Ah shit…I didn’t mean to quote ALL of your post there.
Apologies to the hamsters etc.
I had my first real consult with a lawyer this past week. Very nice guy, or so it seems on having a cup of coffee with him (my “initial consultation” was “free”), but the $200/hour for a guy whose name is not even on the letterhead is going to sting a bit. Especially just to review a contract, although my hope (bet?) is that it’s going to save me some money in the long run, otherwise I’d not have done it. I just hope he’s a fast reader.
As to the suggestion that the immense amount of paperwork may justify the billing hours, I’d suggest that the immense amount of paperwork begets the billing hours. Even the 30 page contract that I had was not terribly complicated, nor the extra 30 or so pages of addendums. It was terribly winded and wordy, which seems to be the case of most legal documents that I’ve attempted to read. In fact, the main reason that I’ve consulted an attorney for this stuff is to find the nuance and trickery that’s almost certain to be hidden in there. I guess like most other things, consultants don’t come cheap. Now I just have to find a way to charge lawyers a boatload for the services I might provide them, so that in the end it’s a wash.
Oh, and good luck on your case kambuckta, I hope that you’re okay now.
Living in the great state of Louisiana as I do, I can assure you that if you think the legal system anywhere else is byzantine, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Just the titles of the various pleadings our office produces can run to three and four lines of “declinatory exceptions” and “cumulative” thises and thats. Amazing. They’ve taken legalese to a fine art and then expanded on it. Paying someone $150 or $200 an hour to translate it is understandable.