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© Michael J. Bergmann, LLC--2010. .All rights reserved.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Established in
1999
OFFICE LOCATION
6020 Cheviot Road
Cincinnati, Ohio 45247
Saturday
9:00 a.m.-1:00 p,m.
(Appointment Only)
Monday-Friday
9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
OFFICE HOURS
While the low cost of preparing legal documents through Internet-provided forms or store-shelf kits may be attractive, the use of an incorrect, incomplete, or improperly executed document can have, at least, unexpected consequences and, at worst, catastrophic results. But why should members of the public use an attorney rather than such forms or kits? Please consider these facts.
1. An attorney is a licensed professional who must obtain a four year degree from an accredited college or university, take a test to determine whether he or she qualifies for law school (the "LSAT"), undergo three years of law school education and training, and pass a multi-day examination to determine whether he or she may practice law.
The seller of forms or kits may be anyone wanting to make a buck, regardless of whether he/she has a law license or any legal education, training, or experience.
2. An attorney works individually with his or her client, learning about the client’s needs, educating the client about his or her options, and helping the client to make an informed decision about what to do.
The seller of forms or kits have no personal interaction with the client. Meeting a client's needs involves a lot more that asking standardized "Yes-No" or fill-in-the-blank questions, or providing canned information to guide the customer in making legal decisions.
3. An attorney has malpractice insurance coverage to protect his/her clients against any professional error or omission on his/her part (even if the attorney has never had a malpractice claim asserted against him or her).
The seller of forms or kits has no malpractice insurance coverage to protect its customers and, at most, may promise to provide a refund for the cost of its form or kit if some adverse, even disastrous, legal consequence occurs from the form's or kit's use.
4. An attorney will be available for post-drafting consultation with his or her client, whether the reason be to answer questions, make changes, or respond to any concerns.
The seller of forms or kits has no interest in providing its customers with post-sale support because (a) providing such service would make its document-supplying business less profitable, and (b) to do so would be the unauthorized practice of law (a criminal act in many states).
This firm hopes that visitors to this web site will consider the foregoing points in determining which choice is truly the better value.
1. An attorney is a licensed professional who must obtain a four year degree from an accredited college or university, take a test to determine whether he or she qualifies for law school (the "LSAT"), undergo three years of law school education and training, and pass a multi-day examination to determine whether he or she may practice law.
The seller of forms or kits may be anyone wanting to make a buck, regardless of whether he/she has a law license or any legal education, training, or experience.
2. An attorney works individually with his or her client, learning about the client’s needs, educating the client about his or her options, and helping the client to make an informed decision about what to do.
The seller of forms or kits have no personal interaction with the client. Meeting a client's needs involves a lot more that asking standardized "Yes-No" or fill-in-the-blank questions, or providing canned information to guide the customer in making legal decisions.
3. An attorney has malpractice insurance coverage to protect his/her clients against any professional error or omission on his/her part (even if the attorney has never had a malpractice claim asserted against him or her).
The seller of forms or kits has no malpractice insurance coverage to protect its customers and, at most, may promise to provide a refund for the cost of its form or kit if some adverse, even disastrous, legal consequence occurs from the form's or kit's use.
4. An attorney will be available for post-drafting consultation with his or her client, whether the reason be to answer questions, make changes, or respond to any concerns.
The seller of forms or kits has no interest in providing its customers with post-sale support because (a) providing such service would make its document-supplying business less profitable, and (b) to do so would be the unauthorized practice of law (a criminal act in many states).
This firm hopes that visitors to this web site will consider the foregoing points in determining which choice is truly the better value.