court case. When I called in she said that she would not be in court herself but would instruct someone to act for me, fine.
Imagine my surprise when I arrived at the court and noticed that she was indeed present. She acknowledged me but did not speak to me. I waited for my case to be called and for my solicitor to make his appearance. Neither happened and at this stage the original solicitor wasn't to be seen. I made a phone call to the No. I had been given to be answered by a very irate sounding individual who wanted to know where I was and what I thought I was playing at by being late and not presenting myself for my appeal. His manner was very abrupt and condescending and when I tried to clarify some points he basically hung up on me. Right.
So, it turns out that my solicitor neglected to tell me that the appeal would be held in a different courthouse than the original case. Then I recieved a bill for 500euro. (the appeal was upheld). I wrote to the solicitors to say I wasn't happy with the service and now they are taking me to court for the money. Any advice please?
Imagine my surprise when I arrived at the court and noticed that she was indeed present. She acknowledged me but did not speak to me. I waited for my case to be called and for my solicitor to make his appearance. Neither happened and at this stage the original solicitor wasn't to be seen. I made a phone call to the No. I had been given to be answered by a very irate sounding individual who wanted to know where I was and what I thought I was playing at by being late and not presenting myself for my appeal. His manner was very abrupt and condescending and when I tried to clarify some points he basically hung up on me. Right.
So, it turns out that my solicitor neglected to tell me that the appeal would be held in a different courthouse than the original case. Then I recieved a bill for 500euro. (the appeal was upheld). I wrote to the solicitors to say I wasn't happy with the service and now they are taking me to court for the money. Any advice please?
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Nick on
-
make him an offer. otherwise, prepare your case to show that the solicitor did not provide an adequate service. let your solicitor know that you are preparing a counter claim against him. he's just tring to scare you into paying. he would be wasting his time and money trying to get money from you through the courts
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on -
Thanks man, thats the line I was thinkin' of takin'. Not much option really at this stage. And he already got a decree against me in court but never bothered to notify me about the hearing so I managed to have the decree set aside for a month. The judge advised me to engage a solicitor. HA! I think they are only chasing me out of sour grapes. I havent been in this position before. I don't own a house, a car or any property so do I need to be worried about this?
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on
-
Well, thanks for all the help. I have to say, I'm totally underwhelmed.
-
Permalink Reply by mike murphy on -
you answered all your own questions on that one i think. how did it work out anyway, i find things like this get swept under the carpet when they meet a motivated and educated individual, a lot of the time if scaring the money out of you doesnt work theyll give up
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on
-
Thanks man, haven't been back to court as of yet, I'll post an update after.
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on
-
Aww, I thought you'd all forgotten about me. Actually had a bit of a result there the other day. The judge said he was adjourning the case for four months and that he expected my ex solicitor to have come up with an amicable agreement so as not to waste the court's time. The dude flipped and made a total tit out of himself. (Fourth time in court and all over 500euro)
I'll keep you posted.
-
-
how much is your fee schedule set at. if the judgement goes in your favour then the solicitor will have to pay you!
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on
-
Think I may have slipped up there, I never applied one.
Quick question, if I lodge a notice of intent to defend, who is responsible for notifying me of court dates. Is it the court office or the other side? Many thanks.
-
Permalink Reply by Finnegan on
-
The reason I asked the question above is, having lodged the notice of intent, the next I heard was a letter from ex-solicitor saying he had been granted a decree for the full amount(2yrs after lodging the notice of intent). Oh, and another little article in the local rag confirming the judgement against me. Again all without any notice of proceedings. I did get the decree set aside due to lack of notice, but if it was up to the other side to notify me of the date surely this would be obtaining a judgement by stealth/surprise. Anybody know for sure?
-
-
cant say for sure myself.sounds like it should be the court office. looks like youve got a fair bit of research ahead of you. dont allow the apparent ill-preparedness of the solicitor fool you into thinking its in the bag. anticipate everything in his arsenal and what you should do to dismiss his arguement.
© 2013 Created by Kev.
