Urgent-I94 expired

Hello,

My I94 and H1B visa expired 2 days ago i.e. 8th Jan, 2012. I have a valid I797 until 19th Sept, 2012. I was told that I797 is the document which is accurate and I dont need to worry about the visa stamp on my passport. Now my lawyer told me that I94 is the latest documentation that would be on records and it overwrites everything else. So he advised me to file for renewal immediately and hopefully it would be done by 13th Jan, 2012 by premium processing. Now my questions are:

1. For how many days would I be considered out of status? Will that be a problem in future while applying for Green Card?

2. Will I be eligible to accept paycheck from my employer now? Or should I wait until my extension gets approved? Or would it be fine if I wait until I have filed for the extension?

3. Did anyone try getting their I94 corrected to match the date on I797 in detroit airport? I read forums where people had success doing this in Baltimore, Milwaukee, JFK airports.

4. After the approval of my extension, would I still have to go out of the country to get my visa stamping done?

5. Also, please let me know if there are any other issues you could think of in my case.

Its a nerve racking situation for me right now and I would appreciate any advice/comments on this.

Thank you.