Is an attorney worth the peace of mind ?

[wanderer84 31]

I filed my I751 ROC in May 2017 and it is pending and from USCIS standpoint it is within processing times. Between family, kid, work, life and whatnot this stress of waiting and uncertainty personally is becoming unbearable and distracting.

From what I read in VJ about denied 1551 stamp and other nightmare issues, I lose whatever peace of mind is left and start questioning what was sent and what i wish we had sent and all the unknowns outthere. 

I keep regretting not having hired an attorney for the ROC. With the current climate i intend to file N400 , but doing so alone and going through the same emotions I am not sure I can do it again. I am not even sure if I can hire an attorney now given that the I751 is already filed, but just want to get all your thoughts on (a) Is it possible to hire an attorney now ? (b) is it worth it to hire an attorney?. thanks.

 

 

 

Edited April 25, 2018 by wanderer84

[mindthegap 2,590]

A) yes

B) yes, no, maybe - only you can decide whether it is beneficial to you.

It won’t speed it up - probably the opposite They also can’t answer questions for you if called for an interview either.

I-751s are adjudicated based on the evidence provided, which an attorney can’t really help with. 

 

[Alabamak1 688]

9 minutes ago, wanderer84 said:

I filed my I751 ROC in May 2017 and it is pending and from USCIS standpoint it is within processing times. Between family, kid, work, life and whatnot this stress of waiting and uncertainty personally is becoming unbearable and distracting.

From what I read in VJ about denied 1551 stamp and other nightmare issues, I lose whatever peace of mind is left and start questioning what was sent and what i wish we had sent and all the unknowns outthere. 

I keep regretting not having hired an attorney for the ROC. With the current climate i intend to file N400 , but doing so alone and going through the same emotions I am not sure I can do it again. I am not even sure if I can hire an attorney now given that the I751 is already filed, but just want to get all your thoughts on (a) Is it possible to hire an attorney now ? (b) is it worth it to hire an attorney?. thanks.

 

 

 

in case something goes wrong at this point...i would, but that's only my opinion. like some other Vjer would say...it depends on what you expect to get out of it.  a) yes, you can hire an attorney at any point b) it's a peace of mind that in any wrong scenario where you have no clue , the lawyer can intervene.

 

Example: my N-400 application (petitioner here) went terribly wrong, because of incompetence of lawyer, but he did manage to fix it and get some answers for me that i wouldnt have otherwise gotten. The IO did also a number on my application which was straight forward and the lawyer stepped in. 

[mycase17 114]

7 minutes ago, wanderer84 said:

I filed my I751 ROC in May 2017 and it is pending and from USCIS standpoint it is within processing times. Between family, kid, work, life and whatnot this stress of waiting and uncertainty personally is becoming unbearable and distracting.

From what I read in VJ about denied 1551 stamp and other nightmare issues, I lose whatever peace of mind is left and start questioning what was sent and what i wish we had sent and all the unknowns outthere. 

I keep regretting not having hired an attorney for the ROC. With the current climate i intend to file N400 , but doing so alone and going through the same emotions I am not sure I can do it again. I am not even sure if I can hire an attorney now given that the I751 is already filed, but just want to get all your thoughts on (a) Is it possible to hire an attorney now ? (b) is it worth it to hire an attorney?. thanks.

 

 

 

my 2 cents..

I would only recommend hiring Attorney if you have no clue on how to fill forms, you don't want or have time to research about getting stamp after 1 year extension expired etc. Experience with USCIS can be nightmare even in presence of attorney. 

Like in my previous I-485, my biggest mistake was to hire an attorney. He messed up my case completely and took a while to get approval.

If I knew VJ existed and I was not in school, I would have never bothered about hiring them. 

Think about this. Attorney has 1000 of cases so they will probably spend few hours or may be minutes over your application but if you file yourself you can spend whatever time you need and go through once or twice and make sure you have everything. But off-course you need to do some research and spend time. 

[mindthegap 2,590]

Of course, you can still consult an attorney about any matters, without actually having them file on your behalf. 

[wanderer84 31]

1 hour ago, mindthegap said:

A) yes

B) yes, no, maybe - only you can decide whether it is beneficial to you.

It won’t speed it up - probably the opposite They also can’t answer questions for you if called for an interview either.

I-751s are adjudicated based on the evidence provided, which an attorney can’t really help with. 

 

Thanks for the response. I am not worried about the legality of the marriage. We have a kid and monies intertwined in joint account, 401ks, wills, etc. Though we did not have the will when we filed roc.  I am just worried about the type of posts I read in Vj. It's so sad that USCIS makes mistakes and somebody else pays the price. I am referring to recent posts at vj. I guess it's just beyond anyone's control. 

Edited April 25, 2018 by wanderer84

[wanderer84 31]

1 hour ago, mycase17 said:

my 2 cents..

I would only recommend hiring Attorney if you have no clue on how to fill forms, you don't want or have time to research about getting stamp after 1 year extension expired etc. Experience with USCIS can be nightmare even in presence of attorney. 

Like in my previous I-485, my biggest mistake was to hire an attorney. He messed up my case completely and took a while to get approval.

If I knew VJ existed and I was not in school, I would have never bothered about hiring them. 

Think about this. Attorney has 1000 of cases so they will probably spend few hours or may be minutes over your application but if you file yourself you can spend whatever time you need and go through once or twice and make sure you have everything. But off-course you need to do some research and spend time. 

I see your point. Thanks for your input.

