The Law Office of Dianne Drew Butler

Note this is a review of Lisa Thiessen as my lawyer hired to represent me in family court. She was NOT a third-​party, neutral mediator /​arbitrator. Her interests were aligned to mine.
It took Lisa Thiessen (LT) as my attorney five months to process my sub of attorney over several attempts. Each time I contacted her about the sub, I either got no response or was told she signed and returned it to my new lawyer (she hadn’t) or that she never received the request (she did several times).
I received a bill for services that were not rendered. The services claimed included forwarding me documents (no documents were attached) as well as «advising me to get a sub of attorney» — the very thing I had to contact her several times over the past 5 months. I was told twice over that 5 month period by LT that the sub would be done «next day», neither time did it happen. It was only done when my new attorney finally called her and was able to speak directly.
My lawyer very, VERY rarely returned my phone calls or my e-​mails. Every time I setup a phone appointment to speak with LT it got cancelled, delayed, and rescheduled (usually more than once).
Much of what LT told me to prepare for court was irrelevant — the vast majority was never considered by the judge. I continuously asked what I should be preparing; the rare responses I got were off-​topic and did not answer my questions. I NEVER got an explanation of the divorce process overall.
LT was not helpful in court in front of the judge — she never spoke even though the other party’s lawyer spoke often. She did not spend time with me preparing for court. She was rarely with me in the court building, and when she was physically near me, she was often calling and texting other clients.
LT NEVER made it clear that what I was signing after my court appearance was going to become my final Order. She and I kept talking about coming back to court, so I was left under the impression I could agree to a preliminary deal and come back to push for more. Had I known that, I never would have signed.
When I e-​mailed LT about inaccuracies in the Order, saying we need a plan of action to fix ‘these specific things’ and that my ex agrees — first no response, then very brief comments that had little to do with the questions I asked or the things I said needed to be fixed.
LT’s paralegal had many errors in documents they were going to file. The first set of legal paperwork I got had the wrong city as my new residence, spelled my wife’s name wrong despite it being clearly spelled and typed in the petitioner’s box, wrote a list that included the number 23 twice and skipped other numbers, had several incomplete sentences, and had other grammar /​spelling errors throughout.

Great experience working with Dianne Butler & Associates! Ms. Butler provided me with a personal service showing compassion during a very hard and stressful divorce. She was up front and honest about what we were up against and aggressively represented me at each court appearance. I would highly recommend her to anyone with family law needs as her. Another plus at this firm was in the case Dianne was not immediately available for my questions, her associates Lisa Thiessen and Lindsay Guinn Metzinger were more than happy to help me.

Had a consultation with Ms. Butler. She charges $ 125.00 for a half hour. She made me wait an hour to see her plus I had to drive an hour to get to her office. I did not get a good feeling from her and she made me feel that I didn’t have a chance. Of course, she was more interested in getting her $ 4000 retainer than in my case. She couldn’t even remember my name when I called back to ask for the return of my $ 125.00. She refused to refund the money as she said she did give a consultation. Any other lawyer would have probably refunded the money. As she proudly tells people she’s been in the business for many years and has probably overcharged many clients. I’m sure she didn’t need my money and she knew that I am on Welfare and that my parents are fronting the money. She is arrogant.