I was just curious, I filed the paperwork myself and was told that if I had gone to the lawyers it would have been done by now. Is that true? Is it faster to have gotten a lawyer to do this?

no, its not faster. and people have posted it actually has caused them delays because the lawyer didn't know what they were doing.

FAST is really relative in this whole process. You will never look at that word the same again when it's all said and done.

I've seen more complaints then positive statements about using a lawyer.

You can do it yourself.

mmmmm no

Nope. Someone is just trying to make some money here it seems. Lawyer or no lawyer, they have no say with the USCIS people. I should say Lawyers are for those who are too thick to think. If you have submitted the petition with all the necessary documents, please hang in there and wait. In the meantime, please try reading more about this petition processing at this forum and if you have any questions, please do feel free to ask as there are hundreds of people like you on this forum (including me) and as long as your case is not unique, I am sure they all can help. You seriously do not need a lawyer for an ordinary petition and I agree with wowswift; they sometimes do not even know what to do with the client and they give false hope. Had some experience with them in the past...useless and expensive.

Best regards,
Sara.

What is faster is seeing a certain amount of money leaving your wallet....

I didn't think so since we did my paperwork on our own and made it successfully... Well, not unless your case is somewhat special, then a lawyer's help can be handy. Otherwise, you'll only waste money besides all the headaches you'll get from dealing with them.

--Mae

For people who have trouble reading the forms and doing the proper research as to what is needed a lawyer might be faster ( big might ) only if they were to encounter an RFE. Most lawyers will not do anything other than tell you what you need to submit and how to go about getting those things. So pretty much you will pay someone 2500-5000 dollars to read off instructions and help you understand them as well as put together a nice packet to send off. If I was to encounter anyone who was starting the immigration process and needed some help I would direct them to this website because everything you need is right here for the most part unless you have some previous problems such as illegal entry , criminal charges for the immigrant, USC that have some issues that are against the IMBRA regulations, etc. For your cut and dry , I want to bring my spouse or relative to the united states to be with me this site really has the answer to most questions you could have, well except if a tax "record of account" is just as good as a tax transcript

Lawyer does straightforward processing and they don't practise shortcuts It is against their ethics

If you are not confident of doing yourself, you can get a lawyer... Is it helpful ?

they cant push the process steps any faster than we can and often cause more mistakes

I have not heard of one lawyer that has speed up the process. If you have a sticky case I might suggest one. If you ahve trouble filling out the forms. Make an inforpass appointment with your local USCIS office. They are there to help you with this process. This site will teach you how to process the paper work faster then no other.

I had a horrible time wtih my lawyer.

Absolutely not. My husband and I looked into this and lawyers are only there to fill out the paperwork for you. They charge you an arm and a leg and will tell you it is faster only because they want your money. If you are simply filling out an I-130 and I-129f and have no special circumstances, you should be good to go, especially with all the help from this wonderful site!

No...my husband and I filed our paperworks ourselves with the help of VJ. I have known a few couples who have gone through this themselves without an immigration attorney. All you need to do is read a lot and ask around whenever you are in doubt.

Save your attorney fee for those airline tickets!

Good luck!

Lawyer cares for your money and not your case, Lawyers are PIRANHA. Take it from our experience.

Once a lawyer has your money, you are just another client to them.

Also, as stated before, there are shortcuts that you can take that speed up the process. But a lawyer will not do these shortcuts. So a lawyer can slow down the process.

only reason I though of using a lawyer would be to sue the whole stupid department of immigration... not to write my name and address on a form and stamp an envelope.

But then I don't have that kinda cash.

I've actually spoken to a lawyer before we applied and asked him "Would it be faster if I used your services?". He honestly replied that it would not be.

Another lawyer I spoke to recently (I'm pissed off and desperate) suggested that sometimes lawyers can look at the extenuating circumstances and make a case for expedite so my advise (I'm not a lawyer) might be to see if you have any (pregnancy, for example, which doesn't qualify you for an expedite, but a good lawyer could attach "financial hardship" and "health risks" and make it into an expedite) and do a consultation with a lawyer. An extra $100 isn't gonna ruin you (and if it does you're making a huge mistake right now) but could lead to better results.