Limited Assistance Representation is when an attorney represents or assists a litigant with part, but not all, of his or her legal matter, instead of the standard full representation on an entire case. Limited Assistance Representation allows an attorney to assist a self-represented client with specific issues on a limited basis. This might include preparing or reviewing documents, appearing in court for a crucial event such as a Pretrial Conference or a Motion to Dismiss or giving legal advice. This type of representation is also known as providing unbundled services. This type of limited representation permits the attorney to automatically withdraw representation at Court after completing agreed upon services.
Although the attorney does not fully participate, the attorney owes the client the same duties of loyalty, competence and confidentiality for the limited representation as he would under full service representation. The attorney also must review the limitations of the legal assistance with the client. The attorney and client must enter into a written fee agreement that gives a detailed description and explanation of the services to be provided by the attorney.
Limited assistance representation is available in some of the Massachusetts courts including Probate and Family Court for the benefit of low and moderate-income clients who might not afford the cost of full representation service. So litigants involved in cases of child support and custody, paternity, divorce and others can get partial representation by a qualified lawyer who has signed up with that court.
Limited Assistance Representation enables those who cannot afford unlimited representation to have legal representation for the most crucial aspects of their case. Call us if you would like to explore the possibility of Limited Assistance Representation in your Massachusetts family law matter.
