is attorney needed?

[morocco4ever 63]

One other note, since ours was denied I did find a very good lawyer that handles return cases. We choose not to go with him only because he said that our case was very strong, and the only thing he could do was to organize our folder. He was right.

Good and honest...what are the chances?

[daboyz 36]

Wow you guys are harsh on LAL.

I don't think any of us are truly able to give 100% accurate advice to this person since we really have no idea of their own specific case. So I think it is better to tell them what we think based on our own experience. Keeping it clear that it is based on our individual case, and each case is different.

In my case I did it without a lawyer. We were initially denied. But to be honest I don't think a lawyer could have predicted it either. It was a weird fluke. You have to admit that after reading this forum that some people have unusual circumstances that to be honest I wouldn't know how to handle it.

The key is simple. If you have a straightforward case, and are reasonably intelligent, you can do this process yourself. If the forms are confusing you may need a qualified attorney. If you have some issue that are unique you may need a qualified attorney.

I agree that there are a lot of really stupid lawyers out there. We hired one to do a simple FOIA that she screwed up. And lawyers will tell you that they know what they are doing, so choosing one isn't always easy.

How do you know if the attorney is qualified? Just cause he has a website that says "over 10,000 K-1's" or "100% success rate." I see both of these claims all the time. I would say it is impossible for an attorney that handled 10,000 K-1s to have a 100% success rate.

I suggested adding if an attorney was used or not in to the timelines, and the name of the attorney. You would think I was advocating the overthrow of the government. You can see how well that went over:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t=0&start=0

Your right, and that is why I said in my last sentence that it isn't easy.

You must have really been screwed over, judging by your anger level on this subject. Sorry to hear about that. But I saw on your siggy that your interview is coming up soon. I also saw that you are going for the IR1 instead of the K-3. Good for you! That is what my husband ended up coming on and I am here to tell you that I can't wait to get that final step (naturalization) over with, and never deal with them again.

Laugh. I was really screwed over. It was unreal. Once my wife is sitting next to me, I'll put out a really long post as to everything that happened. If it was only 1 or 2 things, no big deal. It was like 10. My favorite was telling me to make out the NVC checks to USCIS, when it needs to be Dept. of State. If it wasn't for this site and me being able to double check everything they told me, I would probably never see my wife again. That was just one of many, not counting my petition sat there on their desk for 2 months before they mailed it. Then they mailed directly to VSC, when it need to go to Chicago Lock Box. That's just a couple nice ones. I have many, many more.

[daboyz 36]

To add to that. Even if they do a perfect job, you still have to send all the paperwork to them, and then they mail it in. So there's that delay no matter what. I might have already said this earlier, but I'm saying it again.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

VJ TOS...

Do not act on or rely on any information from VisaJourney.com Websites and Services without consulting with a licensed attorney as this site is not a substitute for obtaining appropriate legal advice from a competent, independent legal counsel in the relevant jurisdiction.

Opinions are one thing but advising someone specifically NOT to use a lawyer based on a few paragraphs of text is not wise.

A few things to consider if you do hire a lawyer...

You will still need to complete all forms correctly and thoroughly.

You will still need to supply all supporting documentation to the lawyer.

Most lawyers will put your paperwork in the hands of a staff worker in their office to organize your petition for shipment and to serve as a liason for the entire process. It is still you who does most of the work.

Unfortunately, those of us that have been here on VJ for some time know how much a lawyer can actually slow things down for a couple because of the added time involved in putting the petition together, receiving and notification of RFE's... and/or other mistakes made.

Ultimately, it is still up to you to do your homework on the process to be sure your lawyer has completed your petition correctly. It is also up to you to decide if you think your case warrants the need and extra cost of an attorney. If there are IMBRA issues, overstays...etc to consider, it may very well be in your best interest to pay for some assistance. But again, YOU must be certain that the person you've hired is doing their job right.

If your case is pretty straight forward, and you feel competent in doing so, it's quite easy to do with the help of VJ and it's community.

good luck

Thank you, I think you have pointed out, exactly, all the reasons that when asked for an opinion, and I was, I give the one I did. Now that we have the IMBRA law why not a law to regulate attorneys? I think every immigration attorney should have to disclose and have the victim, excuse me, client, sign this:

1) I cannot increase the speed your case is processed. I will, in all likelihood, slow your case down compared to what you could do yourself.

2) I do not guarantee I will do this correctly

3) The USCIS is NOT trying to deny family based visas in any way. If you qualify with the requirements you will be granted your visa, nothing I can do will change that.

4) If you are disqualified to receive a visa, you will not receive a visa, there is nothing I can do to change that

5) My fees for handling a K-1 visa are ___________ and for handling the Adjustment of status are_________

6) It is not possible for me to do this without you doing all the legwork, collecting documents and providing me with information, you will complete, at minimum, 80% of the process yourself whether you retain me or not.

7) You are paying me for a service you can do yourself. There is no need and no legal benefit to retaining an attorney for a normal K-1 visa process. The fees you pay are for me to do 20% of the work in lieu of yourself.

______________________________________________

Signature of victim

All of that is true, absolutely true. How many attorneys are willing to support this new legislation? What about any of the attorney apologists?

[mahalako 0]

I plan to start the k1 visa process within the next 3 months after i return from the philippine to meet requirment for having met in person in the last to year (btw this will be our 3rd meeting). Do the people here on VJ feel it wise to retain a immigration attorney or service for this process?

i do every thing myself and got approved no RFE I use the visajourney to help i just read plus you have money too , it just depend on if you had some problems in your past, wish you luck

[daboyz 36]

I plan to start the k1 visa process within the next 3 months after i return from the philippine to meet requirment for having met in person in the last to year (btw this will be our 3rd meeting). Do the people here on VJ feel it wise to retain a immigration attorney or service for this process?

i do every thing myself and got approved no RFE I use the visajourney to help i just read plus you have money too , it just depend on if you had some problems in your past, wish you luck

Good advice I think.

