Lippes Mathias LLP

Beautiful building with awesome views of the city.

I hired this firm specifically Mr. Hank Holbrook during an extremely difficult divorce and custody-related matter and unfortunately had a very disappointing experience regarding billing transparency and overall cost management. I had a former lawyer who had to quit due to medical reasons so my case was already advanced, papers were served, discovery done etc… I signed a written retainer agreement that specifically stated attorney H. Leon Holbrook III’s hourly rate would be $465/hour. However, during the representation, I later discovered billing calculations reflecting rates higher than what I originally agreed to, despite never signing an amended agreement or being properly notified of any authorized rate increase. In addition, I was billed substantial attorney fees for what appeared to be administrative or organizational tasks that I believe could have been handled by lower-billing staff or paralegals. A large portion of the billing involved emails, reviewing documents I personally gathered, organizing exhibits, scheduling coordination, and preparation for hearings that were ultimately continued or never occurred. Despite very limited actual court activity, including only one short Zoom hearing primarily related to scheduling, the legal fees escalated very quickly into many thousands of dollars closely to 17k. I also found it frustrating that concerns regarding billing and fee adjustments resulted in additional billable charges for communications about the invoices themselves. I understand attorneys deserve to be paid for legitimate legal work, but I personally did not feel there was reasonable billing judgment or proportionality between the fees charged and the actual progress made in the case. I strongly encourage anyone considering hiring this firm to carefully review all invoices, closely monitor billing entries, and make sure all fee terms and future rate changes are clearly documented in writing and be willing to pay thousand of dollars for admin work at attorneys fees. Ultimately, I chose to seek representation elsewhere after feeling that the case strategy, communication, and overall direction of the matter did not align with my expectations.

I had to give 1 star, but I would give 0, if available. I had to hire an attorney December 2024 because I was named in a frivolous lawsuit that I never should have been named in. Anyways, paid my $2k retainer and they attorney did NOTHING. I did more work on my case than he did. I terminated his services September 2025 after he requested another 3-5k. I hired a new attorney that actually did his job and I was dismissed from the case within 30 days due to him actually looking into the law and advising me I NEVER should have been named in the lawsuit. I would NEVER recommend this firm, especially a specific attorney that wanted more money. The majority of my retainer was eaten up by a couple phone calls lasting a few minutes to a few emails also a couple sentences.

They refuse to help kids