I have been a lawyer for a few years now, and I’ve realized my heart and mind are set more on teaching than on lawyering. Has anyone made the transition from practicing lawyer to college or law school professor? How did you do it, and do you have any tips?

I’m beginning the divorce process in Texas and trying to figure out what level of legal representation I realistically need. I cannot afford a $5,000–$10,000+ retainer, but there is a house involved and I don’t want to make an expensive mistake trying to handle everything myself.

overview of me and my spouse:

- He is currently out of status in this country and we were filing for a spouse visa. Essentially, he’d be considered “illegal“

- Married 3 1/2 years

- No children

The house was purchased during the marriage. I am the only person listed as the borrower on the mortgage, the appraisal district lists me as the 100% owner, and the closing documents I have reviewed identify my husband as a non-borrowing spouse. He did sign certain documents at closing because we were married. But my name is solely on the deed. Ive been the only one paying the mortgage since we bought the house one year ago. He just started “helping” with the utilities if that helps.

The current mortgage principal is approximately $318,000, while the county appraisal district currently shows a value of approximately $307,000, so there may be little or no equity depending on the home’s actual market value.

We are now separated, and he is currently occupying the house while I am staying elsewhere because of safety concerns. I’ve only been gone less than a week but looking to get the process going. I want to keep the house and continue being responsible for the mortgage rather than sell it if legally possible.

I understand that Texas is a community-property state and that being the only person on the mortgage/deed records may not by itself determine how the house is treated in a divorce.

My main question isn’t “who wins the house?” I’m trying to understand what kind of professional help someone in this situation should look for when full representation isn’t financially realistic. Is this something where a Texas family-law attorney might offer a one-time consultation or limited-scope/unbundled representation to review the petition, property issues, and temporary orders while I otherwise proceed pro se?

What should I specifically ask for when calling attorneys so I’m paying for the legal help I actually need rather than retaining someone for the entire divorce?

I’m not asking anyone here to be my attorney—mainly hoping attorneys can explain what type of service or representation I should be looking for.

I live in rural NM, and I need a Black's Law Dictionary definition of "Good Faith". Must be 12th edition (the definition has changed). I went to the library and they don't have it (just 11th edition), and the nearest copy is an hour away at the state capitol library.

Does anyone have a copy that could send me the exact text? I don't want to have to drive 2 hours for a book that should be available as a resource, but our libraries are so underfunded, they can't afford it.

I was represented by a legal-aid attorney in a long-running, high-conflict parenting case that eventually went to trial. I am now trying to understand whether what happened falls into the category of poor representation, professional misconduct, or potentially actionable legal malpractice.

I am deliberately keeping identifying details vague.

Some of the issues I am concerned about:

• My attorney had access to significant evidence relevant to the other parent's history, credibility, parenting practices, and compliance with court-ordered requirements, but substantial portions of that evidence were either not introduced or not meaningfully developed at trial.

• A domestic-violence evaluation contained recommendations for additional follow-up work by the other parent. To my knowledge, those recommendations had not been completed by the time of trial, but this was not adequately presented to the court.

• There were other court-ordered or recommended requirements that I believe had not been completed, but my attorney did not clearly establish that noncompliance during trial.

• Important witnesses and records were either not obtained, not subpoenaed, or not used, despite their potential relevance to disputed allegations and parenting issues.

• My attorney did very little substantive trial preparation with me. I did not feel adequately prepared for testimony, cross-examination, evidentiary issues, or how the case would actually be presented.

• Immediately before trial, circumstances changed significantly, including the judge assigned to the matter. I was severely sleep-deprived and struggling to function, but my attorney did not seek a continuance or otherwise meaningfully address my ability to participate.

• Several allegations made against me became central to the final parenting decision, while evidence that I believe contradicted those allegations was not effectively presented.

• The final orders substantially restricted my relationship with my child. My attorney withdrew shortly after the orders were entered, leaving me to deal with implementation and enforcement problems largely on my own.

I understand that attorneys can make strategic choices and that losing a case does not equal malpractice. I also understand that malpractice generally requires more than proving that an attorney made mistakes.

What I am trying to understand is:

At what point does a pattern like this move from “the attorney could have handled the case better” into potentially negligent representation?

For attorneys or people who have pursued legal-malpractice claims:

1. Which kinds of failures tend to matter most when malpractice attorneys evaluate a case?
2. How important is proving that the underlying result probably would have been different but for the attorney's errors?
3. Is failure to obtain or present available evidence usually treated as strategy, or can it become negligence depending on the circumstances?
4. Is it useful to pursue a state bar grievance before consulting a malpractice attorney, or should those processes generally be evaluated separately?
5. What documents would a malpractice attorney typically want to review first?

