Complaint Review: Howard & Kobelan Attorneys At Law - Austin Texas

You need to take these receipts to the law offices and demand that they show you your case file, in fact, give it to you because you have PROOF that you paid Mr, Howard a retainer and he has done NOTHING for your case. The paralegal or receptionist at the main desk will know exactly what you are talking about. When attorneys take your case, they are supposed to start a file on your case consisting of interview notes and any paperwork that you have given to them like the EEOC notice of the Right to sue,etc. and if you were smart, you only gave him copies of the material. If they had been ethical they would have taken copies of your originals to put in the case file and returned your originals to you. No case file for you and you have proof you have paid MR.Howard the retainer? Then you have a legal malpractice lawsuit. I thought it was strange that he kept demanding money from you and you didn't ask him how your case was progressing? He has to EARN that money by WORKING on YOUR case. He is supposed to be representing YOU! I also hope you were smart enough to insist on receipts when you paid him if you paid him cash and make sure your credit card payments or checks indicated that it was for LEGAL FEES! Either there was a great misunderstanding or you have a yuppie lawyer who wanted to get rich yesterday. Maybe he is counting on your ignorance and fear of the legal system just to go away and forget about it and that is where the laches kicks in. You have two years from the time of your EEOC complaint to sue and the sooner the better. Good luck finding ANY decent legal representation in Austin. I never did!

You need to take these receipts to the law offices and demand that they show you your case file, in fact, give it to you because you have PROOF that you paid Mr, Howard a retainer and he has done NOTHING for your case. The paralegal or receptionist at the main desk will know exactly what you are talking about. When attorneys take your case, they are supposed to start a file on your case consisting of interview notes and any paperwork that you have given to them like the EEOC notice of the Right to sue,etc. and if you were smart, you only gave him copies of the material. If they had been ethical they would have taken copies of your originals to put in the case file and returned your originals to you. No case file for you and you have proof you have paid MR.Howard the retainer? Then you have a legal malpractice lawsuit. I thought it was strange that he kept demanding money from you and you didn't ask him how your case was progressing? He has to EARN that money by WORKING on YOUR case. He is supposed to be representing YOU! I also hope you were smart enough to insist on receipts when you paid him if you paid him cash and make sure your credit card payments or checks indicated that it was for LEGAL FEES! Either there was a great misunderstanding or you have a yuppie lawyer who wanted to get rich yesterday. Maybe he is counting on your ignorance and fear of the legal system just to go away and forget about it and that is where the laches kicks in. You have two years from the time of your EEOC complaint to sue and the sooner the better. Good luck finding ANY decent legal representation in Austin. I never did!

You need to take these receipts to the law offices and demand that they show you your case file, in fact, give it to you because you have PROOF that you paid Mr, Howard a retainer and he has done NOTHING for your case. The paralegal or receptionist at the main desk will know exactly what you are talking about. When attorneys take your case, they are supposed to start a file on your case consisting of interview notes and any paperwork that you have given to them like the EEOC notice of the Right to sue,etc. and if you were smart, you only gave him copies of the material. If they had been ethical they would have taken copies of your originals to put in the case file and returned your originals to you. No case file for you and you have proof you have paid MR.Howard the retainer? Then you have a legal malpractice lawsuit. I thought it was strange that he kept demanding money from you and you didn't ask him how your case was progressing? He has to EARN that money by WORKING on YOUR case. He is supposed to be representing YOU! I also hope you were smart enough to insist on receipts when you paid him if you paid him cash and make sure your credit card payments or checks indicated that it was for LEGAL FEES! Either there was a great misunderstanding or you have a yuppie lawyer who wanted to get rich yesterday. Maybe he is counting on your ignorance and fear of the legal system just to go away and forget about it and that is where the laches kicks in. You have two years from the time of your EEOC complaint to sue and the sooner the better. Good luck finding ANY decent legal representation in Austin. I never did!

You need to take these receipts to the law offices and demand that they show you your case file, in fact, give it to you because you have PROOF that you paid Mr, Howard a retainer and he has done NOTHING for your case. The paralegal or receptionist at the main desk will know exactly what you are talking about. When attorneys take your case, they are supposed to start a file on your case consisting of interview notes and any paperwork that you have given to them like the EEOC notice of the Right to sue,etc. and if you were smart, you only gave him copies of the material. If they had been ethical they would have taken copies of your originals to put in the case file and returned your originals to you. No case file for you and you have proof you have paid MR.Howard the retainer? Then you have a legal malpractice lawsuit. I thought it was strange that he kept demanding money from you and you didn't ask him how your case was progressing? He has to EARN that money by WORKING on YOUR case. He is supposed to be representing YOU! I also hope you were smart enough to insist on receipts when you paid him if you paid him cash and make sure your credit card payments or checks indicated that it was for LEGAL FEES! Either there was a great misunderstanding or you have a yuppie lawyer who wanted to get rich yesterday. Maybe he is counting on your ignorance and fear of the legal system just to go away and forget about it and that is where the laches kicks in. You have two years from the time of your EEOC complaint to sue and the sooner the better. Good luck finding ANY decent legal representation in Austin. I never did!

