A couple of weeks ago, I had an interesting conversation with a K-1 inquiry. This individual had hired another law firm to prepare his K-1 fiancee application for his fiancee in China. Unfortunately, the application was denied. As a courtesy, I reviewed his information to determine the cause for denial, and was dismayed to see that the USCIS had denied his application based on a misunderstanding about Chinese marriage and divorce law. Had the individual's attorney taken some time out to research and clarify the issue in response to the USCIS Request for Evidence, I think the application would be have succeeded. This was not the case, and this individual was now approaching me to discuss what options he had in light of the denial.
What made this situation particularly sad was that the individual never communicated with his attorney. His attorney never spoke or emailed to him, even when his case had been denied! He told me that his only contact with the law office was with a paralegal. I find this outrageous. A client who pays legal fees deserves to have his paperwork handled by a competent attorney. Had the client known that his paperwork would be handled solely by a paralegal, he probably wouldn't have hired that firm.
I often tell prospective clients that if they choose not to hire my firm, that's ok. However, they are always advised to go with an attorney. If a client has questions, which he inevitably will, a paralegal cannot answer those questions or face engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. While the lower fees that a paralegal charges may be attractive, the limitations of working with a paralegal are just not worth it. In this sad situation, hiring an attorney was not enough. While I am available for my clients on a daily basis and work directly on their cases, not all attorneys do, instead relying heavilyy on paralegals. In the realm of hiring a K-1 legal professional, the latin phrase, caveat emptor, is still very relevant.