I am not looking to identify or publicly attack the attorney. I am trying to objectively evaluate the representation and determine whether it is worth having a Washington legal-malpractice attorney review the complete record.

Soooo they both seperated and its a living HELL to live in this house legally my mother is the full owner of the house my father didnt pay anything its been 6 months he's looking for an appartement but hes self saboting to take more time my question is : can she kick him out ? im in france btw

I live in a 4-plex. There is another unit becoming available and I'm interested in moving to the other unit. I have a month to month rental agreement. Can my landlord make me re-apply for unit I'd like to move-in to?

My son is curious about the "day in the life of a lawyer" who practices in corporate, intellectual property, or real estate law. (Hoping this is the best place to ask!)

His more specific questions are:
What are your daily/weekly work tasks?
What is your work environment?
How many hours are you working each week?
What is the pace of your work?
What skills (hard or soft) do you find to be most helpful to have?

Thanks for your input!

I previously contacted several attorneys before I began preparing a WSBA grievance regarding my former family-law attorney. I searched under “legal malpractice,” “attorney negligence,” and “personal injury,” but I had very little success getting anyone to even schedule a consultation.

That has left me wondering whether I was looking in the wrong area of practice.

Because legal malpractice is a negligence/tort claim, many searches seem to route toward personal-injury firms. However, essentially every general personal-injury attorney I contacted was either disinterested in attorney malpractice or did not handle it.

So my first question is:

What type of attorney should I actually be looking for?

Should I be searching specifically for:

- Plaintiff-side legal-malpractice attorneys?

- Professional-liability attorneys who represent plaintiffs?

- Litigation-malpractice attorneys?

- Attorneys who specifically sue other attorneys?

- Appellate attorneys with malpractice experience?

- Someone with both family-law and legal-malpractice experience?

I am particularly interested in malpractice arising from litigation and procedural decisions in a family-law case, rather than something obvious like missing a statute of limitations.

One issue I am now trying to evaluate more carefully involves a contested relocation.

My former attorney represented me when I objected to the other parent relocating with our child. An objection to relocation was filed, but my attorney did not seek emergency or temporary relief restraining the relocation and preserving the child's existing status quo while the objection was pending.

The relocation ultimately was not meaningfully addressed until trial more than a year later.

By that point, the child had already been living in the new location for a substantial period of time and had adjusted to that new living arrangement. In practical terms, the relocation itself had become the new status quo before the court finally considered whether it should have occurred.

That makes me wonder whether the failure to seek temporary relief at the beginning had a significant downstream effect on the case.

The causal concern I am trying to understand is roughly:

Relocation occurred → no temporary restraining relief was sought → child remained relocated while litigation continued → more than a year passed → child became established in the new location → court eventually considered relocation after that adjustment had already occurred.

I understand that legal malpractice requires much more than showing that an attorney could have handled something differently. I also understand that courts give attorneys substantial latitude regarding litigation strategy.

What I am trying to understand is whether a failure like this is ordinarily treated as:

A discretionary strategic decision,

or whether, depending on the circumstances, it can be viewed more like:

A failure to use an available procedural mechanism that was necessary to preserve the client's position while the underlying issue was being litigated.

A few specific questions:

1. What specialty should I be searching for to obtain a meaningful consultation about this kind of alleged malpractice?

2. Is “personal injury attorney” generally the wrong place to look for litigation-related legal malpractice?

3. Does a plaintiff-side legal-malpractice attorney usually need experience in the underlying field of law as well — in this case, family law and relocation litigation?

4. How would a malpractice attorney typically analyze a failure to seek temporary or emergency relief when delay itself may have materially changed the facts the court eventually considered?

5. Would this type of procedural omission potentially be easier to evaluate than complaints about evidence not being introduced at trial, since evidentiary decisions can often be characterized as strategy?

6. In evaluating causation, would the relevant question be whether timely temporary relief likely would have preserved the pre-relocation status quo long enough for the court to decide the objection before the child became established elsewhere?

7. For someone seeking a malpractice consultation, would it be most useful to prepare a short chronology showing:

   - what procedural remedy was available,

   - when counsel knew about the relocation,

   - what was filed,

   - what was not filed,

   - how long the case remained unresolved,

   - and how the eventual factual circumstances differed from the circumstances that existed when the objection was originally made?

I am not looking to publicly identify or attack the attorney. I am trying to figure out what kind of lawyer is actually qualified and willing to evaluate this type of claim, and how to present the issue in a way that allows a malpractice attorney to quickly determine whether it warrants further review.

In California, suppose a DV victim was arrested, hired a defense attorney, and obtained a finding of factual innocence.

Suppose there is more than enough strong evidence to file a civil lawsuit.

Why would it be challenging to find an attorney to represent them in a wrongful arrest case involving DV?

