Linh Thiet Nguyen

Linh was so great to work with. He really stepped up on my behalf during a very difficult part of my life. I was working in a hostile work environment & went without lunches, breaks or being paid for overtime I worked for almost a year before I was wrongfully terminated. He built the case and follo...wed it through to the end. I was finally compensated for what I was owed for so long. Rest assured you're in great hands with Linh. Thanks for everything!!

I regret paying Linh Nguyen even a dime to represent me in a pre-hearing settlement and a full hearing before the State Personnel Board. Although I prepared the entire case for him and provided several summaries, he gave no indication that he ever read the material I provided. He merely took the info...rmation I provided and pasted it into the official forms - something I have never known lawyers not to complete for their clients. I stayed up countless nights, putting together e-mails, content for the case, rebuttals, and graphs to prove how my employer was harassing me over a three-year period. He literally didn't have any work to do in my case – just defend my case the day of the hearing. At the pre‑hearing, he introduced me, and simply sat down. He expected me to defend my own case even though I paid him in full for fighting my case. He later told me that my employer’s attorney stated they would not adjust their offer, so there was no point in presenting my case. So he didn’t even try to present a case, or defend the difficult position I was placed in. After the pre-hearing settlement, I had no intention of hiring him for the full hearing unless he made his role more clear. I had little time to make up my mind or to shop for another attorney. I had to consider my full-time job and family, and the short timeframe before the hearing. I met with him to ensure my case and my career was protected. I communicated my expectations to him, and he agreed. He told me that some of my information could be quite persuasive in front of the judge. He said I would have to present some of it in front of the judge, but he gave me hope for my case. I reluctantly hired him a second time. In preparation for the case, I was the one up at night after work, putting together the case, rebuttals, facts, arguments etc. I had three meetings with him lasting 1 to 1.5 hours each. This is all the time he spent on my case. His time and effort in the whole process was minimal at best. On the day of the trial, I had a lot of hope – I brought a lot of evidence with me to the courtroom, and I was ready for a judge to finally hear my case after three years of harassment. Linh told me before the trial even started that my employer is going to terminate me if I choose to proceed with the trial. He further said that there is no way we can win this case. He was reluctant to go in front of the Judge. There I was, alone. I felt as though I had ultimately no choice other than to withdraw from the hearing and accept my employer’s slightly better offer in settlement. I had to sign papers that I would not sue my employer. In this entire effort, Linh did not fight for me. Never once did I hear him represent my point of view. It almost felt as if he colluded with my employers before the trial. A lawyer is supposed to express his or her client's best interests to the opposing party, and I feel he failed on that mark completely. I had paid him in full before the pre-hearing and before the full hearing to provide services that he never provided. I feel deceived and misguided. Accepting Linh’s advice to settle my case—under extreme time pressure—was the worst decision I have ever made in my life. It has changed my life forever. Linh’s attitude changed radically before and after he took my money. Linh does not have integrity. He will take your money and ask you to put together your entire case, and then decide at the last moment that he does not want to present your case. Do not let yourself be deceived by this man. He is not a trial lawyer. Choose him if you want him to make easy deals, requiring minimal effort. My case was complicated, yes, but not impossible if fought with the integrity and dedication it required. What I needed most was a lawyer who believed in my case enough to defend it and communicate my side to the judge, not one who cowered as soon as the opposing party tried to use a surprise scare tactic to force a settlement.

I have worked with Linh before and had a serious employment issue at hand. It was a wrongful termination claim. Mr. Nguyen took the case on a contingency with the right to place a lien on the case or charge me attorney fees if I sought other counsel. For nearly three months, my emails went unresponde...d to. On the times he did respond, his replies were deliberately short. One-word or single-phrase responses were the norm. For three months, I asked for updates on the case and never received any substantial response. After three months, we finally have a phone consultation and he makes up some excuse about why he would like to withdrawal from the case. The contingency fee specifies that he could withdrawal as counsel if the case was not financially possible: for example, spending $100,000 in fees to pursue a case valued at $5,000. His reason for withdrawing from my case is because the motion work in a discrimination claim involving medical records is "a lot of work." He also said it can be "expensive. ". These are expenses he agreed to when he entered into an agreement with me. For three months, I considered taking other counsel and relieving him since it felt as though he has abandoned the case. Because I actually followed the retainer agreement, I never did this because I did not want to be liable for attorney fees. He sent me an email telling me he was quitting. So at this point, the clock has been ticking the entire time to file a case or administrative complaint ... I've lost like 3 months towards the statute of limitations. I just want people to know that Linh is a good attorney when he actually follows his own agreements. I find it unethical that he could do this, however ... it really shows a lack of respect for the client personally. I can't express this , except to say I am dismayed at having to start all over in finding legal counsel after handing over every document of my case file to him and being ignored for three months.