Lila Sljivar

Lila Sljivar

This former client contacted me in February about an application that could not be filed with the USCIS prior to April 1st. Any application received prior to April 1 would be rejected. I even told this client that the sooner one part of this application were completed, the less time she would have in the status she was seeking, that we needed to start this process as close to April as possible because if we had done so in Feb, she would be shortchanging herself by 2 months of this status-- it is a difficult concept to explain without divulging information about this particular matter. In mid March, I had a lot of court appearance for people in deportation proceedings. I was in and out of the office frequently. I could be out of the office at 10 am, and be in the office at 10:05. It is the nature and practice of immigration law. Lawyers appear at their clients' green card interviews or naturalization appointments or deportation hearings. In fact, I had answered this client's emails and returned her phone calls regularly. She became exceptionally problematic in that she needed more reassurance than was reasonable. While I understand that this client was extraordinarily frustrated at not having an application to file in mid-March, the application could not be submitted for weeks. Her application was among others that were being processed in due. time. When the calls bordered on abusive and harassing, it became clear that we could not continue a working relationship. Not only had I returned to this client all of her own documents that she left in my charge, I gave her all of the work that was completed on her behalf up until that point, and I did not charge her anything for the consultation, the work performed up to that point, the responses to countless emails, the answers given in repeated and repetitive phone conversations. I returned to her the mere $1,000 deposit that she left with my office. I never withheld any of her funds. I did not charge her for any of the work done up until that point. I have always been and continue to be an attorney in good standing. I have over 16 years of practicing exclusively in an immigration context. And I have clients who have entrusted me with their lives. One client even named his daughter after me. And then every once in awhile, I am hired by someone with whom I cannot form a working relationship with, usually because our temperaments are vastly different and expectations are set too high. It is unfortunate for me that (1) this client relationship did not work out between this person and myself, and (2) that there are these blatant lies about me being unreliable and untrustworthy that still appear on this website. I am very happy to hear that another attorney in mid-March was able to prepare and file her application on time-- which goes to show that there was no neglect of any diligence on anyone's part. Of the thousands of undocumented people I've saved from deportation, of the mass of people I've given advice to who had never become clients, I have earned a name for giving hope and for knowing the law. Despite my vast experience, I am being judged on a very poor relationship with a client whose expectations were unreasonable, being that an application that could not be filed until April 1 be ready in mid-March. In fact, the charges she made against me about taking and not returning her deposit are lies. If I could turn back time, I would have never have accepted her as a client. I am happy that she managed to find the attorney who satisfied her needs and that this lawyer filed a timely application for. Unfortunately for me, potential clients look at this review and take this into consideration when deciding whether to hire me and this mark against me, the unfounded charges of neglect and theft, they're wrong. I cannot apparently do anything about it.