The next time you see yet another attorney sales pitch on TV, think: Roni Deutch. Over the last few years, she was all over the airwaves, promoting herself as a tough, experienced "tax attorney" who was going to fight the IRS and save you lots of money.
Not anymore. According to this article, Deutch is closing her law office and surrendering her license. What's more, The California Attorney General's office has filed a $34 million lawsuit against her, claiming she ripped off clients and shredded over 2 million client documents.
The lesson here, if these allegations are true, is that attorney advertising talk sometimes doesn't match the walk and the puffery. Even more disturbing is that there is no way to measure an attorney's competence or trustworthiness from self laudatory, promotional ads.
It's easy to produce a bunch of slick ads if you have enough money. Just witness the explosion of personal injury attorney ads that flood the airwaves. If that's the route injury victims wish to choose, just dial the "1-800-money-for you" number and roll the dice. Or, you can do your homework, and ask for references and examples of an attorney's actual work product.
There's still room for an old school approach to selecting an attorney who will competently handle your legal claim.
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