Jamie Lynn Anderson

I have never had to have an attorney for anything until recently. I had no idea who to pick or where to start. I was recommended this attorney from someone close to me. She had handled a dissolution for him and he felt she was dependable. I imagine if i just needed someone to handle the paperwork and... show up I would have been fine. However; I needed an attorney to advocate for me and my family in a "parenting time" dispute. The opposing party had 10 years worth of various convictions and no attorney to represent him in the case. He had also been absent for several years by his own choice. Jamie consulted with me on the phone initially and proposed all of these actions that she could utilize to uphold my views. All I would have to do was pay her a large fee that would cover everything, including the retainer. I emptied my savings and paid the fee. I felt positive that everything would work out. I still felt good after meeting with her in the office. In the days leading up to the pretrial the other party was arrested and pending trial for domestic violence charge #3. Pretrial date arrived. Jamie arrives 8 minutes before time to go into the court room. She asks me questions about the current situation and other party. Seemingly unprepared. Trial ends up delayed pending the outcome of the domestic violence case. Trial date arrives and again she arrives 10 minutes prior to time of trial. The outcome is what Jamie described as worst case scenario. There were no requests for psych evals or extra demands as I had been lead to believe. Just agreement with the judge to grant parenting time. This time also ordered to be supervised by myself and my fiance. Which i have to admit was an awkward nightmare for me. This is strange considering that I was at one time a victim of domestic violence at the hands of this very man. With documented protective orders in our history. I did not understand why or how this happened. But with the court order in place I upheld it. The documents were prepared by Jamie. I received them in the mail and noted a major clerical error in the meeting times. It read 2-4 hours instead of 2:00 to 4:00. I called to report it and she said no big deal. These visits lasted about 3 months before he stopped showing up. I contacted Jamie to see what i should do now. She had me come in and explained that I should pay another fee so she can file to modify the agreement, rather than just terminate it. Then we can go back and terminate it later for another fee I guess. I have not gone back and intend to retain other counsel to clear up this mess. I'm not blaming Jamie for this issue in my life. I think this is how it feels to be taken by a salesman or saleswoman in this case. I believed that she would follow through with all the things discussed before the actual court date. I collected every piece of background information and provided her with a detailed file. I definitely feel like she could have done more, but it is done now.