How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

To sue an attorney for negligence, you need to prove that the breach had negative legal, financial, or other consequences for you. You must prove that there was a direct link between your attorney's negligence and the negative results.

Legal malpractice does not include issues of strategy. However, if you lose a case due to your lawyer didn't file the lawsuit in time this could be considered the result of malpractice.

The misuse of funds

One of the most popular kinds of legal malpractice is the misuse of funds by a lawyer. Attorneys have a fiduciary relationship with their clients and are expected to behave with a high degree of trust and fidelity, particularly when dealing with money or other property that the client has entrusted to them.

If a client is required to pay their retainer to a lawyer, they are required by law to keep that money into an fund for escrow that is exclusively utilized for that particular case. If the attorney utilizes the escrow funds to pursue personal goals or mix it with their own funds and funds, they are in breach of their fiduciary duty and could be charged with legal negligence.

Imagine, for instance that a client hires an attorney to represent him in a lawsuit filed against a motorist whose car struck them while crossing the street. The client could prove the driver's negligence and that the accident led to their injuries. The lawyer, however, misses the statute and is unable to file the case on time. Therefore, the case is dismissed and the person who was hurt suffers financial loss because of the lawyer's mistake.

The time frame for suing an attorney for negligence is governed by a statute-of-limitations that can be difficult to determine in a situation where a loss or injury resulted from the negligence of the attorney. A licensed New York attorney with experience in the field of malpractice law can explain the statute of limitations to you and assist you to determine if your situation is suitable for a legal malpractice lawsuit.

Failure to follow the professional rules of conduct

Legal malpractice occurs the case when a lawyer doesn't follow generally accepted professional standards and causes harm to the client. It requires the four elements of most torts: an attorney-client relationship as well as breach of duty and proximate cause.

Some examples of malpractice are the lawyer mixing personal and trust funds, failing to file suit within statutes of limitations, taking cases in which they're not competent, failing to perform an effective conflict check, and not staying up to the current court proceedings, or any new legal developments that could affect the case. Lawyers are accountable to communicate with their clients in a reasonable manner. This includes not just the use of faxes and email, but also the ability to return phone calls promptly.

It is also possible for attorneys to commit fraud. This could be done by lying to the client or anyone else involved in the case. In this case it is crucial to have the facts on hands so that you can determine if the lawyer was being untruthful. It is also a breach of the attorney-client contract if an attorney is assigned a case that is outside of their area of expertise and fails to inform the client about this or recommend seeking separate counsel.

Inability to inform

When a client employs an attorney, it implies that their legal situation has been beyond their expertise and knowledge. They are unable to resolve it themselves. The lawyer is required to inform clients of the importance of the case, the potential risks and costs involved, and their rights. If an attorney does not perform this, they could be guilty of malpractice.

Many legal malpractice cases stem from poor communication between attorneys and their clients. For instance attorneys may not return calls or fail to notify their clients of the decision made on their behalf. Attorneys may also fail to share important information about an instance or fail to disclose known problems with an transaction.

It is possible to bring a lawsuit against an attorney for negligence, but the client must show that they suffered financial losses as a result of the lawyer's negligence. The losses have to be documented, which requires evidence such as client files emails, client files, and other correspondence between the lawyer and the client, as well as bills. In cases of fraud or theft, an expert witness may be needed to investigate the case.

Inability to Follow the Law

Attorneys are required to adhere to the law and understand the way it is applied in particular situations. They could be found guilty of malpractice when they fail to do so. Examples include combining funds from clients with their own or using settlement proceeds for personal expenses, or failing to exercise basic due diligence.

Another instance of legal misconduct includes failure to file an action within the statute of limitations, missing deadlines for filing court documents or not adhering to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys are also obligated to disclose any significant conflicts of interest. This means that they must inform clients of any financial or personal interests that might affect their judgment when representing them.

Finally, attorneys are obligated to follow the instructions of their clients. Attorneys are required to follow the directions of clients unless it is obvious that the actions is not beneficial.

To win a lake park malpractice law firm lawsuit, the plaintiff must prove that the lawyer violated their duty of care. This can be difficult since it requires proving the defendant's actions or negligence caused damages. It's also not enough to prove that the result of the negligence of the attorney was bad; for a malpractice claim to be successful, it must be shown that there is a high probability that the plaintiff could have won their case when the defendant had acted in accordance with the standard procedure.