Steve Pell

I made the mistake of retaining Steve Pell back in 2007 when a friend advised me to "lawyer up" for my divorce. Not knowing how to find a good attorney (besides word of mouth), I picked the lawyer with the biggest ad in the Yellow Pages. Biggest mistake of my life. It started with his staff who we...re completely incompetent. The few times I called with a question, they treated me like I was calling for the very first time (i.e. "How do you spell your last name?" or "What is your phone number?"). Pell would never call me back when I would leave a message with his staff. I engaged in a total of one sit-down with him where I found him to be intimidating and condescending in his approach. Being the first time I'd ever hired an attorney, I figured those characteristics would serve me well in the court room when dealing with the ex-wife's attorney. Wrong. His initial speculation for my bottom line, a month, in Child/Spousal Support came in $1000 higher than expected. I switched attorneys after a very short time with him, but never saw a dime of the remainder of my retainer. Unfortunately, I'm STILL dealing with the fall-out from hiring this guy to this very day. The ex-wife's current attorney recently discovered that the state of CA had no jurisdiction over the Child Custody/Visitation portion of my divorce due to the fact my kids had resided out of state for at least 60 days prior to my filing. I personally feel Pell knew this fact, but decided I was one more "rube" with a retainer fee in hand. And if he didn't know...well, just another testament to his lack of knowledge on CA law. I only wish they had this website back in 2007. It would've saved me the displeasure of ever meeting Pell, while saving me thousands of $$$ in the end.

Situation: Age 66; Married 20+ years; Retired and called back to work twice for two one year terms; 1 of 3 children still at home Wife filed for separation the third time, but I was prepared. With Steve and Dionna Pell, 2 1/2 years later, and 2 weeks after my third retirement, we went to trial. Mr.... Pell came away with my owning all three properties outright, and no spousal support, and the one remaining child still at home, had now passed 18 and was no longer eligible for child support. The result has actually freed me up to bring what remains of the family together, so we can go on building true family relationships with as much as we can with the true family that remains. Meanwhile, the imprudent drain on family resources has been stopped and the full set of assets are being protected from further erosion. My deepest thanks to God first, and Steve and Dionna Pell next. Together they effected a total, clean result that has left me sleeping well. Thank you Steve and Dionna.