2 Valley events to offer free legal assistance, consultations - AZ

2 Valley events to offer free legal assistance, consultations

Excerpts:

Valley attorneys will offer free consultations and advice at two events as part of an annual effort to better connect the legal profession and the community.

Attorneys will address a range of issues, including business, immigration, bankruptcy, child custody, construction defects and landlord-tenant issues. Participants can either meet in person with an attorney or phone in questions during the Law Week 2006 events, hosted by the Maricopa County Bar Association.

The first event, the Ask-a-Lawyer Fair, is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at Lamson College, 1126 N. Scottsdale Road, Tempe. Participants should come prepared with questions and documents to privately consult with attorneys. Typically, the meetings are limited to 15 minutes.

Attendees are encouraged to donate non-perishable food for the Desert Mission Food Bank in Phoenix, run by the John C. Lincoln Health Network.

From 6 to 9 p.m. May 2, residents can call for legal help at the Phone-A-Lawyer event at Channel 8 (KAET). The phone number, (480) 965-1998, will run across the bottom of the television screen during the event.

Spanish-speaking attorneys will be available at both events.

Arizona Divorce, Custody & Support Info

Arizona Constitution

Arizona Revised Statutes Title 8 - Children Title 25 - Marital and Domestic Relations

Arizona Child Support Guidelines and Calculator

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AZLawHelp.org

Arizona Legal Services Resources

FAMILY COURT WEB SITE

ARIZONA FATHERS' RIGHTS

State courts to use new rules for family law cases - Arizona

State courts to use new rules for family law cases

Excerpts:

Arizona's top judge on Wednesday signed an order to implement a massive new set of statewide rules just for family law cases. Most of the rules take effect in January.

Along with divorce and child support, types of cases and issues covered by the rules include child custody, legal separation, paternity and protective orders.

With 70 percent to 80 percent of litigants in family court cases representing themselves, a prime focus in writing the new rules was to make them understandable to non-lawyers, Armstrong said.

Another significant change also explicitly allows lawyers to represent people for just part of a case, Armstrong said. "Many lawyers will not do that now because they believe there are ethical constraints."

With the change, "they can come in just for child support or just for child custody," Armstrong said. "It should allow more people to afford an attorney for the most critical issues."

In an attempt to resolve cases faster, courts now will be required to hold a "resolution management conference" early on to see if the opposing sides can be encouraged to work out their differences on key issues.

Bad Representation in Arizona

East Valley Tribune Daily Arizona

Excerpts:

Gary Karpin

A grand jury indictment lists 14 victims representing about $500,000 in losses, but since Karpin’s July arrest more than 100 people have called and complained about him, Thomas said.

A case summary states that Karpin, a divorce mediator who did business under various names, claimed or implied to his clients that he was a lawyer.

Karpin would claim to file paperwork that never was filed or was incorrectly prepared, the summary states.

Thomas said anyone who has done business with Karpin should check their state of affairs because there is a chance some clients might not actually be divorced or might not actually have child custody because Karpin may have completed the paperwork incorrectly or not at all.

If you believe you have been victimized by Gary Karpin, who has done business as Divorce with Dignity, Divorce Associates, Relationships with Dignity and A Dignified Divorce, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office wants you to call (602) 372-7777