Patricia H. Virnig

I hired this attorney to help me get a divorce and work out custody of my children. The first meeting I had with her she made me feel intimidated and like I had done something wrong after explaining my situation with my husband. She made rude remarks and talked over me. You might be asking "why wou...ld I hire her then?" well I was scared and didn't know the ropes of divorce and custody. I thought I would give her a chance regardless of my first impression. I felt her attitude might spill over into court and work for my benefit. I was SO wrong! I paid her retainer fee of $1500 and it was gone in no time! She charges CRAZY amounts for her services. For example: emails (to write or read them $100 each), letters (usually one or two lines of text $50-$75) And she sends numerous copies and charges for each one separately. Those are just some examples of her outrageous pricing. I understand that attorneys are not cheap. The going rate around this area is $200 an hour. Her charges are over the top! She drains your retainer without really doing anything for you. Bottomline is this.... I paid her almost $4000 and for that I received a filed complaint for divorce and a temporary order for spousal support. She never gave me hope with my case or even acted like she was on my side. I felt like I was going to have to "settle". I wasn't asking for the moon! She asked the judge to continue my case and it's been over a year now. Nothing has happened. She didn't ask me if this was what I wanted to do with my case. She assumed it would be the best option since I was in an RN program and hadn't graduated yet. What this had to do with me getting a divorce still puzzles me! After a year of my case being put on hold and realizing this attorney was not going to fight for what I wanted I fired her. She kept the balance I had with her which was $341 and told me it cost that much for her to withdraw from my case. I feel like she was unprofessional and took it personally when I told her I no longer needed her services. I may sound like a disgruntled person, but I'm simply trying to help anyone who is looking for a good attorney in the Harrison area. This attorney is NOT who you want! I have never written a review on something like this. I am the type that only reads reviews and tries to find good services. I should have been more vigilant before I hired her. I'm not some unreasonable person expecting to be handed exactly what I want on a silver platter. I simply wanted an attorney that would fight for me and not rob me blind.