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How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

If you want to sue your attorney for malpractice lawyer, you must demonstrate that the breach of duty led to financial, legal or other negative consequences for you. It is not enough to show that the attorney's negligence was bad but you must also prove an unambiguous link between the breach and the undesirable outcome.

Legal Malpractice Lawyers does not include issues of strategy. If you lose a lawsuit because your lawyer failed to submit the lawsuit on time this could be considered the result of malpractice.

Misuse of Funds

The misuse of funds by lawyers is one of the most common forms of legal fraud. Attorneys are required to fulfill a fiduciary duty to their clients, and must act with trust and fidelity when handling funds or other assets that the client has given them.

When a client pays retainer to their lawyer, the attorney is required to place that money into a separate escrow account specifically for the purpose of that case only. If the attorney combines the escrow account with their own personal funds or utilizes it for other purposes, this is a clear breach of fiduciary duty, and could result in legal malpractice.

Imagine, for instance that a client hires an attorney to represent him in a lawsuit filed against a driver whose vehicle struck them while crossing the street. The client has the ability to prove driver's negligence and the accident led to their injuries. Their lawyer, however, violates the law and is unable to file the case in time. The lawsuit is dismissed, and the person who was injured suffers a financial loss because of the lawyer's mistake.

The time frame for suing an attorney for malpractice lawyers is limited by a statute-of-limitations which can be a challenge to determine in a situation where a loss or injury occurred as the result of the attorney's negligence. A New York attorney who is experienced in malpractice law can explain the statute of limitation and help you determine if you have a case that is eligible for an action.

Infractions to the professional rules of conduct

Legal malpractice is when an attorney fails to adhere to the generally accepted standards of professional conduct, and inflicts harm on the client. It requires the same four elements that are common to all torts, which are an attorney-client relationship, a duty, a breach, and proximate cause.

Some examples of malpractice are lawyers who mix personal and trust funds, not submitting claims in time to file suit within timeframes, pursuing cases in which they are not competent, failing to carry out an investigation into conflicts and not keeping up to the latest court proceedings, or any new developments in law that could impact the case. Lawyers are required to communicate with their clients in a timely manner. This includes not just email and faxes but also the ability to return phone calls promptly.

Attorneys can also commit fraud. This can occur in various ways, including lying to the client or anyone else involved in the case. In this situation it is crucial to have the facts on hand so that you can determine if the lawyer was untruthful. It's also a violation of the attorney-client contract when an attorney is assigned a case that is outside of their expertise and does not inform the client about this or advise them to seek separate counsel.

Failure to provide advice

If a client decides to hire an attorney, it is a sign that they've reached the stage where their legal issue is beyond their own skill and experience and they can no longer resolve it by themselves. The lawyer's job is to provide advice to clients regarding the merits of a case, the costs and risks involved and their rights. When an attorney fails to comply with this requirement, they could be found guilty of malpractice.

Many legal malpractice claims are the result of poor communication between lawyers and their clients. For instance, an attorney might not return phone calls or fail to notify their clients of a decision taken on their behalf. An attorney might also not communicate important details regarding a case, or fail to disclose known issues in the transaction.

It is possible to claim a lawyer's negligence, but the client must prove that they have suffered real financial losses because due to the negligence of the attorney. The losses have to be documented, which will require evidence such as client files, emails and other correspondence between the attorney and the client, along with bills. In the event of fraud or theft an expert witness could be needed to investigate the case.

Failure to Follow the Law

Attorneys must adhere to the law, and know what it means in specific circumstances. If they fail to do so then they could be accused of misconduct. Examples include commingling client funds with their own or using settlement proceeds for personal expenses, or failing to perform basic due diligence.

Another instance of legal misconduct includes the failure to file a lawsuit within the timeframe of limitations, not meeting deadlines for filing with the court and not adhering to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys must also declare any conflicts of interest. They must disclose to clients any financial or personal interests that could affect their judgment when representing them.

Attorneys are also required to abide by the instructions of their clients. If a client instructs the attorney to take specific actions then the attorney must follow the instructions, unless there's an obvious reason that it is not advantageous or is not feasible.

To win a malpractice suit the plaintiff must demonstrate that the lawyer breached their duty of care. This isn't easy, because it requires proving that the defendant's actions, or inaction, caused damages. It's not enough to prove that the result of the negligence of the attorney was detrimental in order for a malpractice claim to succeed, it must be shown that there is a high likelihood that the plaintiff would have prevailed should the defendant followed the accepted practice.