Craig Harris Collins

Recently I was involved in a DV case and hired Craig Collins based on his years of experience, his profile on this site and the initial consultation. I regretted that decision deeply. I believe I would have been in a better situation had I NOT hired this lawyer. To put it simply - 1. Craig Colli...ns is not experienced in the criminal defense field at all 2. He adopted a risk strategy that got me into trouble in front of a judge 3. He was far less up front with his fee schedule Putting all the above together, the net result is -- I paid him a boat load of money but almost got myself in jail because of his incompetence. Here are more details of my interactions with him: - The initial consultation went really well. He appeared exceptionally sympathetic and caring. In the end, I realized -- that is the only thing he has going for him - Alarm started to go off when nobody, I mean not new, not old, but zero out of half a dozen lawyers in the county criminal defense circle I spoke to knows him - I asked him to recommend another lawyer for a family member. Despite being in the business for 20 some years, Collins couldn't get others to return his call. The one who did is the one who I should have hired. But now I can't any more. - Collins had trouble with numbers, details of the case or even the very basics of where the county runs DV classes. He sent me to an expense online class, one that is not recognized by the local court, yet requires a judge's signature for any refund. - Collins said he knew all the judges and DAs in the county court. It turned out he didn't recognize any of the prosecutors on my case. Nor did anything he said about the judges turned out to be true. - Looking back, I am convinced today that a competent lawyer would have prepared me for jury trial from the beginning. Collins, on the other hand, told me mine was a easy case and he had a killer strategy hidden in sleeves and so on - I was very skeptical of his legal argument. It defied common sense and there are plenty of evidences (such as case studies, court documents, etc.) against it. When challenged, he chided me for trying to be a "weekend lawyer" - When I went to meet him before the pre-trial conference, instead of going over the case, like our plans, contingencies and all that stuff, he told me about his life and his family. A warm gesture but later I found out I had to pay $1000 for that session. - On the day of the conference, he came out of the judge's chamber white-faced and kept murmuring, "I don't understand this ... It is rather curious" because, whatever he said in the chamber must have upset the judge so much that the judge threatened us with a higher jail term than what the DA asked for - When he finally came out the funk and started talking about preparing for a jury trial, the first thing came out of his mouth was "I believe you will lose the case. But don't worry, I will appeal right away." - His opportunistic trait is not limited to his legal strategy. He made a name for himself back in the 90s when a New York Times article talked how he cut corners on his work but billed his clients as if he did the whole thing. In the end, a judge ruled against him - In my case, after I told him I dumped him for another lawyer, he sent me a bill that tripled the amount he first gave me. When I challenged him, he was very skillful in reading our agreement, and very lawyerly in putting me on the defense for even daring to question him. That day, it was a very different Craig Collins talking. So that is my story. If you read this far, and you still want to try him, you better get ready for jail.