She doesn't seem to understand the attorney's role...
I hired Mrs. Gentili-Purcell to help me obtain a copy of a divorce judgment from Siracusa and to see if my vindictive ex-wife did anything that would slow me/stop me from entering Sicily should I decide to go there again.
Prior to completing the job Mrs. Purcell quit.
Her reason is she was "uncomfo...rtable" continuing with my case because of my sudden lack of trust in her that I vocalized when we spoke on the telephone after she asked for more money.
My request of her was to find out if there is any reason I would have difficulty should I attempt to go into Sicily and also to see a copy of my divorce documents merely to see whose signatures were on it.
She told me in front of my fiance' the $300 I gave her would cover everything I asked. All done on the internet it would take no time at all. I had every expectation of paying a $1500 retainer... minimum.
She sent a copy of my daughter's Birth Certificate, something I did not request, along with other documents I had left in her care when I visited her office, and a Power of Attorney (POA). Suddenly she needed $200 more for the POA and $100 MORE for undefined expenses.
She gave me a very quick timetable with no regard whatsoever to my schedule.
She specifically told me in her office that there is no way she can certify to me or even promise me that I will have no trouble entering Italy. Then when we spoke on the phone she contradicted herself and said she needs this certified divorce document in order to "officially certify" there is nothing for me to worry about in entering Italy.
Huge contradiction.
She told me nearly three weeks earlier she had sent a package with documents I requested inside it. I emailed her a week later telling her I had not received it. She then told me there were some other things of higher importance that came up that kept her from sending it. More than a week later I had not yet received this package. She said she did not have my complete address. I know I put it on the forms she had me fill out and it was on the check I gave her. The very next email from her, moments later, she said she had sent a package to me via FedEx.
She told me several things on the phone that we supposedly spoke about in her office. Neither my fiance' nor I remember any of these things. My fiance' took notes. She does this kind of thing for a living. Neither of us have any recollection of Mrs. Gentili-Purcell's claims.
I thought I heard her say on the phone that she was going to Siracusa to get my divorce papers. A simple miscommunication.
It is not so improbable that I had difficulty understanding her english. She speaks very fast and very garbled. I firmly believe this is not news to her. Later in an email she spoke in a very condescending manner to me saying she had not written anywhere that she was going to Sicily and implying that I'm an idiot for even asking. Also she implied I ask too many questions and how dare I do so.
It is indeed somewhat unsettling that she is unable to control her emotions and she clearly has a very high opinion of herself that has yet to be manifested in anything she has done to earn her money.
I thought we had cleared up all her little hurt feelings, all my questions were answered, and we were ready to proceed.
No one turns down as easy a paycheck as this was for her....for such a ridiculous reason. She had one more step. The POA was in the mail along with both checks. All she had to do was her thing in Italy and we would be finished. The money versus the amount of work and time she would have to spend on this matter is likely among the easiest paydays she's ever had.
But she quit... a quality not very becoming an attorney.