Who do you call, WHEN YOUR ATTORNEY SCREWS UP!

Jim W wrote:1st Spencer is not filing the complaint. He is writing a proper complaint on behalf of of the executor of the estate, Spencer will not be listed anywhere.

[i]

Well, Spencer has just been outed as the attorney who probably advised and then assisted the executor in filing a complaint/denuncia against an attorney.

Spencer is not the Attorney that advised us the course of action to be taken, and it is hardly a secret, as legal council for my realtor provided the info as to who should be contacted, and where to file.




So What is your point? Attorney's shouldn't assist clients that have been wronged by council? Or are you just ?

Good luck Jim.

Thanks Brigitte. Just another FYI, I had my will, which was written by Notario # 1 in 2010 reviewed, and there are several errors which may cause problems for my heirs. So back to spending a couple thousand more pesos to get it done properly.

I have heard good things about Notario #2 and #5. Anyone having experience with either or others, comments please. TIA

I have heard very good things about number 2.

We had the will done by Jara in Jocotepec. and the wills and the deeds reviewed by a lawyer who says they are ok but the wills could not have been simpler and the notario in Joco had made a mistake which we caught after we signed so he charged us another 1000 pesos to change it. Enough said about that notario. You just cannot trust any one, you have to check everything yourself which is more difficult if you do not speak Spanish as the translation also can have mistakes as we found out...

Trust nobody and have me or another competent attorney review a draft of the will before it is finalized to avoid errors that they will charge to correct even if their fault.

Spencer, have you drawn up many wills?

I have drawn up zero wills but have reviewed many and caught errors on many drafts as well as have seen errors that take up time and money to fix during a probate case. As I litigate probate I see what the errors are in the courts as well as what post mortem issues arise in the hopes to prevent them from happening by advising clients when they have their notario prepare their will

Only notarios can do wills and any attorney who offers to do one is a fraud or is only going to charge extra to do nothing.

brigitte wrote:I have heard very good things about number 2.

We had the will done by Jara in Jocotepec. and the wills and the deeds reviewed by a lawyer who says they are ok but the wills could not have been simpler and the notario in Joco had made a mistake which we caught after we signed so he charged us another 1000 pesos to change it. Enough said about that notario. You just cannot trust any one, you have to check everything yourself which is more difficult if you do not speak Spanish as the translation also can have mistakes as we found out...

I too had a bad experience with the Notario in Joco Bridgette. When I caught the error on my deed several years later it cost me 8000 pesos to correct, (penalties and back taxes).

Hopefully, those who haven't gotten their Mexican will written, may benefit, and do a better job than I when it comes to selecting a Notario.

Intercasa wrote:

Only notarios can do wills and any attorney who offers to do one is a fraud or is only going to charge extra to do nothing.

Attorneys in notario offices write wills everyday.

Only notarios can do wills, there are coyotes who do them and present them to shady notarios for signature but best to deal directly with a notario at his office and get a draft for review as many ASSUME all are equal and they act like they are listening to you and give you their usual format.

One attorney in Ajijic did a will for a client, typed and in English, totally invalid and charged the guy more than a notario would have.

True if an attorney works in a notary's office they can prepare the will with the notario who then must sign it and put their seals but in most notaries the notary is there personally

I have a couple of questions for the two of you (brigitte, Jim W.) so I can better understand.

Did you have a translator with you that read every word before you signed and if not did you understand every word you read?

Did you make copies of the draft after you signed?

Did you have a lawyer take a look see before the original papers were signed?

If I sign and understand what I am signing and later discover a mistake, then of course I would be responsible to pay, however, if a typo was made in the original and I didn't again read or translate then I would think to correct it I would not be responsible to pay.

Jim, if I may ask what type of error did you find on your deed?

I ask these questions because I will need to change the title of my house and have a new will made. My Husband died, although it has been eight years this July, and I am thinking about selling my house and of course need to have the title changed as we were both on the original title. Please send a personal pm if you wish. Thanks

Intercasa wrote:

True if an attorney works in a notary's office they can prepare the will with the notario who then must sign it and put their seals but in most notaries the notary is there personally

Attorneys write the will for the notario. That is part of what the notario pays them for. They write them, the notario signs and files them. That is why I asked if you have ever written a will. Very many attorneys have.

