John Russell Griffin

I was a former client of attorney John Griffin. However, I do not share the positive experience commented by other reviewers of this attorney. I hired Mr. Griffin to handle a consumer debt collection case in Montgomery County, Maryland this year. I was the plaintiff in the case. I brought him to ...assist me in my case after I pursued my case as a pro se for about six months. I thought it was beneficial to involve a counsel especially since the defendant was one of belligerent and uncooperative. In any case, I hired him about two months before trial of my case. So, I did not have time to do the required due diligence on the attorney’s legal caliber. In this regard, I solely and exclusively relied from Avvo.com reviews on the attorney. I was encouraged when I read other clients’ feedback about the attorney. Unfortunately, my experience turned out to be the contrary. Here are the main reasons why this is the case. Mr. Griffin initially informed me about his “free initial consultation”. However, in a rush against time, I forgot what I learned in my Economics class years ago and that “there is no free lunch, after all!”. At the beginning of what appeared as initial consultation, he asked me to provide him all the documents that I worked on the case via email. After he thoroughly reviewed these documents, he drafted a retainer agreement to pursue the case. It is also after he assured me that I had a case. Be that as it may, a couple of days after this initial “free” consultation, I also mailed him the hardcopies of all the same materials provided to him earlier. Meanwhile, he sent me a bill statement incorporating the time he has purportedly spent to reviewing the documents that I provided him during the “free” initial consolation”. What kind of attorney would charge you back for the “free” initial consultation that he promised in the first place? My honest answer is simply: only an unscrupulous one! I come from a “buyer beware” state from across the river: VIRGINIA. However, I made a judgement mistake and ended up an inexperienced counsel. Regarding handling of my legal case, I am not sure if Mr. Griffin is as knowledgeable about the law as any average attorney, either. As to myself, I am educated, but not in the realm of legal matters. Still, I had to direct him to do things that he should have already known. Later, he kept charging me for duplicate line items and for things that I have asked him not to pursue, and other excessive fees to handling my case. On the day of the trial, among other things: the presiding judge was upset with him for not following up with the opposing counsel; he watched me being grilled by the opposing counsel and remained silent without raising any objection even if things call for such; failed to properly examine the defendant and his witness…etc. My experience with Mr. Griffin is that he not only overcharges for things he may/may not have worked for, but he was careless in handling my case. And, that is the reason I had asked him to withdraw from my case. I am not a happy camper about this experience at all. Consumer beware with this attorney!