Joy Yonan-Renold
Montpelier, VT
I tried to request help from Legal Aid, and their "assistance" can be summed up as less than absolutely worthless. The lawyer assigned to me insisted on filing precisely what I asked him not to, and tried to convince me that what I was asking was not really what I was asking (actually). He spent most of the time on the phone talking over me and about himself, specifically: how much I needed him and what he couldn't do for me (which strikes me as a contradiction in terms), and what he was going to do that I requested he not do. The only actual assistance I got that was marginally effective or valuable to me in any way, even with clear requests and months of credible evidence (the Judge's determination eventually) was finally another lawyer answering just one question, but again after fifteen to twenty minutes of listening to her talk about herself and everything she couldn't do, I finally managed to get her to understand that I had just one question, if she could please answer that one question. The answer to that one question resolved the case, although of course I could have won further (or reduced my damages and losses) if I had the resources to. I did not. That was the extent of any legitimate "aid". My opinion of their services is less than one star.
