Susan Biniszkiewicz Collins

Susan Collins

I recently became aware of this post, and I am naturally quite perturbed by such a scathing anonymous review. In response, I would first say that I have never -- in my entire career -- charged any client $100,000, or even anything close to that. I suspect that this review might have been posted by a disgruntled spouse of a former client. I requested that Avvo verify that this was posted by an actual client. Avvo told me that as long as the person who submits the review claims to be a former client, they will not take any steps to verify that s/he actually was a client. (Apparently, I could use an alternate email address and review myself as a fantastic attorney, claiming to be a client of mine! Or get family or friends to do that.) As far as the claim of "false promises" goes, I don't make any promises at all, except that I will use my best efforts on my client's behalf. In particular, I can't promise what other people (the spouse, the judge, the other attorney, etc.) will do. It would be foolish to try. The claim that I “extended “ the reviewer's case for my own "benefit," is likewise absurd. It may seem to a frustrated client that an attorney benefits from cases that last longer and cost more. I’m not sure whether any attorneys actually try to make cases last longer in order to “rack up fees,” but I certainly don’t. The truth is that it’s far more pleasant to handle cases that are shorter and less litigious. However, some cases require a disproportionate amount of effort and time, usually due either to the intractability of the other spouse, or the spouse’s refusal to make full, truthful and meaningful financial disclosure, or both. I always encourage my own clients to “come clean” and to cooperate. The truth will eventually be found out anyway, and it’s a lot easier (and cheaper) to bring it forward voluntarily. Getting information from the client’s spouse, on the other hand, is a lot harder and more expensive, but eventually can be done. If that is what is required to properly handle a client’s case, that’s what I do. However, I’m always open to suggestions on how that can be accomplished cheaper and more easily. Furthermore, clients are ALWAYS able to settle the case, and stop the litigation. All they have to do is agree on the terms of settlement, and request that the attorneys draft a formal writing to memorialize that agreement. I have never refused to draft a formal agreement based on the client’s report of the settlement, although I have sometimes given my client a list of issues that need to be resolved before a meaningful and enforceable agreement can be drafted. However, if one party wants to settle and the other does not, that’s not something the attorney for the client who wants to settle can control -- or even influence much. So how did the reviewer above come up with “over $100K” for what “should have cost less than 10K”? Well, as I said, maybe this was not posted by a client, and the reviewer therefore had no idea what the actual fees were. If it was posted by an actual client, I would suggest that the client’s difficulty with arithmetic might have contributed greatly to the client’s dissatisfaction, as well as his or her idea of what the outcome of the case should have been. If that’s so, I’m sorry you are disappointed. But there are things in my control, and things that are not in my control. And when and whether your spouse decided to settle the case was not something within my control. Lastly, the review is entitled., "Too many lies." Does the reviewer mean to suggest that SOME lies are okay? I don't think so!