How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

To sue your attorney for malpractice, you have to prove that the breach of duty led to legal, monetary or other negative outcomes for you. It's not enough to prove the attorney's negligence was bad and you must prove an immediate link between the breach and the unfavorable outcome.

Legal malpractice does not cover matters of strategy. However, if you lose a case because your lawyer was not able to file the lawsuit within the timeframe, this could be negligence.

The misuse of funds

One of the most frequent kinds of legal malpractice is a lawyer's misuse of funds. Attorneys have a fiduciary relationship with their clients and are expected to act with a high degree of trust and fidelity, particularly when handling money or other property that the client has left to them.

When a client is required to pay a retainer to their attorney, the lawyer must put that money into a separate escrow account that is designated for that case's purpose only. If the lawyer utilizes the escrow funds for personal purposes or co-mingles it with their own funds it is in violation of their fiduciary duty and could be charged with legal misconduct.

For instance, suppose that a client hires their attorney to represent them in a lawsuit against a driver who hit them while they were walking across the street. The client is able to prove the driver's negligence, and that the accident led to their injuries. Their lawyer violates the law and is not able to file the case on time. The lawsuit is dismissed and the party who was injured suffers financial losses as a result of the lawyer's error.

The time limit to sue an attorney for malpractice is limited by a statute of limitation which can be difficult to calculate in a case where an injury or loss resulted from the attorney's negligence. A reputable New York attorney with experience in malpractice law can explain the time limit to you and help determine if your situation is a good fit for a legal malpractice lawsuit.

Disobedience to the Rules of Professional Conduct

Legal malpractice occurs when an attorney does not adhere to the generally accepted standards of professional conduct, and vimeo harms the client. It requires the four elements of the most common torts: an attorney-client relation as well as breach of duty and proximate cause.

Some examples of malpractice include who has a personal and trust account funds, failing to timely bring suit within the timeframe set by the statute of limitations, taking on cases where they are not competent, failing to conduct an investigation into conflicts, and not keeping up-to-date with court proceedings or any new developments in the law that could affect the case. Lawyers also have a responsibility to communicate with clients in a timely manner. This does not only include email and faxes, but also resolving telephone calls promptly.

It is also possible for lawyers to engage in fraud. This could be done by lying to the client or anyone else involved in the investigation. It is essential to learn the facts so you can determine whether the attorney was untruthful. It is also a breach of the attorney-client contract if an attorney decides to take on an assignment that is not within the scope of their expertise and fails to inform the client about this or suggest they seek out separate counsel.

Failure to provide advice

If a client decides to hire an attorney, it indicates that they've reached a point pleasant malpractice law firm where their legal situation is beyond their own skill and experience and they are unable to resolve it on their own. It is the job of the lawyer to inform clients about the advantages of a case, the costs and risks involved and their rights. A lawyer who fails to provide this advice could be found guilty.

Many legal malpractice cases stem from a lack of communication between lawyers and their clients. For instance, an attorney might not return calls or fail to notify their clients of a decision they made on their behalf. An attorney could also fail to communicate important details regarding a case, or fail to reveal any issues in an transaction.

A client can sue an attorney if they have suffered financial losses due to the lawyer's negligence. These losses should be documented. This requires evidence, such as email and client files, or any other correspondence between an attorney and a client, as well bills. In the event of fraud or theft an expert witness could be required to examine the case.

Failure to Follow the Law

Attorneys are required to adhere to the law and understand the law's implications in particular situations. If they don't or don't, they could be accused of misconduct. Examples include mixing client funds with their own using settlement proceeds to pay for personal expenses and failing to do basic due diligence.

Other examples of legal malpractice include failure to file a suit within the statute of limitations or missing deadlines for filing with the court and not complying with the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys must also disclose any conflicts of interest. This means they must inform clients of any personal or financial interests that might affect their judgment when representing them.

Attorneys must also adhere to the instructions of their clients. If a client instructs them to take a specific action the attorney must comply with the instructions unless there is an obvious reason that it is not beneficial or even feasible.

To win a malpractice lawsuit, the plaintiff has to prove that the lawyer violated his duty of care. It can be challenging to prove that the defendant's actions or actions caused harm. It isn't enough to prove that the attorney's negligence caused a bad result. A malpractice claim must prove that there was a substantial chance that the plaintiff's claim could have been won had the defendant had followed normal procedures.