How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

To sue your attorney on charges of malpractice, you must prove that the breach of duty resulted in financial, legal or other negative outcomes for you. You must prove a direct connection between the attorney's negligence and the negative outcome.

Legal malpractice does not cover issues of strategy. However, if you lose a lawsuit because your lawyer failed to file the lawsuit within the timeframe it could be a case of negligence.

Misuse of Funds

One of the most common types of legal malpractice involves the misuse by a lawyer of funds. Lawyers have a fiduciary obligation with their clients and are expected to behave with a high level of trust and fidelity, especially when dealing with funds or other property that the client has given to them.

If a client pays a retainer, their attorney is required to place the money into a separate escrow account that is specifically designated for the specific purpose of the case only. If the lawyer uses the escrow fund for personal use or co-mingles it with their own funds the attorney is in breach of their fiduciary duty and could be charged with legal negligence.

Imagine, for instance that a customer hires an attorney to represent the client in a lawsuit filed against a driver whose vehicle hit them as they crossed the street. The client has the ability to prove driver's negligence, and that the collision resulted in their injuries. However, their lawyer misses the deadline and is incapable of bringing the case within the timeframe. The lawsuit is dismissed and the injured party suffers a financial loss because of the lawyer's mistake.

A statute of limitations limits the time that you can claim a lawyer's negligence. It can be a challenge to calculate when an injury or loss was due to the negligence of the lawyer. A reputable New York attorney with experience in malpractice law firms law can explain the time limit to you and assist you determine if your situation is suitable for a legal malpractice lawsuit.

Failure to Follow the Rules of Professional Conduct

Legal malpractice occurs when a lawyer fails to adhere to generally accepted professional standards and results in harm to the client. It is the result of four elements of most torts: an attorney-client relationship as well as breach of duty and proximate cause.

Some examples of malpractice lawsuits are a lawyer mixing their personal and trust funds, not submitting claims in time to file a suit within the time limits, taking cases in which they aren't competent, failing to carry out a conflict check and not staying up to current on court proceedings or any new developments in law that could impact the case. Lawyers are also required to communicate with clients in a reasonable way. This does not only include email and faxing as well as returning phone calls in a timely manner.

It is also possible for attorneys to engage in fraud. This could be accomplished by lying to the client, or any other person who is involved in the case. It is essential to learn the facts so you can determine if the attorney was insincere. It also constitutes a breach of the attorney-client agreement if an attorney takes on cases that are outside of their area of expertise and fails to inform the client of this or suggest that they seek separate counsel.

Inability to inform

If a client engages an attorney, it indicates that they have reached the point at which their legal situation is beyond their ability 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 associated with it, and their rights. If a lawyer fails to perform this, they could be guilty of malpractice.

Many legal malpractice cases result from a lack of communication between attorneys and their clients. An attorney may not return phone calls or fail to inform their clients of a specific decision they made on their behalf. Attorneys may also fail to provide important information regarding the case or fail to disclose known problems with an transaction.

A client may sue an attorney if they've suffered financial losses as a result of the negligence of the lawyer. The losses have to be documented, which requires evidence such as client files email correspondence, other correspondence between the lawyer and the client, as well as bills. In cases involving fraud or theft It may be required to be able to have an expert witness review the case.

Inability to Follow the Law

Attorneys are bound by the law and comprehend the way it is applied in particular situations. They could be found guilty of misconduct if they do not. Examples include combining funds from clients with their own, or using settlement proceeds to pay personal expenses, or not performing basic due diligence.

Other examples of legal malpractice are failure to file a lawsuit within the statute of limitation and not filing the suit by the deadlines set by the court and not complying with the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys are also obligated to disclose any significant conflicts of interests. They must inform clients of any personal or financial interest that might affect their judgment when representing them.

Attorneys must also adhere to the instructions of their clients. Attorneys must follow instructions from clients unless it is evident that the decision is not beneficial.

To win a malpractice lawsuit the plaintiff must show that the lawyer violated their duty of care. This can be a challenge, since it requires proof that the defendant's actions or negligence caused damages. It isn't enough to demonstrate that the attorney's wrongful actions resulted in a bad outcome. A malpractice claim must also demonstrate that there was a high likelihood that the plaintiff's lawsuit would have been successful if the defendant had followed the standard procedure.