John William Hillman

I am a Domestic Violence Survivor. I have a double Major in psychology and Elementary Education with a minor in early childhood education. I was a teacher for United Cerebral Palsy and now I can now longer work due to a TBI I suffer from the blows to my head from my husband. I have humbly appli...ed for a poor person's application which goes to a Supreme Court Judge, who then makes the decision to either deny or grant the petition. I was blessed to be granted council and was assigned to Mr Hillman. My background is important because although I’m unable to work due to my disability, I now spend my “good’ days, although they come and go, volunteering my time helping others, mostly the elderly, usually to bring a little joy back into their lives by helping them clean out flower beds, gardens, overgrowth, overwhelming rooms or garages. Volunteering is like therapy for me, so by helping others in what gets me functioning. I am a very patient and understanding, open minded and forgiving person, however after initially emailing Mr Hillman with some information introducing myself and receiving no response, and then leaving several messages with his staff to schedule an appointment I finally got to speak with Mr Hillman after 2 months of constant attempts. (Please remember I am considered to be a “Pro-Bono” client) the first thing Mr Hillman said in an unexpectedly stern voice to me was “I don’t travel,” Now I did just relayed I was understanding, so I quickly responded with” I understand,” I will drive the hour to meet with him. He then proceeds to tell me he had no paperwork for me (as I hear him shuffling through his papers on his desk) I try to explain how I became his client, and explained I also sent an email when I first received his information, and he replied with “oh there you are, right here at the bottom of the pile.” I ended the conversation with an appointment and a very uncertain feeling about the representation I was about to receive. Mr Hillmans actions were a sign of someone who had no interest in my divorce, yet I still walked into Mr. Hillmans office with a positive and hopeful attitude because I am genuinely grateful to have been given help. Knowing nothing about me or my case along with the obvious disinterest, the first thing Mr. Hillman told me he was going to do was change the reason for my divorce from Cruel and inhumane treatment (which is the reason for divorce) to irreconcilable differences while claiming they would give me the same results (which is far from the truth) Mr. Hillman looked right at me and blurted out “There is no way you can prove abuse” I politely interrupted to explain I could prove abuse, and then he brazenly explained “THAT WOULD TAKE A LOT OF TIME, ANDI’M NOT GETTING PAID.”” I literally put my head down in shock of his blatant discrimination. Sitting on the edge of my seat already riddled with anxiety, feeling belittled and fear, and most importantly defeated. It’s a very sad time when your lawyer treats you disrespectfully by bullying his clients, those very same people Mr Hillman took an oath to give representation He wanted to control how I did things solely based on his need to make money or lack there of. He was arrogant, he lacked respect, social skills and even knowledge of the law (at least pertaining to my situation) nor did he do anything to prepare after I traveled over an hour to see him.

Navigating a divorce during the pandemic is a tough and daunting process but John was communicative about the process from the start. He explained everything and was diligent throughout the entire process. My ex husband no longer lived in NY and he was able to serve him out of state without any issue...s. I highly recommend his office and services!

If you have an issue and are assigned this guy good luck because from my experience John does bare minimum he will ignore your calls and not give you any straight awnsers I felt no comfort or security in this lawyer and I am switching to a more reputable and experienced person because of it. John's l...ack of care for his clients shows in his work and in his emotions. He clearly does this for a check and has proven to me to be extremely unprofessional. All I can say is I would not put my life in his hands. Good luck with this guy.