Is a lawyer manditory? **confused**

[utfanatic79]

Here's the situation:
My wife is from Colombia and I am American. She was in the US on a Visters Visa when we met and eventually got married. Little did I know, just because you get married it doesnt make her a legal citizen. We found out that her visitation permission had expired (after we had married) and her Visa is due to expire mid July. We talked to a lawyer about this and he told us that we needed to submit 2 forms costing around $1500...ok. But he then said his fees would range from $4500-$6500 to do this. I do not have this amount of cash available to me. So, is this process something that HAS to be done by a lawyer or am I able to do the legwork myself? We really need some advice from someone other than that lawyer.
Thanks in advance.

[bkwld]

No. Although, a good experienced attorney usually charge 2000-2500 + USCIS fees for this type of case. You do not need an attorney.
You will need to filr for adjustment of status for your wife:

https://www.immihelp.com/i-485-adjustment-of-status-application/

[utfanatic79]

Thanks for the reassurance, I needed that. After a bit more research, it looks as if we need to submit an I-130 & and I-485 ASAP. $1365 doesnt look as bad as 7k+. Also, just to make sure I understand this correctly, if I submit an I-765 with the I-485 i don't need to pay the additional $340 for the I-765.
Thanks again.