Previous Law Firm Name

• Chinn & Associates, 1998

Law Firm Overview

Chinn & Associates employs a unique team approach where the entire staff serves a clients' needs. When this team approach is combined with our unique staffing and our commitment to service, we deliver complete service to our clients.

We know that many of our clients are in despair over their family lives and they have probably never been in a lawyer's office before. Our approach is designed to make clients feel as comfortable as possible during these difficult circumstances. We strive to make them feel as though our arms are wrapped around them and that they have protection and a safe haven in our office.

The initial client interview is conducted by one of our experienced attorneys. The purpose of the initial interview is to make the client feel comfortable, to determine the problem, obtain necessary information, and establish a mission or goals for their representation. The attorney conducts a case analysis to determine the facts, the law, the strengths and weaknesses of the case and the plan of action. It is at this stage that initial decisions are made regarding the investigation and legal research necessary to accomplish the mission. In each case, Mark Chinn reviews the analysis and the mission.

Once the client becomes a member of the Chinn & Associates family, he or she is introduced to our Client Guide who will obtain the information necessary to properly open the representation. If possible, the client will be introduced in the initial interview to our unique divorce support staff. We know that divorce involves emotional and financial issues as well as legal, so we have assembled experts in those fields on our staff. One of these experts being a "Client Accountant."

Chinn and Associates was among 13 finalists at the Better Business Bureau of Mississippi's Integrity Awards Banquet, which honors companies who are guided by the highest principals of ethics and customer service.

The Client Accountant handles the sophisticated financial considerations that dominate the divorce cases served by Chinn & Associates. Every case requires the preparation of what is known as a "Rule 8.05" budget, financial statement and employment history. The Client Accountant is specially trained to prepare these statements in the most accurate and effective way for use in court. In addition, the Client Accountant is responsible for interfacing with CPAs to assemble the most accurate, documented and up to date financial statement for use by the attorneys in making settlement decisions or in trial preparation. In the traditional law office, these functions have typically been handled by lawyers, whose rates are usually higher than accountants, or paralegals, who have no financial training. By providing an accountant to handle these duties, Chinn & Associates believes that it is delivering superior service at a reduced cost to the client.

Responsibility for the legal aspects of the case is typically divided among our staff of lawyers. The goal is to have the person with the lowest level of training necessary to handle the problem, thus allowing for specialization of roles at a reduced cost to the client. For example, one lawyer might be assigned the task of research and preparation of basic pleadings, while another lawyer might be assigned the task of working with the opposing lawyer and the client. In all cases, Mark Chinn either establishes or reviews the Mission and the Firms adherence to this.

Mark Chinn knows that any successful venture must have a Mission and all actions of the firm must be taken with the end result in mind. To facilitate adherence to the Mission, team meetings are conducted at regular intervals and at critical times in the life of the case. Team meetings may consist of the lawyers or the entire staff, depending on the situation. Information is exchanged and the current situation is analyzed in relation to the Mission. The strengths and weaknesses are reevaluated and the action plan is assessed and updated.

The Chinn & Associates team has been carefully and painstakingly assembled and trained as a result of Mark Chinn's goal to deliver unparalleled service to people who are going through what many believe to be the worst personal experience in life, Divorce. The Chinn & Associates Team delivers specialized service at a reduced cost, while making the client feel that their problem is being handled by a family of friends that care a great deal about them.

Areas of Practice

• Family Law
• Child Support
• Custody & Visitation
• Divorce

Honors and Awards

• Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America
• Selected for Martindale-Hubbell's 1999 Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers in the field of Family Law
• 1999 Award of Merit for distinguished service to the Bar and the Public
• Enrolled as a Fellow of the Mississippi Bar Foundation in 1997 for outstanding legal ability and devotion to the Public and Profession

West Practice Categories

Estate Planning, Guardianships & Conservatorships, Living Wills, Powers of Attorney and Appointment, Trusts, Wills, Family Law, Alimony & Spousal Support, Child Support, Childrens' Rights, Collaborative Law, Custody & Visitation, Divorce, Juvenile Law, Paternity, Prenuptial Agreements, Estate Administration