Jerry N. Quick Attorney at Law

Q.      Do I need an attorney, or can I represent myself?
A.      Yes, you can represent yourself, but it is not always in your best interest to do     so.
Before representing yourself, I would advise you to contact an attorney, make an appointment, and discuss your case with the attorney.  While there are certain matters that you can represent yourself on, and you would not be prejudiced in doing so, you could make the attorney’s job a lot more difficult by trying to represent yourself, and later deciding that you do need an attorney to represent you.  As stated, it would be in your best interest to go ahead and contact an attorney and discuss your case with the attorney, before attempting to represent yourself.

Q.       How do I find an attorney that I feel could give me the best representation in     my case?
A.      Of course, there are a lot of different ways that you can find an attorney to     represent you concerning your case, and find an attorney that could provide you with the best representation.  The first thing that you need to do is to talk with your relatives and friends to see if they could recommend an attorney to you.  Another way would be to look in the Yellow Pages, and to find an attorney who is close to your area.  If the attorney does not handle the type of case that you have, he/she can refer you to another attorney who does handle that type of case.  Another alternative would be to call the Alabama Bar Association and/or the Birmingham Bar Association to get the names of attorneys who handle your type of case.  Possibly the best way to find an attorney who can handle your type case, would be to look on the internet.  Recently, attorneys have started posting web-sites on the internet, and, as my web-site, will give you some background, concerning the attorney, and will also tell you the types of cases that the attorney handles.  You can take it a step further by checking into the background of the attorney, and trying to determine if the information on the web-site is correct; which it more than likely is.

Q.      I feel that I need an attorney to represent me in my case, but I do not have the money to hire an attorney.  How can I find an attorney to represent me?
A.      First of all, a lot of attorneys, if you qualify, will work with you concerning the payment of fees and expenses concerning your case.  While most attorneys will charge a retainer to cover expenses, some attorneys will work with you concerning the payment of attorney fees.  As I have indicated in my pricing section, I will work with you on payment of attorney fees, but you will have to be able to qualify to do so.  Qualifying could mean having someone co-sign with you on a contract, and/or putting up collateral to cover the attorney fees and expenses incurred in your case.

    If you have a criminal case and you are facing possible jail time, there are provisions in the law for an attorney to be appointed to represent you in your case.  This would include not only cases in District and Circuit Court, but could also include cases in the Municipal Courts.  Most courts have attorneys who are on the list to be appointed to indigent Defendants, and the fees will be paid by either the State and/or the Municipality.  In order to qualify, you must be indigent, and not otherwise be able to pay for an attorney to represent you.  When you go to court on your first court date, inquire of the judge and/or court personnel of the possibility of having an attorney appointed to represent you concerning your case.  You will be requested to fill out an indigency form, and if approved, an attorney will be appointed. 

    Recently, the Alabama Bar Association and other bar associations have been making efforts to provide attorneys for indigents in civil type cases also.  If you are indigent, and you cannot afford to hire an attorney to represent you, you can call the Alabama Bar Association or the Birmingham Bar Association to get information concerning representation of you in your case.  Currently, the Alabama State Bar does have a ‘pro-bono’ program that will provide representation to you. 

Q.    I have talked to several attorneys concerning representation on my case, but every attorney wants a retainer, i.e. a certain amount of money up front, in order to take my case.  Why do attorneys charge retainers on cases? 
A.    When you hire an attorney to represent you concerning your case, you want the attorney to put forth the time and the effort in representing you concerning your case, and it would be impossible to do so without some monies up front.  Most people do not understand that the cost of discovery involved in cases can be quite expensive.  In order to properly prepare the case, it may be necessary for the attorney to  subpoena documents and/or other evidence from third parties; which can get to be rather expensive.  In subpoenaing records, the cost of the subpoena, along with the charges for the third party that in producing the documentation and/or evidence, can be rather expensive.  While it may not be necessary to subpoena all records and/or other evidence, it still would be necessary to subpoena certain records and/or other evidence in order to prepare your case for Trial.  In addition, it also may be necessary to take depositions of witnesses, hire experts, etc.; all of which is very expensive.  If the attorney does not have the funds available to obtain the information that he needs to represent you concerning your case, then the attorney would be severely handicapped, and your case would suffer because of the lack of preparation.  This, in turn, could lead to your case being adversely effected, and could lead to you losing an otherwise winnable case.  Customarily, when an attorney gets in this position, the Client blames the attorney for not taking the necessary steps and doing the necessary preparations in preparing the case; something which a lot of times is not the attorney’s fault.   

