Dallas Family Lawyer Michelle May O’Neil recently spoke at the State Bar of Texas Marriage Dissolution seminar, held in Galveston, Texas on the topic “We Lost, Now What?” The presentation, to approximately 250 Texas lawyers addresses presenting a family law case on appeal to the court of appeals.
To see the article, click here: We Lost, Now What? CLE article
The outcome of your divorce proceedings will change the course of your life forever; so invest the time and money to find the lawyer who will do the best job for you. Here are some suggested questions to ask during your initial interview:
Sometimes people ask a family lawyer, “how many cases have you won and lost?” For many reasons, most family lawyers don’t and shouldn’t keep win/loss records.
First, we don’t determine the facts of the case. Our clients make decisions in their lives that affect our ability for success in their case. Also, success is neither easily defined nor the same in each case. For one client, getting a fair amount of child support set defines success. For another client, sole managing conservatorship might be a must-win. Lastly, in my opinion, keeping win/loss records on matters involving people, often children, and their relationships is tactless and insensitive.
Lawyers’ ethics rules prevent representations that past results are indicative of future success. Thus, it would be even unethical for a lawyer to imply that his or her past record in other cases would, somehow, indicate that he or she would be successful in the client’s particular circumstance.
Although it is understandable that a client would want as much information about the lawyer being hired, there are other, more relevant inquiries. For advice criteria to look at in choosing the right lawyer, see my article “How To Pick A Lawyer” here.
The Family Law Section of the State Bar of Texas featured my article on “Family Law Appeals Distinguished” in the Winter 2007 newsletter. ( Michelle May O’Neil article on Family Law Appeals) The article discusses the differences in the standard of review on appeal in family law cases as opposed to civil cases in general. Family law cases differ from civil cases in that most of the issues tried in family law cases are tried to the Judge, without a jury trial. Some family law cases have a few issues tried to a jury and other issues tried to the Judge. When a Judge decides an issue, the standard for reviewing that decision on appeal is “abuse of discretion”. In other types of civil cases, most final issues are tried to a jury, where the standard of review addresses the jury’s consideration of the evidence. My article discusses in depth this issue.
I also wrote a comment on the new law pertaining to appeals of Associate Judges’ recommendations and the associated deadlines, which appears in the Newsletter. The old law, which still applies to any case pending on September 1, 2007, requires notice of the desire to appeal the Associate Judges’ recommnedation be filed 3 days (not business days) after the hearing. The new law, which applies to new cases filed after September 1, 2007, allows 7 business days to file the notice. Many lawyers have contacted me wanting clarification of the statute, confused about the application to cases that were pending on September 1, 2007. So, I wrote a comment for the newsletter to hopefully help many lawyers out there keep from filing the notice late. (Michelle May O’Neil article on Family Law Appeals)
If you need the help of a divorce attorney in the Dallas or Collin County areas (Dallas, Addison, Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney, etc.) to assist you with your divorce or family law appeal, please contact Michelle May O’Neil at The May Firm for an appointment.
I have been honored to be featured in the Texas Bar Journal February 2008 edition Technology column. To see the article, click here. I have also been listed at the Texas Bar’s list of attorney blogs. See that website here.
If you are in need of a Texas Board Certified Family Law attorney, please contact us.
I frequently speak and write for seminars that provide continuing education credits for judges, lawyers, and paralegals. My practice is unique in that I not only represent clients in divorce cases before the trial court, but I also represent clients on appeals to the Texas Courts of Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court once their cases are concluded at the trial level. There are only a handful of lawyers in the Dallas area that routinely handle family law appellate matters. I believe that I have a unique perspective on handling client’s matters before the trial court because I see a broader view of a case, not only as a trial lawyer, but only what could happen on appeal. I also think my litigation experience before the trial court gives me a better perspective on my appellate practice.
As a result, other divorce lawyers frequently hire me to assist with cases at the trial court level with an eye toward appeal. For example, I have been hired to handle a specific legal issue that will almost certainly be appealed at the conclusion of the case. Or, I have been handled to act as second chair at trial to generally assist the lead attorney in preserving error for appeal.
I presented a seminar for the University of Houston Continuing Legal Education seminar for judges, lawyers, and paralegals called Protecting Your Client’s Case For Appeal. Click here to download the article. Here’s a audio recording of my introduction to the prepsentation — click here. (I apologize for the quality of the recording and the background scratchy noise.)
What does it mean when a lawyer says he or she is ”Board Certified”? Does it matter?
Board Certification is a voluntary designation program for attorneys and paralegals by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. To become Board Certified in a particular area, an attorney must have:
The initial certification is valid for a period of five years, with recertification every five years thereafter. There are 18 areas of law in which an attorney may be certified in Texas.
Board certified family law specialists have participated in the contested trial of cases involving matters such as divorce, property division, child custody, child support, adoption, paterniety, or other matrimonial matters. There are only 712 attorneys in the entire state of Texas who have achieved board certification in family law. To download a brochure about Family Law Board Certified Attorneys, click here.
While there are many fine attorneys who practice their entire careers without becoming board certified, there are potential advantages to the client who chooses to retain a board certified attorney. For example, the client may be assured that the attorney has already demonstrated experience and involvement in Texas family law. Also, because of that experience and involvement, the board certified attorney may be able to handle complex issues more efficiently than another attorney, saving the client time, aggravation, and money.
Dallas Divorce Attorney Michelle May O’Neil became a board certified family law specialist in 1997, at the first available opportunity in her career. Please contact us if you would like to discuss further how a board certified family law specialist can benefit your case.