Pro Se? Translation: Pro Pay. Better Get Your Wallet Out!

Good afternoon Blogosphere!  I'm rekindling an old article from a different forum on Chicago Law Source, for some good old fashioned news you can use, 2014-style.

Have you ever thought that for a legal matter it would be simpler and cheaper to forego hiring an attorney and to represent yourself?  You have probably heard many horror stories of legal bills and cases gone "awry" what with us lawyers charging so much for our services.  Well, even in hard economic times, it really makes more sense than not to still hire an attorney, rather than venturing off on your own.  

Even if you think you know how to present your case, here are Five Reasons why you should not do it!

       

                  1)        You don't know the Code of Civil Procedure in your state and there are very technical rules in all courts that mandate how you file things, how you present your facts, and timelines for filing documents.

                   

                  2)        The judge is not permitted to help you and they cannot give you advice and it is expected that pro se parties conduct themselves as skillfully as attorneys.

                   

                  3)        You will not EVER be able to objectively review your case against the other side's case, because you are biased and you can't think clearly on your own issue.

                   

                  4)       You will take much longer to handle your own case because you will do at least some things wrong, so it's more efficient (and thus less stressful) to hire an attorney.

                   

                  5)        You haven't been trained to analyze facts vs. law so you won't know what to argue and when and you may get hung up on trying to present factual arguments when the issue is legal, etc.  

                   

When considering whether to hire an attorney, you must evaluate your case objectively, and an attorney's job is to tell you whether you have a case.  Nine times out of ten, what the client thinks is important is not as important as it was believed to be.  

Additionally, when pro se parties represent themselves, because they so often do things incorrectly, the whole system gets clogged and the process slows, because the judge has to deal with a cog in the wheel.  Have you ever seen a traffic jam on a highway because of an accident?  You bet!  Well that happened because someone made a mistake, and the rest of us have to wait for it to be cleaned up so traffic can move.  A courtroom functions in the same way, and when you are there arguing how you know what you are doing and how you should get special treatment because you don't have or can't afford an attorney, that is just as much of a traffic jam as it would be if we were in the car.  Moreover, when I as an attorney have to wait in a courtroom for a pro se party to finish their speech, my clients (i.e. you who may be reading this) must pay for my time to sit there!  

Translation:  pro se parties cost everyone more!

As a result, before you think you should go to court on your own, it's highly advisable to at least get a few opinions from attorneys to evaluate your case.  If you can handle it on your own, someone will definitely tell you.  For more information, please email me or call me at 312-720-0082 or visit www.levinlawltd.com for information about our practice.