Nothing for Something...
After a short evaluation, we selected Waltz, Palmer and Dawson (WPD) for a simple estate resolution, and it turned out to be the most disastrous decision in my life, especially from a financial standpoint. We entrusted our case to Millie Palmer the "P" in WPD, who was a neighborhood acquaintance because she acted like she was interested in our position and expressed complete confidence in a quick and positive outcome. In the end, it appears their true interest was in our cash and not our fair settlement of the estate. Ms. Palmer stated to us that our situation was a simple estate closure, and that the estimated costs would be around $3k, unless things got challenging, then it might go as high as $6k. By the end, WPD had ground through well over $60,000! The bill was so staggering it affected our life including college selection for our children. WPD used a variety of means to rack up the bills; running wasteful audits, utilizing an outsourced lawyer, delayed and erroneous bills, using multiple lawyers in court, repetitive meetings to review status... It just never stopped. I frequently asked them to stop spending money, and to eliminate the outsourced lawyer, and all my requests were ignored until it was too late. Millie's response was surprising, "you should have fired us". Even the judge on the case was so disgusted with WPD representation that he threatened to jail one a WPD attorney for their conduct. Millie told me to ignore the escalating bills as they were being inflated to assist with the final settlement and that it would be discounted off in the end. As I was cornered into taking a settlement that had errors, and one I wanted dismissed, WPD demanded I sign over the entire final settlement cash, telling me that the court would never approve it any other way. WPD took everything they wanted without my approval, returning the scraps to me. The WPD $60,000+ bill does not even cover all of the losses I took on the estate, which substantially increased during the excessive time it took WPD to bring the estate to closer. WPD refused to agree to a settlement, and kept what they wanted, well over $60,000! Without recourse, I have few options but to file a report with the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) of the Supreme Court of Illinois, asking them to review the business/legal practices at WPD. In addition I am evaluating options on bringing a lawsuit against WPD for all of the losses. This is a long story of failures, errors and falsehoods, and I have volumes of documents to support my claim. Don't make the same mistake and trust WPD with your assets. Take your time and find a reputable firm and get everything in writing as the case progresses. If WPD doesn't have a company motto, I can recommend one; WPD, where you get nothing for something. read more