I review wills and prefer the notario prepare it as they have to ultimately approve it and they can get a draft done quick.

A good practice for all is to have all variations of your name listed on the will to avoid issues, i.e.

Robert J. Jones tambien conocido como Bob Jones tambien conocido como Bob James Jones, etc. as well as list both last names even though we don't use them in our culture.

Don't assume the notary does his job, we are all different and have different needs but they use the same format. Supposedly they are to provide a translator but many are bilingual and say they translate it but I think many recite from memory their script and may not really hone in on the fine points that may be specific to you, it happens.

Personally, I'd prefer an attorney that has written wills to review mine. That little thing called experience.

To tell you the truth I do not remember how it went down. We had a translator and two witnesses and I can of remember that we caught the mistake when the English version was typed.
The error was obvious, my husband was leaving every thing to himself instead of me.
I think the draft was read and it sounded correct but the name error happened on the original..to tell you the truth I do not remember but obviously my husband did not leave everything to himself..
I think the 1000 pesos was half the price of the will so the notary must have assumed some responsability . who knows.. I thought the whole thing was steep but we got it corrected and moved on.

The will and deed were checked last year by an independent lawyer..10 years later to make sure there was no mistake.

little italy wrote:I have a couple of questions for the two of you (brigitte, Jim W.) so I can better understand.

Did you have a translator with you that read every word before you signed and if not did you understand every word you read?

Did you make copies of the draft after you signed?

Did you have a lawyer take a look see before the original papers were signed?

If I sign and understand what I am signing and later discover a mistake, then of course I would be responsible to pay, however, if a typo was made in the original and I didn't again read or translate then I would think to correct it I would not be responsible to pay.

Jim, if I may ask what type of error did you find on your deed?

I ask these questions because I will need to change the title of my house and have a new will made. My Husband died, although it has been eight years this July, and I am thinking about selling my house and of course need to have the title changed as we were both on the original title. Please send a personal pm if you wish. Thanks

Little Italy, basically the answer to all is no, we were told that Notarios were god almighty, we were told to hire a notario dictate the will all would be cool. In my case no translator, no notario. Error on deed was address, square footage. No I didn't hire a lawyer as I was led to believe Notarios are gawd so to speak....I learned the hard way......payed for a useless will, trying to make my wife's life ez, only to learn, now must research, find a proper notario, and to be honest TOTALLY F ING pissed.

Contact Spencer, or an attorney you trust.....Mexico Notarios seem to be unregulated!

seisdedos wrote:Personally, I'd prefer an attorney that has written wills to review mine. That little thing called experience.

You are lucky solo, I fall into el stupido, I hired a well known Notario, and got totally screwed.....welcome to Mexico, good people trying to protect their loved ones......only to have them screwed by the Mexican system....gotta love this country solo, does it make you proud? Knowing old people are fighting to save assets? Abiding by Mexican Law? Fortunately living, and getting my assests outa here....country is far to corupt for me.

seisdedos wrote:Poor jimmy, someone makes a mistake and you blame the whole country. I for one won't miss your assets.

Solo, my assets are not an issue, It is the people that come to Mexico living here, and writing their will, assuming that all will be proper. Solo you are a major Richard, and you disrespect Mexico....OOOPS you married a Mexican woman.....making you some kind of a gawd........I am happy your wifes children are doing well.....Not yours, and quite frankly offended by your attacks on Dr. Sam and Spencer.....you are a gutless individual, that takes great satisfaction, attacking people that contribute to society! Please post your contribution to this web board....richard....

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Thank you Brigitte and Jim for this useful information.

Jim I can certainly understand your frustration.

Spencer it goes without saying your dedication as a trusted Lawyer and the information you freely provide us. Thank you.

little italy wrote:Thank you Brigitte and Jim for this useful information.

Jim I can certainly understand your frustration.

Spencer it goes without saying your dedication as a trusted Lawyer and the information you freely provide us. Thank you.

Little Italy, send sunfan a PM, I know he used Notario #2 for his will and seems to be pleased with his. H e told me that the Notario wrote his will in English for his review, approval. then submitted final in Spanish.

Best regards, Jim W

Thanks Jim...