MulembolawReviews of mulembolaw.com

I regret hiring Mulembo Law PLLC and attorney Annamarie Valdivia for my child custody and support matter in 2025. I needed preparation, follow-through, and careful attention to evidence concerning my children. In my experience, the representation repeatedly fell short of those needs. I supplied extensive evidence, documentation, disclosures, and timelines. Very little of that material was used. I repeatedly raised reported violations of the Order of Protection, troubling communication patterns, and records concerning my children's wellbeing. I felt those concerns were minimized, ignored, or left out of the presentation to the court. I was assured that issues would be addressed, but when hearings arrived, I did not see the follow-through I expected. One example stands out: Annamarie Valdivia arrived at a settlement conference without a completed child support worksheet. When she called her office from the courthouse, the office could not locate or produce one either. I consider that a serious failure of preparation. In my view, it led to avoidable additional litigation and weakened my legal and financial position. I was told I would be able to review the draft closing arguments before submission. That did not happen. I never saw the exhibits packet before it was filed. We did not discuss a strategy for selecting the exhibits, and I was not consulted about several decisions that materially affected my case. Even when I specifically asked to review something or requested clarification, responses were often late, incomplete, or missing. I sent dozens of detailed emails with evidence, concerns, and updates. These included issues I believed were important to my children's safety and to the opposing party's conduct. The responsiveness was inconsistent, and I often felt dismissed. To me, important information was being pushed aside until the opportunity to use it effectively had passed. The opposing attorney in the case was Erin K. Fox. A petition she filed portrayed me as a father who did not love his son and never attended his track meets. I dispute that portrayal. I love my son, and I have videos of myself attending his meets and cheering him on. This is part of why I needed my own lawyers to understand my evidence, communicate with me, and prepare thoroughly. After I began criticizing the outcome of my case, Mulembo Law PLLC filed a motion titled "Motion to Withdraw with Client Consent" on December 2, 2025. On December 3, while the firm was still representing me, I received opposing counsel Erin K. Fox's fee affidavit seeking $40,553.88 in fees and costs. Its supporting paperwork included duplicate entries. The withdrawal order was executed on December 5. Mulembo never spoke to me about that fee affidavit. I was left to defend against the request on my own. I felt abandoned at exactly the point I faced a substantial fee request. I objected on December 11. On December 17, the court directed Fox to clarify entries it observed appeared duplicative. On January 15, 2026, she submitted an amended affidavit seeking $21,033.87. She attributed the duplicates to a QuickBooks problem, acknowledged she should have noticed them, and apologized. On January 16, the court assessed $15,000 against me. The court made no misconduct finding against Fox, and the State Bar later closed my complaint as an apparently isolated, corrected mistake. My fee arbitration with Mulembo Law PLLC is pending. I did my part by supplying records, evidence, timelines, and detailed communications. I expected my lawyers to turn that work into prepared advocacy and to keep me involved in the decisions that mattered. In my opinion, I received reactive representation and broken assurances instead. The stakes for my family were too high for that level of preparation and follow-through. I would not hire Mulembo Law PLLC or Annamarie Valdivia again.