lawyer or no lawyer

tonysop · #1 (**permalink**) 03-18-2006, 09:43 PM

If you are applying for a K-1 should you go it alone or hire a lawyer?? I know the filing fee is $170 but if I use a lawyer it is about $2000 plus the filing fee. But they handle everything. What would you do? Thanks for any help. I'm relying on your experiences. Thanks.

Lostagain · #2 (**permalink**) 03-19-2006, 11:47 AM

There is no simple answer to your quesion, except the lawyer's answer of: It depends.

If you are reasonably knowledgeable concerning the procedures, then you should be able to do it yourself. But, if you mess it up, you lose. The BCIS has tons of "gotcha's" that are lurking in the background and if you get tangled in one, you can find yourself getting angry and frustrated, which, in turn, will lead to more errors and more frustration.

A good immigration lawyer can make the process pretty painless. If you calculate the value of your time doing other things, you may find that the $2170 you spend for the lawyer to be money well spent, especially after you realize you would have spent 40 to 50 hours longer than it would have taken with the lawyer.

Of course, I have a bias as I am a lawyer, but I retired from the active practice of law when I went to Co. a few years ago so my suggestion is not heavily weighted in that direction.

L.A.

tonysop · #3 (**permalink**) 03-19-2006, 02:49 PM

I should have wrote about $2000 including the filing fee. The whole thing should amount to $2000. I am leaning towards the lawyer. I am definitley not an expert in this area.

Ulfaro · #4 (**permalink**) 03-19-2006, 03:27 PM

I'm no expert in this but I have learned a lot about the visa process from a great site that you cannot or should not look over because of the wealth of free information and VISA experiences.

The site is called VISAJOURNEY.COM

Before you blow a wad of cash, consider doing the K1, K3 or AOS yourself with the help of these guys.

It's free, all free...guides and all on how to do it.

Good luck.

roupple · #5 (**permalink**) 03-19-2006, 04:23 PM

I have filed this before, I beleive you can do it on your own. You are going to have to get the paperwork together yourself and then he will file it, if you want I can do it for half the cost for you. Hey, just look over the paperwork, fill it out correctly, send all the info they ask for and overnight it with a return receipt. Send 3 cpoies of everything. or just sned me one copy and I do all the work for you. PS: I am not an attorney, but I had mine approved with no problems.