WHY GO 'PRO SE'?

Why do you need to take charge of your Case?

There are clear violations of your constitutional rights along with gross abuse of due process by Judges and lawyers. Because of the way the Probate and Family Court system is set up and the strong influence of feminist-politically correct (constitutionally incorrect), judges and lawyers seek too often to serve their own interests.

In a divorce action involving children, as a man, you will most likely (>85% of cases) lose physical custody of your child, lose the majority if not all of your assets, and have a horrendous amount of ‘politically correct’ child support (that would be mother support) taken from all of which will leave you indigent or nearly so. You should know exactly what the laws and procedures are that determine or influence what will be happening to you so you can counter act the worse of what will happen.

Lawyers are notorious for not telling you the full truth of bias and persecution that will be forced on you; unfortunately they are too often interested in preserving their benefits in this court system at your expense. Don’t wait ‘til after you have been screwed to realize what has happened. You need to become an informed-of-the-law client or a competent pro se litigant to protect your –and your child(ren)’s rights.

If you must go it alone as pro se, realize that you can legally do it. The right to represent yourself is guaranteed by the U.S. Bill of Rights as contained in the Constitution of the United States of America By acting as a pro se litigant you are exercising one of the most significant rights you possess as a citizen of the United States. Every citizen should learn to take pride in this relationship with your society and your government. It is a component part of your rights as Citizen.

While it does require a certain emotional detachment and self-discipline to represent one's self effectively in a court of law, IT CAN BE DONE. Get in the habit of saying "I am acting as an attorney representing myself" Truly, that is what you are when you accept the mantle of Pro Se litigant.

There are just a few fundamental things that you must know, no matter what the type of case you are involved in and whether you are an attorney or a pro se litigant.

bullet1. The jurisdictional powers and limitations of the court in which your case resides (Rules of Civil Procedure, your states Constitution).
bullet2. The procedural rules of the court (Rules of Civil Procedure, Rules of Civil Evidence, Local rules)
bullet3. The statutes applicable to the case (The Family Code, the Penal Code, etc.),
bullet4. The hierarchy between the rules of procedure and the statutes
bullet5. The relevant upper court case law applicable to the matter at hand

LBU offers all this information in its courses, which are relevant to the Probate and Family court. An awareness of these fundamental elements is essential even if you ARE represented by an attorney. The more you know about what is happening to you and your family, the less dependant on an attorney you will be.

You might hear that the court does not like pro se individuals. Actually, the court doesn’t like pro se people who show up without a lawyer and no nothing about the law and the protocol. The are simply a nuisance when so unprepared. LBU can teach you to be a competent pro se individual.

 

After taking the LBU courses and workshops offerings you should be able to handle actions like:

bulletDoing your own divorce
bulletModifying an existing order/decree (reduce child support or increase access)
bulletChanging the status of your Custody
bulletInitiating a voluntary paternity action
bulletDefending against an involuntary paternity action
bulletInitiating an enforcement action for denial of visitation and access or non-payment of child support
bulletReducing your child support, insurance, or travel obligation
bulletDefending yourself against an unjust accusation of non-payment of child support
bulletBringing your visitation up to current and more liberal standards

Viewed form a real world perspective, if you cannot afford a lawyer than maybe you have no other alternative. If you have already spent tens of thousands of dollars and have not come away with what you wanted the Pro Se alternative may

Consider the following distinct advantages a knowledgeable well prepared father has when he decides to go Pro se.

bulletPro se litigants hold expenses to litigate to an absolute minimum
bulletPro se litigants can bring almost any issue up if they plead for attorney's fees, argue that the actions of the opposing party and their attorney (which might be inadmissible in themselves) constituted delay, unreasonableness, increased expenses. Pro se litigants are also allowed to testify in Narrative! Many judges allow a pro se litigant to testify in narrative. In fact they should require you to ask yourself question and answer to allow the opposing side an opportunity to object to the form of the question. Opposing counsel is generally too stupid or arrogant to know this so a pro se can get almost anything in front of a jury unless it is excluded on a motion in limine.

 

bulletPro se litigants can segregate their notes that they use to refresh their memory during testimony from their "work product" (see glossary) that you use in preparing your case. If you get on the stand pro se you should have access to both of the following items:
bulletany notes you need to refresh you memory in order to testify, keeping in mind the opposing counsel may be allowed an opportunity to inspect these notes if requested; and
bulletany work product you need to adequately raise and meet objections or make other legal arguments while you happen to be on the stand. The judge cannot forbid you from access to your case notes since this is effectively denying you an opportunity to be heard.

 

bulletPro se litigants can also cross examine and re-cross examine themselves if the other side calls you as a witness. The advantage of asking leading questions on cross is weakened if you testify in narrative but a pro se cross examination is a great opportunity to control the whole court room because you can insist on an opportunity to take notes during direct! After all you need to make notes of what issues you need to raise or respond to during cross.

 

bulletA pro se litigant in front of a jury may consider having a third party read prepared questions to them while you are on the stand. Consider asking the judge for leave to allow an attorney to handle the cross/direct while you are on the stand. Consider asking for leave for standby counsel (probably will get denied in civil case but what the hell, you never know until you try).

 

bulletGoing Pro Se - doing it yourself - is cathartic. Everyone, with the possible exception of the lawyers involved, who are financially compensated, is emotionally hurt
 

                                GIVE IT A GO!