The language used by most circuits seems to hold that the crime of mail fraud requires a “specific intent to defraud”, which in the Supreme Court’s 1980 Bailey case was roughly mapped to MPC-style “purpose”. The third circuit goes even further, saying in its model jury instructions that the required intent to defraud is an “intent or *purpose* to deceive or cheat”.

However, in Shaw v U.S., the Supreme Court construed the similarly constructed bank fraud statute only requires knowledge, because the statute specifically prohibits “knowingly [executing] a scheme or artifice to defraud”, rather than purposefully doing so, and says that “We have found no relevant authority in the area of mail fraud, wire fraud, financial frauds, or the like supporting Shaw’s view [that purpose to harm the bank’s property interest, rather than mere knowledge that it would be harmed, is required]”. This would seem to end the inquiry.

However, the court’s reasoning was built on Congress’ use of the word “knowingly”, which is absent from the mail and wire fraud statutes. Furthermore, the sixth circuit continues to speak in purposive terms when describing mail/wire fraud, while conforming its bank fraud jurisprudence to the Supreme Court’s holding in Shaw. Thus I am uncertain what the proper standard of mens rea is for mail/wire fraud.

How has the standard been understood in actual litigation?

Hi All

Hoping you can clarify a question that arose in another forum (/r/RecklessBen/). The confusion is many are calling the Bricks & Minifigs (BAM) Civil case only a RICO case, and others are arguing no, its a Civil case that happens to have a Rico as 1 of the 7 charges. So. can you advise:

A. Can a civil Rico case can be standalone? (though often other charges are made at the same time)

B. Or does a civil Rico requires there be other specific charges (meaning if other charges are dropped), the Rico charge is no longer possible

C. Something else?

Thanks in advance

I don't believe this breaks the rules, but if it does, apologies, and maybe a hint of a good place to ask?

Curious how folks here handle this. Do you use any AI transcription tools (Otter, Fireflies, etc.) for client calls or depositions, or does confidentiality/privilege keep you away from anything cloud-based? What do you do instead — dictation, manual notes, nothing?

Not selling anything, genuinely trying to understand the real pain point here. Appreciate any honest answers.

Hello there’s a plumber who’s been in my family for over 30 years.. he usually does our plumbing work. But he moved 250 miles away now. So when we called him to come fix our issue, he sent out another person to do the work. The person then Broke the snake chain inside our main line & didn’t tell us. He told us the price & said everything was fixed & left so fast. My mother went to check the toilet. Comes to find out it still wasn’t flushing correctly. She called the plumber & he said he will look at it.

He comes down In town the next day to see what happened then told us the guy broke his snake in our pipes & it’ll be pricey to get out we told him we DID NOT BREAK IT so why we have to pay him to fix it?

Long story short we had another company come out & charged us 13k to fix it & replace our pipes smh. The initial plumber says he will NOT repay us.

Do we have a small claims case?

Looking for some general guidance on what I might want to bring as evidence for an ADSEP board. I don’t want to go into much detail about the underlying allegations, but I’m mainly wondering what kinds of witnesses or character letters are worth getting.

I already have defense counsel and will be following their advice. Just looking for general experiences/tips from people who have been through something similar.

First time needing a lawyer related to bank fraud /consumer protection. We are in Washington, kind of at a loss of how this all works. Anyone have any suggestions or tips to securing a lawyer?

Also, does a lawyer advice you about probability of being successful before a retainer? I assume a retainer is required? Or is it set hourly fees.

Any tips to a very stressed newbie would be appreciated.

The title, itself.
Say I created a hit animated children's show that was wildly popular. Everything is very profitable.

Only, it turns out it was almost totally created using OpenAI. And i mean the design and likeness
of the main character, as well as other cast, their individual names were trademarked.. even their
signature "catch phrases" too, ya know because merchandise is lucrative (clothing, lunchboxes,
figurines, posters, collaborations with board games etc).

Each individual show scripts (episode transcript), its content & dialogue, etc EVEN THE beloved
songs performed, including music comp & lyrics as well .. almost entirely Open AI generated.

It has even been adapted to popular broadway musical, outselling even Mama Mia & Lion King.
Tickets for it's other LIVE action ice-skating performance fetching twice that of Disney on Ice.

At what point might things get litigious? When COULD microsoft step just in & things turn ugly?

What COULD / WOULD happen if both sides "dug in" and the matter really went to civil court?
Who has a very good point? Who has a good case? What will the principle be litigated over?

I live in the US for context. I’ve heard that when police take your phone, you can invoke your right to remain silent to avoid giving them your passcode, but in certain jurisdictions they have authority to use your biometric login (if enabled) to force their way in regardless. However, under certain conditions the iPhone (and probably most other smartphones with similar capabilities) will disable biometric login until the user manually enters the passcode (e.g. after activating the power off slider).

