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How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

To sue your attorney for malpractice, you must demonstrate that the breach of duty led to legal, monetary or other negative outcomes for you. You must establish an immediate connection between the attorney's incompetence and the negative outcome.

Strategy-related issues do not be considered legal malpractice, however, the lawyer you hire fails to file a lawsuit in time and you lose the case, it could be a case of malpractice.

Misuse of funds

A misuse of funds by lawyers is one of the most frequent forms of legal fraud. Lawyers have a fiduciary connection with their clients and are expected to behave with the utmost trust and fidelity, particularly when handling money or other property that the client has given to them.

When a client pays a retainer to their attorney, the attorney is required to place the money in a separate escrow account specifically destined for the purpose of the case only. If the lawyer makes use of the escrow fund for personal use or co-mingles it with their own funds it is in violation of their fiduciary duties and could be accused of legal malpractice attorneys.

Imagine, for example that a customer hires an attorney to represent him in a suit filed against a driver whose car struck them when they crossed the street. The client has the ability to prove driver's negligence as well as that the collision caused their injuries. However, their lawyer fails to comply with the statute of limitations and is in a position to file the lawsuit within time. The lawsuit is dismissed and the victim is financially harmed because of the lawyer's mistake.

The statute of limitations restricts the time that you can pursue a lawyer's malpractice. This can be difficult to calculate when an injury or loss is due to the negligence of the lawyer. A reputable New York attorney with experience in the field of malpractice law will be able to explain the time limit to you and help you determine if your situation is suitable for a legal malpractice suit.

Failure to Follow the Rules of Professional Conduct

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

Some typical examples of malpractice include mixing trust and personal account funds, failing in time to bring suit within the timeframe set by the statute of limitations or taking on cases in which they are not competent, not performing a proper conflict check, as well as not keeping up-to-date with court proceedings or new developments in the law that could affect the case. Lawyers also have a responsibility to communicate with clients in a reasonable way. This doesn't only apply to emails and faxes, but also includes answering 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 to anyone else involved in the investigation. In this scenario it is imperative to have the facts in your possession to determine if the attorney was being untruthful. It's also a violation of the attorney-client agreement if an attorney takes on an assignment that is not within the scope of their area of expertise and fails to inform the client about this or suggest they seek out separate counsel.

Failure to provide advice

When a client engages an attorney, it indicates that their legal issue has been beyond their expertise and experience. They are unable solve the issue themselves. The lawyer has a duty to inform clients of the benefits of the case, the risks and costs involved, and their rights. If a lawyer fails to perform this, they could be liable for malpractice.

Many legal malpractice cases are the result of poor communication between attorneys and their clients. For instance an attorney may not return phone calls or Malpractice Lawsuit fail to notify their clients of a decision they made on their behalf. An attorney may not also communicate vital details regarding a case, or fail to reveal any issues with the transaction.

A client can sue an attorney if they have suffered financial losses as a result of the negligence of the lawyer. The losses must be documented, which requires evidence like client files email correspondence, other correspondence between the attorney and the client, as well as bills. In cases involving fraud or theft it could be necessary to have an expert witness examine the case.

Failure to Follow the Law

Attorneys must be in compliance with the law and know how it applies to specific situations. They could be found guilty of misconduct if they don't. Examples include mixing client funds with their own or using settlement funds to pay for personal expenses and failing to do basic due diligence.

Other instances of legal malpractice include failure to file a lawsuit within the statute of limitations and not filing the suit by the deadlines set by the court and not following the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys must also declare any conflicts of interest. They must inform clients of any personal or financial interest that might affect their judgment when representing them.

Attorneys must also follow the instructions of their clients. If a client directs them to take particular action the attorney must comply with the instructions unless there is an obvious reason why it is not beneficial or possible.

To win a malpractice lawsuit the plaintiff must prove that the lawyer violated his duty of care. This isn't easy, as it requires showing that the defendant's actions or inaction caused damages. It's also not enough to prove the result of the attorney's negligence was negative and for a malpractice case to succeed, it must be demonstrated that there's an extremely high chance that the plaintiff could have won the case when the defendant had acted in accordance with the standard procedure.