About Lawyers

[Miami Vice 2]

Hello again. Has anyone here from this forum hired a lawyer for their K1 process? How long did it take from the signing of the agreement from the actual start of the process (Like receiving NOA1). Waiting and uncertainty makes me want to scream on the top of my lungs. >.>

[Liz&Nate 23]

Hi! We initially hired lawyers, both in the US and in my country. They were extremely unhelpful and mostly gave us wrong advice. In the end we decided to handle everything ourselves and got through okay, with the help of these forums. From your post it seems like you are already using a lawyer, in which case, the best advice I can give you is to learn as much as you can about the process and just keep asking your lawyer for constant updates and ask a lot of questions. If your case is fairly straightforward and you haven't engaged the services of a lawyer I might suggest you try to handle the paperwork on your own. There's so much you can't control about this process that it is a relief to have a hold on the thing you can control, like your paperwork. Best of luck!

[ndu26 114]

There's so much you can't control about this process that it is a relief to have a hold on the thing you can control, like your paperwork. Best of luck!

:thumbs:

[Miami Vice 2]

Thanks Liz&Nate. The lawyer we hired though gave a limit of 5 number of combination of calls or emails, if we did more than that, she will charge her normal lawyer's fee which is 350 Dollars. We felt its much safer if we hired a lawyer, right now I believe we should have done things on our own.

[Liz&Nate 23]

Thanks Liz&Nate. The lawyer we hired though gave a limit of 5 number of combination of calls or emails, if we did more than that, she will charge her normal lawyer's fee which is 350 Dollars. We felt its much safer if we hired a lawyer, right now I believe we should have done things on our own.

That doesn't seem right, to limit you so much! I guess, just confirm that she has sent out your petition, and request any tracking number of the package. If she hasn't sent it out, you might want to consider getting your documentation back. Also, might I ask if you included a e-notification form with your package? If you did you may get updates thought phone/e-mail.

[Tahoma 2,292]

Hey..you've got us!!! You don't need a lawyer to fill out a couple of simple forms, add a few photos, and include some evidence of meeting in person.

[Moomin 292]

You posted in October saying it had been 2 months since you submitted documents to your lawyer. If the lawyer sent the petition within weeks, there should be a NOA1 around that time. No matter what I'd suggest like the others, to email/call her asking for a receipt number (it starts with either EAC or WAC followed by numbers). Then you sign up on USCIS so you can check your case status. There it'll show when the petition was received. If your lawyer is holding back on details on when it was sent, you'll know through your case number.

In that same email(or call), I'd suggest you ask for a copy of the NOA1(receipt, also called I-797) and when it arrives, the NOA2 also - you'll especially be be needing NOA2 later on so you might as well go ahead and ask for it in advance when you're that limited in contact with your lawyer.

Edited December 30, 2011 by moomin

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Hello again. Has anyone here from this forum hired a lawyer for their K1 process? How long did it take from the signing of the agreement from the actual start of the process (Like receiving NOA1). Waiting and uncertainty makes me want to scream on the top of my lungs. >.>

Here , this guy hired an attorney, maybe he will give you the name and phone number.

Have you seen the petition? What about it do you think you cannot do yourself?

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/344562-vsc-application-reciept-date-wrong/

Thanks Liz&Nate. The lawyer we hired though gave a limit of 5 number of combination of calls or emails, if we did more than that, she will charge her normal lawyer's fee which is 350 Dollars. We felt its much safer if we hired a lawyer, right now I believe we should have done things on our own.

VJ has no limit on FREE questions.

[Theresa0828 65]

Hello again. Has anyone here from this forum hired a lawyer for their K1 process? How long did it take from the signing of the agreement from the actual start of the process (Like receiving NOA1). Waiting and uncertainty makes me want to scream on the top of my lungs. >.>

My husband hired a lawyer for the entire process (until naturalization). He just did not trust filling up the form on his own when he did the I-797. Fortunately for us... the lawyer was fast and communicate with us very well... although right now that I am here I do not think there is a need, it was evident when we did our change of status coz all the lawyer did was sent the package, I have everything filled up and I even made a table of contents of our documents and when we presented it to the lawyer, she was impressed and sent the package right away the next day. We do not have RFE for both I-797 and I-485, though I-797 took more than six months (not the lawyer's fault).

It helps also that the lawyer is just a few minutes from where we live... I hate to be engaged with a lawyer miles a way and the only communication available is phone and email. I need to have someone I can talk to face to face if i will have problems.

[southcalhog 43]

Hey..you've got us!!! You don't need a lawyer to fill out a couple of simple forms, add a few photos, and include some evidence of meeting in person.

:thumbs:

[DiZZyLoX 114]

do it yourself. we're here.

[dindo and patty 20]

I don't think the waiting time is any different if you did the petition yourself. The biggest difference is you do not have much control of it by using a lawyer.

You had to provide all the information to the lawyer who in turn filled the forms for you. You could have easily have done this yourself with the help of the

VJ community provided that your case isn't complicated at all. It is odd that there is a limit of how much you can contact your lawyer before they start

charging you more monies. At any rate, good luck to you and hope you get approved soon. My suggestion is once you get your NOA2, just proceed on

your own as everything goes fast after that. Just go back to the VJ forum to get guides specific to the USEM in Manila. Happy new year!

[Ron and Rhea 42]

We were initially going to use a lawyer, and about 4k for his fee's..or more. I found this wonderful place and I have that 4k in my bank, not a lawyers bank...

[Hank_ 9,174]

And from what I have read finding a lawyer that even has a clue would take longer than it would take USCIS to approval the petition....

[RJQuilla 6]

If you use a lawyer select someone who specializes in Visa. I used a lawyer and the time from NOA1 to NOA2 was 4 months. He is an actual Immigration Attorney. You could however do it yourself from reading this Forum but at the time I was not up to it.