Karen J Malachi

I hired Attorney Karen J Malachi in Feb 2018. I was referred to her by a friend. The referral went terribly bad. First, the initial quote of a retainer, $10,000, seemed unusually high. I failed to shop around for other counselors for representation, as I trusted this friend's advice. Also, I have nev...er been in trouble in my life, so I was unfamiliar with the process of how to even select and hire an attorney. I made a terrible decision to select Attorney Malachi. After dealing with her and her partner, Peggy Jones Golden, for a few weeks, I sought out other counsel prices. I found out I was being charged $6,000 more on average, than the standard in the industry. Second, they appeared determined to stretch my case out to a jury trial. Had I stayed with this attorney, & my case had gone to a jury trial, they quoted me an additional $10,000. I met with counsel 3 times in their Spring St office. Each time, I waited an average of 30 min to an hour to be seen for a scheduled appointment! And finally, not only did they fail to appear in court for my case, but according to the judge, they failed to even file an entry of appearance. I was mortified. I requested my retainer be refunded to me right away, and they have failed to even respond. It has been 2 months, and I still have not received my money back. I have since filed a complaint with the Georgia State Bar, and hope to have a resolution on my refund soon. I did find a new attorney on Avvo who took over the case. I paid him a flat rate several thousands less than what I paid attorney Malachi, and all charges in the case were dropped against me. With my new attorney, I not only did not even have to go to his office, but the charges against me were dropped in a week. I am disappointed that I had to get a loan to hire a new attorney. I will be filing a complaint with the Georgia Bar. Due to the fact that attorney Malachi have failed to respond to my emails and calls to refund me my money, I had no choice, but to file a complaint. Be warned. Stay away.