How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

If you wish to sue your attorney over malpractice, you must prove that the breach of duty led to financial, legal or other negative consequences for you. It is not enough to prove that the negligence of your attorney was injurious; you must also show an immediate link between the breach and the undesirable outcome.

Strategies do not qualify as legal malpractice, but when your lawyer fails to file a lawsuit in time and you lose the case, this could be a type of malpractice.

Inappropriate use of funds

Fraud in the handling of funds by lawyers is one of the most widespread types of legal fraud. Attorneys are bound by a fiduciary obligation to their clients and must behave with trust and fidelity when handling money or other property the client has trusted them with.

If a client is required to pay their retainer to a lawyer, they are required by law to place that money in an funds that are only used for that particular case. If the lawyer uses the escrow fund for personal purposes or co-mingles it with their own funds the attorney is in breach of their fiduciary responsibilities and could be charged with legal negligence.

Imagine, for instance, that a client hired an attorney to represent him in a suit filed against a driver whose car struck them when they crossed the street. The client can prove the driver's negligence and that the collision resulted in 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 is liable for financial loss as a result of the lawyer's error.

The statute of limitations limit the time you have to claim a lawyer's negligence. It is often difficult to determine if an injury or loss is caused by the negligence of an attorney. A licensed New York attorney with experience in malpractice law can explain the statute of limitations to you and help determine if your case is suitable for a legal malpractice lawsuit.

Inability to follow the Rules of Professional Conduct

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

A few common examples of malpractice include a lawyer mixing their personal and trust account funds, failing to make a claim within the timeframe set by the statute of limitations and assuming cases where they are not competent, not performing a proper conflict check, as well as not being up-to-date on court proceedings or new developments in law that may affect the case. Lawyers must communicate with their clients in a timely manner. This doesn't just mean emails and faxes, but also the ability to return phone calls promptly.

Attorneys can also commit fraud. It can be done in a variety of ways, such as lying to the client or to anyone else involved in the case. In this case it is essential to have the facts in your possession to determine if the attorney was being deceitful. It also constitutes a breach of the attorney-client agreement if an attorney takes on an issue that is outside of their area of expertise and does not inform the client about this or recommend seeking separate counsel.

Failure to Advise

When a client hires a lawyer, it signifies that their legal issues have exceeded their skills and experience. They are unable solve the issue themselves. The lawyer's job is to provide advice to clients regarding the merits of a case, the costs and risks associated with it, and their rights. If an attorney fails to do this, they could be guilty of malpractice.

Many legal malpractice cases are the result of poor communication between attorneys, and their clients. For instance an attorney may not return calls or fail to notify their clients of the decision made on their behalf. An attorney may also fail to communicate important details regarding a case, or not disclose any known problems with transactions.

A client can sue an attorney if they have suffered financial losses as a result of the lawyer's negligence. The losses should be documented. This requires evidence, like email files and client files, or any other correspondence between an attorney and client, as well as invoices. In cases involving fraud or theft, it may also be required to be able to have an expert witness review the case.

Failure to Follow the Law

Attorneys must adhere to the law and know how it applies to specific circumstances. If they fail to do so, they could be guilty of misconduct. Examples include combining client funds with their own or using settlement proceeds to pay personal expenses, or failing to exercise basic due diligence.

Another type of legal malpractice is the failure to file an action within the statute of limitations, missing court filing deadlines or not adhering to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys must declare any conflicts of interest. They must inform clients of any financial or personal interest that might affect their judgment when representing them.

Attorneys are also required to adhere to the instructions of their clients. If a client directs the attorney to take specific actions then the attorney must follow those instructions unless there's an obvious reason to believe that it would not be beneficial or feasible.

To win a malpractice lawsuit, the plaintiff has to show that the lawyer acted in violation of his duty of care. It can be difficult to prove that the defendant's inaction or actions resulted in damage. It isn't enough to prove that the attorney's error resulted in a bad outcome. A malpractice claim must prove that there was a high probability that the plaintiff's case could have been won had the defendant had followed normal procedures.