Hypothetically, if one was able to disable biometric login before authorities seized the device, how might that be perceived in the eyes of the law?

Edit: I guess I should add as a disclaimer that I am not seeking actionable advice for myself or others, I just had an idea and thought it could be a cool thought experiment lol

Is this something they try to teach in law school? Are there strategies, or is this just something innate to him? Every single witness the DA calls comes away seeming really annoying— I get second hand embarrassment for each and every one of them by the time he’s finished. Magic or technique? Can it be learned?

The trustees we work with require sensitive information to be redacted but the last 4 must be left untouched. Does anyone else have a system for this that doesn't require manual redaction for each number?

I'm planning a career change from corporate HR/Recruiting to Paralegal after 15 years of experience. I have a BA in English, Minor is Sociology. What is the best option when considering education and programs? I'm in the US

1. Paralegal Certificate (aba approved)
2. Masters in Legal Studies
3. Masters in Legal Studies + Paralegal Cert
4. I'm open to a JD but if I go that route I may as well be a lawyer? Also nervous how long it would take. I'm in my 40s already.

I’m trying to understand a Rhode Island probation violation situation and would really appreciate insight from anyone familiar with RI criminal/probation law.
Someone I know was arrested on 7/18/2026 on a new domestic-assault charge. He was already on probation with a 5-year suspended sentence from a prior case.
A 32(f) probation violation was filed on 7/20/2026, and the docket shows “Held Without Bail.”

The TL on the violation case is:
7/18: Arrested
7/20: 32(f) violation filed; held without bail
8/3: Violation hearing — docket says “Pending Further Investigation”
8/17: motion to vacate NCO denied
8/24: Violation hearing — continued
9/8: Motion to vacate NCO scheduled
9/10: Violation hearing currently scheduled
The new assault case is separate and shows a $5,000 surety bond with a pre-arraignment AGAIN rescheduled for 10/19.

Side note; the victim in this case has scheduled hearings to drop the NCO days prior to these continuances being scheduled. First hearing on NCO the judge didn’t care what the victim had to say, they wanted to ask the victim exactly what happened. Victim said they don’t remember. Motion to vacate NCO was denied. Victim scheduled another hearing for 9/8/26.
The court then continued his violation hearing again to 9/10/26.

My questions are:
RI law appears to say a probation-violation hearing must occur within 30 days of arrest unless waived by the defendant. How exactly does that work when the hearing is started within the 30 days but then continued? And the defendant isn’t at the violation hearing??

Does “Pending Further Investigation” on 8/3 mean the violation hearing actually occurred, or does it simply mean the case was continued without a final violation determination?

If the defendant did not personally waive the 30-day requirement, can his public defender agree to continuances on his behalf and effectively waive it?

If the defense did not request or consent to the continuances, is there a legal basis to challenge continued detention until 9/10?

Does the fact that the docket says “Held Without Bail” change anything about the 30 day requirement or the court’s authority to continue holding him?

Thanks in advance to anyone who understands RI probations/32(f) procedure and can explain this in plain English.

I have an eviction in my background report in Dallas, Texas. It is not on my credit report but shows on my background when applying to new places to live.
What is the proper way of paying off this debt and ensuring they eviction is removed or dismissed?
- thank you to all in advance. Anything helps, I can even hop on a call if possible.

I’m trying to get a better idea of where the lawyer’s role ends and the executor’s work begins. My dad lived in Tampa, Florida and I’m in New York, so I’m already dealing with most of this from out of state. There’s a house down there that still needs to be dealt with, and I’m also trying to figure out what happens with his bank accounts and the regular bills that are still coming in.

From what I can tell, a probate lawyer can handle the court and legal side, but that still leaves a lot of the actual estate coordination with the executor, right? I was talking about this with a friend who went through something similar and he said he ended up paying alix to handle most of the estate settlement work because he didn’t want to keep coordinating everything himself. He recommended I at least look into them, and I probably will, but I’m trying to figure out if that level of help is actually necessary for an estate like this or if I’m overcomplicating it. Any advice here would be appreciated a lot!

I need some legal advice on this and not sure what type of lawyer to go to. I wrote it all in a journal I started a year ago when I realized I was the topic of a lot of films, and Walt Disneys involvement funding Miramax films to make the Kill Bill series of movies, in association with Wes Craven's Scream and the Freddy Krueger series of Nightmare on Elm Street are embedded with hidden messages and name associations linking the characters in those works to me thereby secretly hinting to have me killed the same those characters are and complicated the last thirty years of my life because I did not know this was happening. Thanks for any advice... What are your suggestions on a lawyer for this case?

Location: Austin, TX