Mark Casto - Columbus, GA

I hired Mark Casto in 2017 after a consultation with him regarding false charges that were brought against me for phone harassment for $600, in which he told me that he could easily get my charges dismissed. I left all my evidence of my innocence in organized folders with his paralegal and told her that I would pick them up in a few weeks. Mark refused to return emails and phone calls and I was forced to go wait for him until his office was closed in order to speak with him about his representation. He became offended that I was there and aggressively told me that he had been receiving complaints from the woman and her friend that I was still harassing her (while we had already discussed that she was the one in fact that was harassing me). We had discussed how I believed that she had made up false profiles and spoofed numbers to harass herself as me as her sister who was my friend stated that she did similarly to her. He told me that because he was friends with the prosecutor it would be easy to get my case dismissed in the beginning yet months had gone by and it is my belief that he was working with the prosecutor against me. I then chose to seek a second opinion from another lawyer and that lawyer decided to call Mark Casto, upon which Mark told me that because I had retained him that I was not allowed to seek other counsel to which he stated that I was becoming difficult and he may be considering dropping me as a client. I notified him that if he would provide me the legal services that I had paid him to perform, I would not be difficult. Weeks later, I sent an email and told him that I was firing him and would be by the office to pick up my files. When I went to pick up my files, his legal secretary was told (I assume by Mark Casto) to make copies of my files which he should have already had). The copier wasn't working and she asked me to wait for over an hour while they contacted a tech to come and repair it. After waiting for a long time, I finally told her that I wanted my files immediately and she gave them to me. My files had been in the same folders I had provided to him and were untouched. He refused to file his withdrawal of assistance to which I had to email him yet again and file my own motion to terminate his representation with the court. When I asked for a refund, he refused to provide it to me, which I believe is theft because he did nothing on my case and when I asked for the invoice and any notes or files he had regarding my case (my case file), he lied and said he had already provided them to me, which he did not. I told him that I would be able to come and pick them up and he told me that I was not welcome at his office and that if I came by he would have me arrested for trespassing. He was very unprofessional, biased, compromised, and a liar. I do not recommend him at all!