do legal aide offices charge a big sum??

Angie, welcome to the forums.

I am speaking from my own personal experience with my local Legal Aide (LA) office, other's might have slightly different experiences.

I contacted LA because I was being sued by a CC company and I, at the time, had been unemployed for 8 months. The attorney I spoke with was great; she was very reassuring and kind and explained everything about the case to me, what my options were, and what she could do. She advised me the attorney did a crap job with the filing of the case; all the backup paperwork was basically garbage. None of the backup even had my name on it, they didn't back up how they arrived at the amount they claimed I owed, the supposed creditor agreement was a generic one that didn't have my name or signature on it, and a few other things. At the time, I was still having severe medical problems, I had problems going out my front door, much less going into a court room. I couldn't even drive a car without breaking down and crying. She represented me in the case and advised me I didn't have to be there if I didn't think I could handle it.

She did get the case dismissed, of course without prejudice so they can try suing me again at some future date.

It didn't cost me a dime, because I was unemployed, and I feel I probably got as good, or better, service I would have gotten with any other attorney I paid for. I'm sure they must base fees on a sliding scale, depending on how much you make, and it doesn't hurt to go talk to them and see if they can help you.

Let me know if my information is helpful, and please keep us posted on how things work out for you.

Excellent answer there from experience.