Complaint Review: Lisa Mantz Attorney With Crudrup & Henricks LLP In Covington GA 30015

Attorney Lisa Marie Mantz contacted me in December of 2007 after obtaining my phone number from another attorney, Qader Baig , and represented herself as a competent probate attorney (I later found out that she is not a probate attorney) and solicited employment to represent me in an ongoing probate case. I met with attorney Mantz the following day at which time I further explained the circumstance of my case and she reviewed evidence I submitted to her. I had been accused by a rogue probate judge of living in a home contained within my mother's estate without paying the mortgage, a charge that was never asserted in the case and which the judge, one Jeryl Rosh of the DeKalb County Probate Court, had fabricated in order to deliver a favorable verdict to a lawyer who donates money to her re-election campaign, whereas no claim existed on which the lawyers client could receive a verdict in their favor.

Among the information I submitted to attorney Mantz were financial records showing approximately $10,000 in checks from my own personal funds paid by me directly to the mortgage company since my mother's death and documents proving a contract, between my mother and myself, that my mother would devise a Will leaving the property in question to me upon her death in exchange for valuable consideration of services provided during her lifetime. This type of contract is perfectly legal and enforceable by law in the state of Georgia.

After reviewing the documents attorney Mantz entered into a contract with me to file an appeal of the Probate Court verdict in the DeKalb County Superior Court and to represent me in all matters regarding the appeal and the estate. The following day attorney Mantz breached that contract by failing to file any documents in the Superior Court and instead, without my knowledge or consent, filed to have the case reheard before the very same judge, who had already violated my right to due process and ruled on subject matter outside her jurisdiction.

Following the filing of these documents a problem arose involving a vehicle I had purchased from the estate which the Administrator of the estate refused to provide paperwork for. I instructed attorney Mantz numerous times to file suit to have the car released from the estate which she declined to do. This resulted in damages including extensive rental car fees and after several weeks my eventual loss of employment.

After having these problems with attorney Mantz I consulted with several other attorneys in Covington, Georgia and discovered that the attorney from whom she had obtained my phone number, Qader Baig, of M. Qader A. Baig & Associates, LLC located at 913 Commercial Street, Conyers GA 30012, was actually attorney Mantz ex-husband, a fact that neither of them bothered to disclose and a fact that would have influenced my decision in hiring her.

Attorney Mantz then proceeded to neglect to take any action regarding my case. She avoided phone calls, refused to return messages and failed to maintain contact with the opposing party's attorney.

The few times I did actually speak with her during this short period, she attempted to force me to submit a settlement agreement to the other party, as if she was representing them rather than representing me. Following my refusal to submit the settlement agreement she demanded, attorney Mantz called me on the phone and abandoned the case just before the trial date, leaving me with no representation and forcing me to appear before the same biased judge, which resulted in additional legal fees being levied against me.

When attorney Mantz called to announce she was abandoning the case, citing "medical reasons" and location of jurisdiction, although the location was a matter she was aware of prior to entering into the contract, I protested and she told me that she was abandoning the case and there was nothing I could do about it. She then waited until just before the trial date and submitted a motion to withdraw claiming she was doing so upon agreement between the "attorney and the client", which was false.

I have attempted numerous times over the past five months to contact Lisa Mantz or the senior partner of her law firm, Ben Henricks, in order to obtain full reimbursement of the money I initially paid to Mantz and compensation I am entitled to by law for my losses resulting in her actions, however Mantz and Ben Hendricks both refuse to accept my phone calls, each of them hiding behind their secretary and suddenly becoming "unavailable" upon finding out who the call is from.

Lisa Mantz also serves as juvenile court judge and/or associate judge at the Covington Municipal Court at 2194 Emory St. NW, Covington, GA 30015, where she works with another judge and attorney, one C. David Strickland of Strickland & Strickland, LLP at 2115 Usher Street, N.W. Covington, Georgia 30014. Attorney/judge David Strickland is the attorney who had first referred me to attorney Qader Baig, Mantz's ex-husband.

As a result of Lisa Mantz's and Crudup & Hendricks Associates' breach of contract, neglect, incompetence and dishonesty I have suffered losses in excess of $150,000.00.

Dennis
Lithonia, Georgia
U.S.A.