Limited Assistance Representation

Cape Cod Divorce Mediation also provides Limited Assistance Representation (LAR) if you’re a pro se (unrepresented) party and need legal consultation, representation for a specific limited purpose, or you're at a certain stage in the process.

LAR works well for:

• People who can manage his or her own case for the most part but need legal assistance for a portion of the case or at a certain stage in the process.
• Clients who cannot afford to hire a full-time attorney but need legal advice or assistance. Cape Cod Divorce & Mediation, P.C. offers two types of LAR: office consultation appointments; and limited court appearances.

Office consultation appointments, which can include:

• General advice and/or document review.
• Coaching and advice to prepare for a court hearing where the client is appearing in court without a lawyer (e.g., for a motion hearing, pre-trial conference or trial).
• Mediation coaching where the client is actively engaged in mediation and wants ongoing advice from an attorney who acts as a sideline coach.
• Assisting in the negotiation of a settlement agreement with the other party.
• Ghostwriting and/or drafting documents such as complaints, motions, affidavits, financial statements, etc.
• Assisting in obtaining discovery from the other party e.g., interrogatories, requests for production of documents, requests for admissions, subpoenas.
• Helping with the preparation of a pretrial memorandum.
• Assisting with the preparation for trial e.g., preparing arguments, testimony and exhibits.

Some examples of hiring us an LAR attorney:

• Specific court appearances.
• Negotiating with the opposing party or lawyer. In this case, the lawyer would enter a "Limited Appearance" on the client's behalf and then a "Withdrawal of Limited Appearance" immediately following the end of the service. This signals to the court and the opposing party that the client is being represented by legal counsel for purposes of a specific hearing or purpose only and that the client will continue to be unrepresented thereafter.

• Smaller retainer than typical full representation case.
• Client pays the lawyer by the hour on a per-appointment basis.
• Client may pay a small advance retainer for a limited court appearance or for negotiations with the opposing party.
• Payment is expected at each appointment, either by check or credit card.

Typically, the LAR arrangement saves thousands of dollars because it provides legal assistance only when the client needs it. The client always has the option of entering into a full-representation agreement with the lawyer if needed.