Joseph W. Kellener

We hired Joseph for a landlord - tenant issue and paid him the retainer and filing fee. We subsequently did have not had a good experience with Joseph and Dignity Law Group. It appears to be a small law office with a secretary, that is too busy to handle the case load he takes on. Jospeh did no...t follow up as promised, failed to file when promised and overall is not someone I would recommend based on our experience. The lack of attention to detail, misspelling and drop and paste into legal filings left us with the decision to seek other counsel.

Attorney Kellener completely misadvised me. I contacted him in the fall of 2020, 6 months well into the pandemic/eviction moratorium about a very troublesome tenant I had. He assured me that due to numerous issues, he could successfully get her evicted from my property. I should also mention that ...once I retained him, it became a challenge for me to get him on the phone. Would never return a call, I was always told to call back if he was busy when I called, would take numerous calls on my part to get a 5 minute phone call. I terminated him and found out afterwards that his telling me he could evict my tenant during the moratorium was totally wrong. Numerous attorneys have since told me that any lawyer who told anyone in LA that they could evict a tenant for the issues I was dealing with during the moratorium was either lying or didn't know what they were talking about, in either case, pretty horrific for an attorney to do.

Mr. Kellener was retained for a legal matter that, according to several other firms, should have been an easy win. I paid a $3250 fee up front, expecting thorough and attentive representation. Unfortunately, my experience was disappointing. Communication was inconsistent, requiring many follow-ups ...for clarification, and after the case ruling, I did not receive a call nor was I given clear guidance on crucial next steps. Furthermore, key aspects of my case were not addressed. For example, there was no negotiation with opposing counsel; important details were overlooked and I received conflicting information. This resulted in confusion, lost time, and ultimately a negative outcome, which has had immense personal and financial consequences. Given the life altering impact this has had, it would be monumental if Mr. Kellener would refund the majority of his fee as a gesture of good faith. The funds are critically needed and would help in the recovery from the substantial difficulties that resulted. Hopefully, sharing these details helps others make an informed decision.

Hiring Joe with Dignity Law firm turned out to be a big mistake. During the time I worked with Joe and his partner David, I would experience sub-par communication, unprofessionalism and poor business practices. For instance, when I initially spoke to David, I was given one quote. But then when the... trial attorney, Joe, heard about the figure, he got upset and called me and more than doubled the quote. That was a big red flag that I ignored. Then despite my providing rock-solid evidence, and both Joe and David complimenting me on the organized file I presented, neither attorney ever gave me the impression that they had a grasp on my case. I would spend most of the hours that was charged to me bringing both attorneys up to speed. I was also billed for work outside the scope of my case that I never approved of. I told Joe and David from the beginning that the case would never go to trial, and that’s exactly what happened. The frivolous complaint was dropped. But when it came time to collect my court costs from the plaintiffs, the Dignity Law firm wasn’t very aggressive and didn’t seem to care. To this day I haven’t been reimbursed by the plaintiff. Then when I asked Joe for the emails between Dignity and the party I was suing, I never received them. But I am not surprised. I’m used to them not following through and would constantly have to hunt Joe and his partner down, whether it be via phone or trying to get them to return an email. I just wanted to share my experience. I am an Air Force veteran and this is my true and sworn testimony.