The Bill Kumpe Law Firm

 

QUESTIONS I AM GOING TO ASK IN OUR FIRST CONSULTATION

1. Who are you? You have to be prepared to give me your full legal name, all basic contact information and your social security number. This is necessary, not only so that I can contact you in the future but also so that I can access any necessary court records, etc. I may use this information to run a background check on you before agreeing to represent you.

2. Have you been in contact with any other lawyers about this matter and have you been represented other counsel prior to contacting me? I need to know who else you have approached for obvious reason but I especially need to know if you have had a previous attorney. In all likelihood, I will call your previous attorney and discuss your case with them before I agree to represent you.

3. How did this happen? You need to be prepared to tell me the whole truth about everything that has transpired. Hiding pertinent facts or evading their disclosure will only result in my refusing to provide further services when I find out about it and I will find out eventually. Consequently, you need to be prepared to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

4. What do you want me to do? No matter what your legal situation, you have to know what you want to allow me to serve you. You may not know what should be done or even what can be done but you have to know in general terms what you want to happen, for example: “I want this lawsuit to go away,” or “I want this person to pay what he owes me,” or “I want my assets to go to my heirs in this fashion.” This can sometimes be simple or very complicated but, unless you know what you want done in at least general terms, then it will be very difficult for me to do it for you.

5. How are you going to pay for my services? This question is self explanatory. Contrary to popular belief, there is no right to an attorney in the U.S. constitution unless you are an indigent criminal defendant charged with a felony or a serious misdemeanor and under the “American Rule” civil litigants are expected to pay their own attorneys fees unless a pertinent statute says otherwise. Consequently, we will need to discuss how you intend to pay my bill and I reserve the right to check your credit before agreeing to represent you.

 

When you think about it, these are reasonable questions that will be asked by any attorney you approach.  So, don't be surprised when they are asked.

 

 

KFAQ SATURDAY AFTERNOON WITH BRUCE DELAY: March 8, 2008.  Comments on proposed changes to the Oklahoma Code of Judicial Conduct.  Link to podcast HERE.

 

KFAQ SATURDAY AFTERNOON WITH BRUCE DELAY:  March 30, 3008.  Comments on the Sally Kern situation and the "Rally for Sally."  Link to podcast HERE.

 

OBA Law Office Management and Technology Section, April 18, 2008 Renaissance Hotel, Tulsa, April 25, 2008 OBA Bar Center, Oklahoma City - Revinventing Yourself As A Virtual Lawyer, Just You and Your Laptop. 

 

OBA Bench and Bar Committee, April 24, 2008 OBA Bar Center.  Comments on objections to specific sections of the new proposed Oklahoma Code of Judicial Conduct.

 

SMALL BUSINESSES SHOULD REVIEW INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR STATUS OF WORKERS.

It is reported that the Internal Revenue Service is taking a hard look at independent contractor agreements and finding that many persons previously thought to be independent contractors are in fact employees for which employment taxes are due by their defacto employer.

According to the IRS, an independent contractor is a person that “the payer, has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not the means and methods of accomplishing the result.”

The IRS defines a common law employee as anyone who “performs services for you if you can control what will be done and how it will be done. This is so even when you give the employee freedom of action. What matters is that you have the right to control the details of how the services are performed.”

 

FEDERAL COURT RULES NO ELECTRONIC DEVICES - BUT SEE NOTE FOLLOWING

The United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City, along with the Federal Bankruptcy Court in Oklahoma City have issued local rules forbidding electronic devices of any sort. This means that neither attorneys nor their clients may carry cell phones, PDA’s or laptop computers into the Federal Courthouse. The Western District joins the Eastern District of Oklahoma in Muskogee where this policy has been enforced since 9/11. The Northern District in Tulsa still allows electronic devices but forbids recording devices and cameras.

Visitors to any courthouse should also remember that no pocket knives or sharp implements will be allowed. It is not unusual for the security personnel to disallow nail clippers, cuticle tools and small office tools such as letter openers, etc. All of these items, along with our electronic devices, should be left in the trunk of your car before coming to the courthouse.

 

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TRUE LEGAL HUMOR (SORT OF)
WHY I DON’T DO DIVORCES

I am frequently asked to handle divorce cases and I just as frequently refuse. Aside from moral and religious issues, I have never seen a divorce that ended with either party happy. I have also never seen a divorce where the husband returned to the same financial status as before the divorce or one where the wife collected everything she thought was due her.

However, it is the level of emotional trauma that bothers me the most. It is heart rending to see two people who claimed to have loved each other now trying to convince the justice system to ruin each other. The classic example of such a divorce was filed in Texas during the “80’s between a Texas lawyer and his client/wife.  The hilarious and at the same time heartbreaking handwritten and illustrated divorce petition can be viewed HERE.  WARNING ADULT LANGUAGE, THEMES AND CONTENT.