Welcome
Our law firm is dedicated to assisting our clients and striving to understand their needs. Developing a long-term attorney client relationship has been a hallmark of our law firm. The law firm's greatest assets are our people. Coming from a wide variety of schools, backgrounds and expertise our clients can always count on our attorneys to relate to their position.
We have designed this website to easily navigate through the information available. Answers to many questions on specific areas of law and contact information can all be found here. If you have any questions or need to discuss your case feel free to call us, email us, or send us a fax.
We are an expert team in U.S. immigration law, business law, enforcement of foreign judgments, family and probate law, also in relation to its international content with respect to German law.
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How to find YOUR German attorney? |
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There are currently about 128,000 attorneys in
Germany.
It is very difficult for you to find the right attorney,
especially if you have never - until now - had to look for an
attorney. How are you able to recognize a good attorney?
First of all, every legal matter is unique. No
German divorce case, no German probate administration case, and no
child custody matter and no business law matter is like a previously
handled matter.
This is the reason, why it is so challenging to find the right attorney
with regard to your matter. The World Wide Web provides a lot of
resources nowadays because there are a lot of search engines and
attorney lists. These lists provide you with many attorneys to choose
from upon entering the word attorney and the name of the city in which
you are looking. However, now it is again your turn to click through
the many websites that were provided to you. Furthermore, you will find
many academic titles and degrees and other specializations. The
question however remains, what conclusions can you make based on search
engine referrals?
What do degrees that are the most common mean, which criteria should
you base your decision on, and what questions should you ask your
potential attorney?
Master Degree
A Master Degree for instance a Master of Law degree, abbreviated as
LL.M. is generally obtained based on a 1 to 2 year study after regular
law school in the United States. For a few years it has been possible
to obtain a Master of Law degree in Germany. Significant is that the
Master of Law can be obtained in various areas and upon completion of
the program; the person is highly specialized in the area he or she
obtained the Master of Law in. A Master of Law can be obtained in the
following areas:
• LL.M. Taxation,
• LL.M. Labor Law,
• LL.M. Corporate & Finance Law,
• LL.M. Comparative Law
The addition of the LL.M. indicates the ability to speak and understand
the legal English and the area of specialization in the areas of law
annexed to the LL.M. Such an additional qualification can be important
for you as the client, if you face international legal problems or if
you are in need of legal expert witnesses.
Ph.D. - Doctorate of Philosophy
The Doctorate of Philosophy or if a doctorate degree is obtained in
Germany, Juris Doctorate, can only be obtained upon the completion of
law school. This degree can only be obtained in Germany if, a person
had great grades in law school and had submitted a doctorate thesis.
The doctorate thesis usually examines legal problems and doctrines,
which have not been analyzed by other legal experts. Consequently, a
German attorney with a Ph.D. (German Juris Doctorate) should be
considered as your choice if you need an expert opinion in subsidiary
areas of law.
Attorney at Law, specializing in .... "Fachanwaltstitel"
Attorney at Law, specializing in .... "Fachanwalt" is an attorney who
in addition to the regular continuing education has completed a
theoretical part of usually 120 to 180 hours (60 minutes), a written
exam and proof of practical experience based on having handled a
specified number of difficult cases within the last few years in that
particular area of law. After having obtained the degree of
specialization in a particular area of law, the attorney must continue
to take part in additional seminars and courses to retain his or her
specialization.
Here is a Checklist on "How to find the RIGHT German Attorney for your German law related matter"
When trying to locate the right attorney for your German law related
matter, ask the following questions before you retain the attorney for
your matter and save yourself a lot of headache down the road:
- Are you licensed in Germany as well as in the United States?
- How long have you been a member of the German Bar Association as a fully licensed German attorney?
- What is the area of law you are specializing in and since when?
- What additional qualifications do you have that make me choose you over any of the other attorneys that might be available?
- Do you speak English and German fluently?
- Which communication devices are used in your office to ensure
overcoming the problem of the time difference and different business
hours? Do you use email and do you provide access to up- and download
files through your company server that provides adequate security
features?
- Do you provide a German and a U.S. postal address for my convenience so I do not have to send documents overseas?
- Do you provide German and U.S. phone and fax numbers so I do not have to make an international call?
- What billing method do you use? Do you bill based upon the German
“Rechtsanwaltsvergütungsordnung”, on an hourly basis or can a fixed
price be negotiated?
- Will I get a retainer letter in the language I speak in order to know what the terms are?
- How can I best reach you and who will be the attorney assigned to my case?
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If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at
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IF YOU would like an overview of how the German legal profession is regulated, click HERE.
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