The lady WAS ripped off by someone who probably got through law school as part of an affirmative action or reverse racism quota. BECAUSE TEXAS IS A RIGHT TO WORK STATE, YOUR EMPLOYER CAN HIRE AND FIRE YOU AT WILL AND ALTHOUGH BLACKLISTING IS SUPPOSED TO BE ILLEGAL, THEY CAN AND WILL BLACKLIST YOU AS THIS LADY SAID EVERYTHING SHE SAID IS TRUE AND PARALLELS MY OWN EXPERIENCES WITH SEXUAL HARRASSMENT ONLY MINE CONCERNED HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENT. A GOOD EMPLOYMENT LAWYER AND I DO NOT THINK THERE IS ONE IN AUSTIN TEXAS BECAUSE THEY ARE ALL TRYING TO MAKE THE BIG SCORE IN POLITICS, ETC. WOULD TAKE THE CASE ON A CONTINGENCY WHICH MEANS YOU DON'T GET PAID UNTIL S/HE GETS PAID. YOU NEED TO REPORT MISTER WONDERFUL TO THE TEXAS BAR ASSOCIATION.AND THE SOONER THE BETTER. IF HE GETS MULTIPLE REPORT, THEY MIGHT YANK HIS LICENSE. EVERYTHING SHE SAYS HERE IS TRUE ABOUT HOW BLACKLISTING AND LACHES LAWYERS WORK IN AUSTIN.

Let me explain a little something about the procedure involved with suits such as this. Sexual discrimination cases are subject to an "administrative exhaustion" requirement. This means that, before you can file at the courthouse, you need to prosecute the claim either with the EEOC or with your state's version thereof (in Indiana it's called the Civil Rights Commission). Sometimes the EEOC can resolve the matter on its own. Most of the time it cannot. When the EEOC can't resolve the complaint, it issues what's called a "Right to Sue" letter. The Right to Sue letter is your ticket to the the courthouse, it tells the judge that you satisfied the jurisdictional prerequisite to filing a lawsuit. Now, to the original complaint. The reporter paid the attorney a $1500 flat fee to prosecute an employment discrimination claim. The attorney took the claim through the EEOC proceedings and achieved the expected result: the Right to Sue letter was issued. The next step, for the attorney, was to file a complaint either in state or federal court. The reporter, for whatever reason, decided that she no longer wanted to deal with the matter and told the attorney that she no longer needed his services. The attorney retained the $1500, as per his agreement with his client. So how exactly was the reporter ripped off? If you give me $500 to paint your house, and then change your mind before I put on the final coat of what is otherwise a solid job, do you get your money back? Nope!

Where were you attorneys-at-law back in 1992 and 1993 when my friend was trying to sue a private security company here in Austin for creating a sexually discriminating nightmare environment and unbelievably hostile work environment and was harrassed on the job nightly by a woman-hating "butch" male? I am rather unsure of proper legal procedures but if a client pays a retainer and expects an attorney to act upon his/her behalf, shouldn't something have been filed at the courthouse? That's how it works in this town. Fired on trumped up charges, given false job references from hell and nobody will help you. The City of Austin Human Rights Commission and the San Antonio office of the EEOC won't help either no matter how righteous your cause. What is a person to do This is not meant as legal advice. I am not an attorney nor am I representing myself as one. If you are needing legal advice pertaining to laws in this state, I suggest that you contact an attorney who is board certified in the area of legal specialization in which you intend to litigae. In case you can not get an attorney to represent, you are toast.

Why take $1500 from a client who has no case? Maybe $500 for your investigations to establish the facts but $1500? If you have successfully represented over 1000 clients how many have you unsuccessfully represented, such as this one? I guess even an equal amount of 1000 @ $1500 makes for a nice juicy practice, doesn't it? I would have thought even an apology to this lady would have been in order. You tried and you failed to deliver the justice she sought. I guess apologizing is an admission of failure.

If what you say, Derek, is true, then what DID you actually do for all that money she spent on you? Did you actually DO anything?

The law firm of Howard & Kobelan has successfully represented more than one thousand individuals in regard to various claims of discrimination. The allegations of wrongdoing on the part of Howard & Kobelan for Derek A. Howard that are contained in his complaint are patently untrue. The matter was investigated by the State Bar of Texas and no misconduct or wrongdoing of any kind was found.