[luckytxn 2,265]

Trust me. If I can do it and get the visa then there is no reason anyone else couldn't do so. Of course mine was a straightforward case.

[rainkiss10 0]

I plan to start the k1 visa process within the next 3 months after i return from the philippine to meet requirment for having met in person in the last to year (btw this will be our 3rd meeting). Do the people here on VJ feel it wise to retain a immigration attorney or service for this process?

i do every thing myself and got approved no RFE I use the visajourney to help i just read plus you have money too , it just depend on if you had some problems in your past, wish you luck

I did the K1 petition package in the philippines and sent it to my bf to be mailed to CSC. I just read the procedures, ASK the forums, double/triple check the finished paper works and then sent it off to the BF. Its just 1/2 of an inch thick. It was just last Nov. 2008 and fortunately for us it just took 2 months to get approved. Now im waiting for my interview this March. I guess i really did something right.

We dont need an attorney, just read the procedures thoroughly and dont be shy to ask questions here.

[rainkiss10 0]

I plan to start the k1 visa process within the next 3 months after i return from the philippine to meet requirment for having met in person in the last to year (btw this will be our 3rd meeting). Do the people here on VJ feel it wise to retain a immigration attorney or service for this process?

i do every thing myself and got approved no RFE I use the visajourney to help i just read plus you have money too , it just depend on if you had some problems in your past, wish you luck

I did the K1 petition package in the philippines and sent it to my bf to be mailed to CSC. I just read the procedures, ASK the forums, double/triple check the finished paper works and then sent it off to the BF. Its just 1/2 of an inch thick. It was just last Nov. 2008 and fortunately for us it just took 2 months to get approved. Now im waiting for my interview this March. I guess i really did something right.

You dont need an attorney, just read the procedures thoroughly and dont be shy to ask questions here.

[rainkiss10 0]

sorry for double posting...

[daboyz 36]

It's ok. You're hot!

[daboyz 36]

Sorry for that. I'm a jerk.

[Joan >3 Bob 20]

I plan to start the k1 visa process within the next 3 months after i return from the philippine to meet requirment for having met in person in the last to year (btw this will be our 3rd meeting). Do the people here on VJ feel it wise to retain a immigration attorney or service for this process?

I did not use an attorney and I found that all requirements were fairly easy to understand by reading the USCIS web site and US Embassy web site and state Dept web site and of course most help was from visajourney site. I think using an attorney is a waste of money. The entire process costs much itself. I know people that have used attorneys and their approvals were not any faster than mine was. nBut is is a choice you ahve and good luck to you.

[tallcoolone 102]

For any of us here to tell someone not to consult an attorney is - well - poor advice.

The homepage states the site is not a substitute for counsel.

US immigration law is not only the most complex in the world, it is a highly specilized practice of US law.

It's not for us to suggest to someone they SHOULDN'T hire an attorney.

My personal opinion - everybody should AT LEAST have an attorney consult. We did. Once before we filed any paperwork with the service. And twice while we were adjusting status.

People stating thier personal opinion is not "Poor Advice"

My personal opinion is: "I didn't see any reason to waste time or money on a lawyer, the paper work was straight forward and overall an easy process"

It is a little tedious, but if you take time to check and re check the paperwork, you will be fine. There are plenty of resources on the net to ask questions if one has a question.

My wife filled out here AOS paperwork only after a couple of months of being in the USA.

I did the K1 Visa and the hard part is gathering all the paperwork and docuements, not filling out the paperwork.

[rebeccajo 14]

For any of us here to tell someone not to consult an attorney is - well - poor advice.

The homepage states the site is not a substitute for counsel.

US immigration law is not only the most complex in the world, it is a highly specilized practice of US law.

It's not for us to suggest to someone they SHOULDN'T hire an attorney.

My personal opinion - everybody should AT LEAST have an attorney consult. We did. Once before we filed any paperwork with the service. And twice while we were adjusting status.

People stating thier personal opinion is not "Poor Advice"

My personal opinion is: "I didn't see any reason to waste time or money on a lawyer, the paper work was straight forward and overall an easy process"

It is a little tedious, but if you take time to check and re check the paperwork, you will be fine. There are plenty of resources on the net to ask questions if one has a question.

My wife filled out here AOS paperwork only after a couple of months of being in the USA.

I did the K1 Visa and the hard part is gathering all the paperwork and docuements, not filling out the paperwork.

tallcoolone -

You'll note my comment was 'at least consult an attorney'.

I do believe that everyone should have AT LEAST a consult.

Whether or not they choose to HIRE an attorney is up to them.

I felt our case was also 'vanilla' but I still wanted to hear it from the lips of someone who had more experience at it than myself. So we had a phone consult with an experienced attorney before we filed. It was a telephone consult because the gentleman practiced in another city three hours from us.

Immigration law is Federal law. You do not need to hire someone who lives in the same town as you or even someone in the same state. Any attorney can represent you and indeed (unless you live in a large metropolitan area) there is probably NOT a qualified one living nearby to you.

A qualified immigration attorney will specialize solely in that arena. He or she will belong to professional organizations that support the practice, such as the AILA. They will have 'connections' with the Service, such as classmates who work for departments of the US government. They themselves may have been formerly employed by the State Department, or have staff that were. The best of the best will have been published in journals and magazines which support immigration law. They should be well-versed in spousal or family immigration (many practitioners concentrate on employment visas - a different kettle of fish).

And yes before you hire or even CONSULT with an attorney you should ask about these things. You should 'interview' the attorney and discover their qualifications.