The Appointment Generally, an inventory attorney will be appointed after someone connected with the practice of the attorney who died or disappeared — a secretary or someone sharing office space—notifies the Bar and asks what should be done. The Bar then petitions the court to appoint an inventory attorney.
What happens to my files if my attorney dies? If your deceased attorney was part of a law firm or law partnership, that firm would maintain custody of your file. If your deceased attorney was a sole practitioner, you will need to obtain new counsel.
If your legal matter includes a court case, your new attorney will need to file a Notice of Substitution of Counsel with the court. If your legal matter is not in litigation, your new attorney will need to notify opposing attorneys and/or parties as appropriate.
Inventory attorneys take possession of the files of a member who dies, disappears, is disbarred or suspended, becomes delinquent, or suffers involuntary leave of absence due to military service and no other responsible party capable of conducting the member's affairs is known.
If you have called your attorney, left messages, sent emails, and you still haven't heard a response, the best course of action is to send a certified letter to his or her office questioning the failure to communicate and informing them that you are prepared to find a new lawyer if the situation does not improve.
The State Bar does not have a retired status option; the only voluntary statuses are active, inactive, or resigned. If you simply stop paying annual fees, your license will be suspended.
Five things not to say to a lawyer (if you want them to take you..."The Judge is biased against me" Is it possible that the Judge is "biased" against you? ... "Everyone is out to get me" ... "It's the principle that counts" ... "I don't have the money to pay you" ... Waiting until after the fact.
No matter what name the agency in your state goes by, they will have a process you can use to file a complaint against your attorney for lying or being incompetent. Examples of these types of behavior include: Misusing your money. Failing to show up at a court hearing.
Their goal is to drag the case on and pay out as little as possible. This earns more money for the attorney, who gets paid by the hour, and also can help frustrate the plaintiff into making a better settlement for them out of desperation.
Inventory (or pipeline) management is a term used in the management consulting profession to refer to the process by which you continually evaluate your active opportunities (prospective clients to booked clients) for their balance of QUALITY and QUANTITY.