Harvey Shapiro

I needed some advice for an ESTA Visa Waiver question. Caryl Kawalsky Uzelac was recommended to me by a friend. Big mistake. I had used a different lawyer before (Graham Prichard) who was awesome, but he was unfortunately busy at the time, so I needed urgent advice. Caryl was US$500 for an initia...l consultation, which she gave me about a 15 minute phone call. Incidentally, this was double Graham's initial fee. I was potentially going to overstay my ESTA because my flights home to Australia were cancelled by the airlines due to COVID border restrictions in Australia. I thought it might be best to leave the US to e.g. Europe for a few weeks then come back to the US then fly home to Australia when Australian borders opened. She suggested I apply for satisfactory departure which would give me an extra 30 days. When I received advice from the border control, they stated stated that "the 30 day satisfactory departure for COVID is not allowed any more for any country". Caryl should have known this, or at least checked it, and not advised me to apply for satisfactory departure. I believe this her professional obligation to me, which she failed. I then told her of the situation, and she never called back as promised. I overstayed my ESTA visa waiver and now am ineligible for a visa waiver in the future. I asked her to refund my money because her advice was incorrect and required me to then book flights to Canada, then England, then Australia, but she declined and still claims she gave me good advice.