I can usually tell you how your case will turn out after we’ve spoken for about 30 minutes.
Am I clairvoyant? No. Am I telepathic? No.
Can I bend events to tum out my way? No.
In fact, I have no super human qualities that I am aware of. (And I just checked with my wife. She confirms it.)
So how can I tell you how your case will tum out after we have only spent 30 minutes together?
Two reasons: one, I’ve been practicing family law for coming on 27 years and, two, I see my job as being brutally honest with you. I will tell you the good and the bad about your situation.
Let me break down the first part first.
I’ve been practicing family law for coming on 27 years. I’ve been through thousands of trials now. I have seen hundreds of scenarios played out. I know most of our judges well enough to know what they like and don’t like and what they will do and what they won’t do and I know pretty much every attorney who only practices family law. (Those who dabble in it, I don’t need to know. They aren’t in the nmning.)
Now to the second part. I see my job as being brutally honest with you. I will tell you the good and the bad. Reality is just that, reality. You want custody of your children? Good for you. My grandmother wants to fly jets. Let’s talk about the facts on the ground. How have you and your spouse handled custody issues up until divorce became a real thing? That is what the judge will do, what yall chose to do before you got the judge involved. It’s really not that hard to figure out.
I am astonished that any attorney would operate differently. But some do. Thankfully, I believe that most do not.
But some will play you. “What do you want?” They’ll sell you a bill of goods for that precious retainer. A small price for a soul, I think. Here’s the rub,[these folks are counting on your inability to be objective and relying upon your al 1ger to blind you to reason and reality.
To those attorneys I have to ask, “Why deny the obvious, child? Why pretend that the situation is any different than it is? Why operate as though family’ aw is winner take all, because it never is.”
Fortunately, judges do have a mechanism to bring these wayward atto · eys in line. They can be sanctioned and fined for their abusive litigation. Us ally, their clients are fined first and the attorneys second. I know of a case in metro Atlanta where an attorney and her client were fined almost $500,000 for their ibusive litigation. She denied a whole lot of obvious.
So, again, with lessons like that, why deny the obvious, child? Now that befuddles me.