Q.    Why does an attorney charge such a large hourly rate in representing Client’s in cases?
A.    Most of the time, this is something which is misunderstood by the Client.  One needs to understand, not only does the hourly rate pay the attorney for his time and effort expended on your case, but it also pays for support personnel and other office overhead.  If broken down, you would see that a good bit of the hourly rate does go toward support personnel and office overhead, and not directly to the attorney.

Q.    I have an attorney currently representing me, but I have difficulty in getting answers to questions that I may have.  Why won’t the attorney specifically answer my questions?
A.    Most of the time, there are not any specific answers to questions that are asked by Clients.  First of all, there are issues that come up in cases that have never been decided by either the Supreme Court of the United States of America, or by the Alabama Supreme Court, so it would be difficult for the attorney to specifically answer your questions, even though he may be able to give you an opinion.  Another problem is that, as was indicated in my Politics and Money section, the answers coming out of the Courts right now are not always consistent.  This has put a severe burden on the attorney to answer the Client’s questions, and to advise the Client as to what the law is.
   
    In addition, a lot of the answers to questions will have to come from a jury after your case has been tried.  Pursuant to Alabama Law and the U.S. Constitution, a jury is given the right to be the “sole/exclusive judges of the facts”, and to make the final decision concerning your case.  In a lot of cases, there are two positions being held, one by the Plaintiffs and the other by the  Defendants, and the purpose of the jury is to resolve those issues, and to determine the correct facts.  For this reason, your question may not be actually answered until your case is actually tried before a jury.

Q.     I have a case which is currently pending in another state.  How can I find an attorney in another state to represent me concerning my case?
A.    As I had previously stated, one of the major ways of finding an attorney today is to go to the internet.  You should be able to find information concerning attorneys in other states on the internet, and you should also find contact information.  If your case is in one of the states surrounding Alabama, you may even be able to find an attorney in Alabama who is actually licensed to represent you concerning your case in another state.  Should you find an attorney in Alabama who is licensed to practice in other states, you would need to be aware that it could be more expensive to have the attorney from Alabama represent you out-of–state.  If you do have an attorney that represents you on a fairly regular basis, you may be able to call that attorney, and he may know someone in another state that could represent you, and he could give you a referral.  

 Q.    Why can I not represent myself concerning a divorce case where we are in full agreement as to child custody, child support, property division and/or other matters?
A.    As stated previously, you can represent yourself concerning a divorce in the State of Alabama.  However, you need to be aware of certain requirements that are required in order for you to get a judge to sign your divorce papers.  Customarily, most lawyers are practicing law to make a living, and they would not give you free advice concerning preparation and/or filing of divorce papers.  In the long run, you could actually save yourself by contacting an attorney, and having him prepare the paperwork for you.  Not only could it facilitate the filing and granting of the divorce in your case, but it also could avoid some potential problems that may arise in the future concerning the divorce case.  I have actually had Clients come in to talk to me concerning divorce cases that they have, either handled on their own or had the “cheap divorce” done where certain matters were not taken care of.  If it is a matter concerning a property division, and it has been in excess of thirty days, then you would just have to live with the property division because the courts lose jurisdiction over property division over thirty days.  As to all other matters, they might be able to be resolved and/or corrected.  However, as stated previously, the best way to avoid these potential pitfalls is to have an attorney prepare and file the papers on your behalf.

Q.    Do I need a Will?
A.    Yes, everybody needs a Will.  A lot of times, people feel that since they are  

rather young, that they do not need a Will.  It is probably more imperative that a young couple with young children go to an attorney, have a Will prepared and do an Estate Plan to avoid any potential pitfalls that may arise in the future.  If anything were to happen to both, then you could run into some really severe problems concerning the minor children.  Not only does the cost of the probate of the estate run more, but also minor children being involved could complicate the matters, and make the probate of the estate more expensive.  A lot of these matters could be resolved and/or avoided by having an attorney prepare a Will.

    As to older people, it is also very important that they have a Will.  By getting a Will, you can pretty much designate your assets and/or properties to be divided as you desire.  If you do not have a Will, then your assets and/or properties will be divided by “Intestate Succession”; a law that is currently in existence in the State of Alabama.  If divided through “intestate succession”, the assets and/or properties would be divided according to what the law states, and would not necessarily be divided and/or handled as you would like.  By doing a Will, you would be in a position to designate how you wanted your assets and/or properties handled, plus it would be much easier to probate your estate.





The above are frequently asked questions which I anticipate a lot of people would ask.  These questions and answers are intended to be in a general nature, and are not intended to provide legal advice and/or legal opinions concerning the law as it applies to each individual case.  In order to get a better understanding of the law, as it applies to your particular situation, you need to contact an attorney, make an appointment, and discuss your particular matters with the attorney.