[wanderer84 31]

1 hour ago, Alabamak1 said:

in case something goes wrong at this point...i would, but that's only my opinion. like some other Vjer would say...it depends on what you expect to get out of it.  a) yes, you can hire an attorney at any point b) it's a peace of mind that in any wrong scenario where you have no clue , the lawyer can intervene.

 

Example: my N-400 application (petitioner here) went terribly wrong, because of incompetence of lawyer, but he did manage to fix it and get some answers for me that i wouldnt have otherwise gotten. The IO did also a number on my application which was straight forward and the lawyer stepped in. 

Yep. The same way as insurance for a rental car from the rental. Most of the times you don't need it, but in the worst case of an accident with insurance you don't deal with the hassle. 

[Ketsuban 1,034]

The vast majority of cases go through just fine (the long waiting times aside). What you read online are rare horror stories and those can be applied to all areas of life.

[SM & EF 41]

If you want peace of mind, I would start with an infopass appt to request the I551 stamp. Once you have this you will feel a lot better.

 

We all understand the stress and the feeling of helplessness during this entire process.  The wait is interminable and the possibility of an unforseen issue is scary.  As others have said, hiring a lawyer won't prevent these feelings.

 

In the end, no one can decide if hiring a lawyer is the right move except you. We used one during AOS, but not for ROC or N400.  There were moments I wondered if we should have hired during the other processes (like when we got an RFE), but we gathered more evidence and sent it in and got approved.

 

As mentioned above, stories on this site are not always representative of the larger reality, but that's cold comfort as you are waiting to hear your fate.

 

I wish I had a secret to get through this without worrying but that's not possible.  The only thing that worked for me was submitting everything possible and then distracting myself till we heard the good news.

 

Best wishes! 

[crazyworld 54]

Wanderer84,

 

My 2 1/2 cents is, we hired a attorney for the K1 visa since all of this was new to us and new to this web site. Once we saw what and how the attorney did it, we have done everything ourselves since with the help of VJ. As long as you were very careful about doting all the eyes and crossing all the tees, and understanding exactly what they are wanting in each step, you will be OK. The waiting time is what does everyone in even if you use an attorney. Since you already sent yours in, you can always hire an attorney if needed to step in and help with any problems. Good Luck!

[Hikerwa 28]

Just my experience. Yes, it will be a long wait. We filed ourselves, I read all the nightmare stories, and stressed about our evidence because I didn't include taxes, I could have, I just didn't. I did include shared bank accounts, credit cards, life and health insurance, apartment lease, shared bills, drivers licenses, and will and trust documents. We were approved today after applying November 2016. I think there are a very small percentage of bad experiences, but those always stick out more than the good. Other than the 14+ months of waiting, our experience was smooth. 

 

[sharin 41]

22 hours ago, wanderer84 said:

I filed my I751 ROC in May 2017 and it is pending and from USCIS standpoint it is within processing times. Between family, kid, work, life and whatnot this stress of waiting and uncertainty personally is becoming unbearable and distracting.

From what I read in VJ about denied 1551 stamp and other nightmare issues, I lose whatever peace of mind is left and start questioning what was sent and what i wish we had sent and all the unknowns outthere. 

I keep regretting not having hired an attorney for the ROC. With the current climate i intend to file N400 , but doing so alone and going through the same emotions I am not sure I can do it again. I am not even sure if I can hire an attorney now given that the I751 is already filed, but just want to get all your thoughts on (a) Is it possible to hire an attorney now ? (b) is it worth it to hire an attorney?. thanks.

 

 

 

Where can I read about denied I-551 stamp and other nightmare issues - I've upcoming trip to home country; want to make sure I cover all possibilities on my end before leaving for trip. My package was delivered on 20th April, 2018 - waiting for check cashing & NOA letter in mail. 

[wanderer84 31]

9 minutes ago, sharin said:

Where can I read about denied I-551 stamp and other nightmare issues - I've upcoming trip to home country; want to make sure I cover all possibilities on my end before leaving for trip. My package was delivered on 20th April, 2018 - waiting for check cashing & NOA letter in mail. 

Like others have said these nightmares happen rarely. I really don't recommended voluntarily searching for horror stories to read. Peace of mind is worth it. If you feel ambitious you can look through posts from 2 or 3 days ago. 

 

You just filed your I751, in a week or so you will receive your NOA and that should be good enough to travel with your expired GC (if at all it is expired). If the GC is not expired when you travel and if it wont be expired when you return then the GC itself is good enough to let you back in, but do carry the original NOA (not the copy).  

[praizee 10]

22 hours ago, wanderer84 said:

I filed my I751 ROC in May 2017 and it is pending and from USCIS standpoint it is within processing times. Between family, kid, work, life and whatnot this stress of waiting and uncertainty personally is becoming unbearable and distracting.

From what I read in VJ about denied 1551 stamp and other nightmare issues, I lose whatever peace of mind is left and start questioning what was sent and what i wish we had sent and all the unknowns outthere. 

I keep regretting not having hired an attorney for the ROC. With the current climate i intend to file N400 , but doing so alone and going through the same emotions I am not sure I can do it again. I am not even sure if I can hire an attorney now given that the I751 is already filed, but just want to get all your thoughts on (a) Is it possible to hire an attorney now ? (b) is it worth it to hire an attorney?. thanks.

 

 

 

My 2cents here

 

An attorney is beneficial. If you get called for an interview, your attorney will be present there with you.

 

An attorney cannot force them to adjudicate your case but they can follow up and it gives you some peace of mind because if there's an issue, they attorney can step in and help.

 

There is a reason why you hire a plumber to fix your plumbing work.

 

If you have the money, i suggest it but make sure you do your research so that you hire a competent lawyer.

 

It's not just about filling forms