Marsha Ann Basco

Positives: -Reasonable cost, especially compared to some -Achieved desired result, mostly -Aggressive -Excels at procedure and document preparation Negatives: -Aggression extends to clients as well -Acts annoyed at all client contact, even in preparation for trial -No empathy, doesn't seem... to care whatsoever -Forgot about a court date -Seemed to be cross-examining "on the fly," looked unprepared at times -Her phone rang and she answered it during court -Ego, excessive pridefulness and takes offense an perceived/imagined slights to ego -"Chip on her shoulder" -Does not like to answer questions between hearings, or before hearings. Basically, don't talk to her and just pay her. -Weakness in interpersonal client communication skills -Low Tech office and skills, email is not an option If you don't have a lot of money, this is a decent route. Better than nothing, by far. She has a lot of experience and has seen a lot, so I walked away in better legal shape than when I arrived. (For this, she get a "fair" rating and not a 1 star-"poor" rating.) But along the way, she was ice cold, downright rude and nasty. I was a good, paying client, and she treated me like she was doing charity work and I should be grateful. I hired her many times, and she received a lot of money, but you wouldn't know it by her attitude. She talked down to me, and was openly annoyed with my questions. I would be happy to pay for those questions to be answered, if it bothers her so much, but she has a flat rate. Because of her flat rate, she barely feels obligated to even speak to me to prepare for the trial, let alone anything in-between that comes up. I expected her to be more sensitive, especially knowing the kind of abuse I had endured. In retrospect, I was still suffering from the effects of domestic violence, or else I shouldn't have repeatedly hired someone so cruel. It was a vulnerable time in my life, and I actually felt consistently degraded by my own lawyer, and it added to the pain of the experience, frankly. But on the positive, all that miserable, toxic attitude comes out in the courtroom in (mostly) all the right ways against the defendant. If you are on a tight budget and have a sneaky domestic abuser who secretly hates women, HIRE THIS ATTORNEY. She will trigger him and he will expose himself for what he really is. during court. That was my experience, I hope it works for others. So overall, this is a mixed bag. The price is nice, especially when you know you have a long legal battle ahead. If you are a survivor of profound lifelong abuse, have PTSD and want to be treated with some empathy and respect, this may not be the right lawyer for you. That was my experience, anyway. In life, I find that we mostly get what we pay for. I can understand this experience only in retrospect and by comparison. I have new representation now, and although it costs more, the quality of the communication is much more refined. By contrast, my questions are welcome and answered thoroughly at the new firm, but at this one I was treated as though a good paying client is a bother.