I would like to know if there is a location on the internet to find a good attorney, something along the lines of Yelp. Attorneys vary by specialty and there are many attorneys who are unprofessional. It would be great if such a site could direct us away from the poor performers and lead us to the stellar attorneys. Please let me know of any good attorneys who could help with Real Estate law, Residency, and/or Court Hearings. Thank you.
You need to be a member of Boquete Ning to add comments!
Replies
I am looking for a Real Estate Attorney myself with notable lack of success. I had a couple of referrals but these people won't even respond to my requests for a consultation, which tells me that after they get my money they are even less likely to be responsive.
An additional note of caution: Last month I saw two informational memos that came through the local Oficina de Migracion. These both referred to criminal cases currently pending in Federal Court and involved local attorneys conspiring with bank officials to defraud foreigners who transferred money to local banks in preparation to purchase real estate.
There are no legal mechanisms for escrow transactions here. I consulted with an attorney in David who was honest enough to tell me that depositing my money in an attorney's trust account prior to a purchase is NOT a good idea. For one thing, the banks charge 7.5% off the top for this service. For another thing, there is nothing to stop the attorney from taking all your money for himself.
Be very, very VERY careful who you choose as your attorney. They are in a position to cheat you, especially as Panamanian laws are so different to the States. Also, libel and slander laws are alive and well here, so anyone denegrating an attorney (or any business) in public does so at a financial risk - even if what you say is true and can be proved. Choose one on several personal recommendations.
And, just like the US...no one attorney will specialize in ALL of those things.
Short answer is NO