Is it illegal for an attorney to contact me?
April 4th, 2011 | 
Author: I have filed in small claims court against a company. Recently my landlord received a phone call from the company’s legal office, asking that I call them.
Am I right in thinking they are trying to bypass the law by getting me to call them? Any more info you can provied would be great.
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Posted in Landlord Tenant Law
Not necessarily: They prlbably want to make you an offer: Get back in touch with them and see what they have to say. Better than going to court if they offer something satisfactory: Anything is better than court.
Actually, if you have an attorney, all communication should go through your attorney.
If you do not have an attorney, they may be trying to contact you in regard to settlement negotiations.
If it is a large sum, I would suggest you contact an attorney with respect to settlement negotiations to ensure that your rights are protected. Some may even be willing to advise you without charge.
If you have an attorney have them return the call. But they may want to settle this out of court, so go ahead, it may be to your benefit. You don’t have to accept any offers, but it doesn’t hurt to listen. You may want to record the call.
They can try to do anything and it’s not necessarily illegal. However, if you have an attoney handling your case, politely refer them to that attorney and give them a phone number. Do not discuss anything. If you are representing yourself then it’s a little different. Lawyers often have discussions before going to court in attempts to resolve outside of court and you as your own representative have to decide whether to wait or try to settle accordingly. Most business would prefer to have a case withdrawn.
Actually, in small claim court…most times the opposing party would like to gain more information from you to prepare themselves better against your lawsuit, or they would like to try to ‘resolve’ the issues without having to appear before the Judge.
Not knowing what the case is about…I’d seek counsel with your own attorney – which in a small court case is not present, or I’d just go through with the suit and let a judge decide the outcome. If you gave the opposing party the opportunity to resolve the issues before having to file against them in small claims court…then continue to small claims without further ado.
Perhaps there is something that needs to be done and brought to a judges attention so others aren’t treated as you have been.
Shakey business practices deserve what they get. Perhaps when you were trying to ‘deal’ with the problem, they didn’t take you serious…which is an error on their part. A happy client doesn’t need courts. And by going to court you could be the voice for others who will come to them afterward. Good luck.