Appelman & Associates LLC

Referencing ID # [redacted]When we initially spoke with Mr. [redacted] we made him aware of the situation that he faced.  He had been in a car accident with a government vehicle, and up to the point we first spoke the government was not willing to give Mr. [redacted] any money for the damage to his...

car.  I explained that we would do everything we could to try to resolve his problem, but that there were no guarantees that we would actually be able to get the government to pay him anything. Our contract explicitly states that there are NO GUARANTEES, that clients pay us for our time and best efforts. He stated that he understood, and put down a $500 retainer.  We would perform the legal work involved in his case, and then we would bill against his retainer. Anything left over at the end would be refunded to him.We made numerous phone calls over the course of 2 to 3 weeks. We spoke with the city of Chicago and the State of Illinois.  We eventually reached out to and spoke with the Attorney General's Office. We spent approximately 2 hours on Mr. [redacted]'s case, at a rate of $250 per hour, totaling legal fees of $500.  Unfortunately, the government was not willing to agree to a settlement with Mr. [redacted]; they are refusing to pay him anything. I called Mr. [redacted] and explained what we had done on his behalf, and the outcome.  We offered to assist him in filing a lawsuit against the government, but he stated that he could file a lawsuit on his own. He was disappointed, but did not express any reservations or concerns about what we had done on his behalf, or the quality of our work.Mr. [redacted] called a few days later and asked about the money.  I explained to him that we had worked for over 2 hours, but that in light of the results, I was only going to charge him $200, leaving him a refund of $300. I stated that I would prepare a check and have it mailed to him.Since that phone call Mr. [redacted] has called our office every single day demanding his refund check.  I carefully explained to him that I had prepared the check, and that it was in our Out Box, waiting for the mail to be picked up.Now it appears that Mr. [redacted] is demanding all of his money back, including the $200 we billed him. Since we did in fact do the work he asked us to do, and since we gave him a large discount on our services, we see no reason to refund to Mr. [redacted] anything more than the $300 he has already received back from our firm.  We do not, and will not, work for free, which is what Mr. [redacted] is demanding.  We performed the work as requested, he should pay his bill as he agreed to do. Since we have already sent Mr. [redacted] his refund check, we believe this matter is now closed.