James Peter Hess

I hired Mr. Hess over the phone to represent me in a custody case that my ex had unexpectedly filed. (I was living out of state at the time.) My initial meetings with him went well and I trusted that he would do a good job defending me at the pendente lite hearing. This was my first experience in a... courtroom setting and I was largely ignorant of the rules governing testimony, particularly as hearsay is concerned. Apparently Mr. Hess was ignorant also as he failed to object to much hearsay given by the other side. He also allowed a lot of irrelevant testimony into the record without objection. I lost custody at the hearing and I firmly believe that his poor representation had a lot to do with it. He's a nice guy but was extraordinarily careless with the most important thing in my life. I hired a different lawyer to represent me at the final hearing but unfortunately the damage had already been done. I am still trying to dig out of the hole created at that hearing over 10 years down the line.