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How to Sue Your Attorney for Malpractice

To sue your attorney for negligence, you must show that their breach of duty caused legal, monetary or other negative outcomes for you. You must prove that there is a direct link between the attorney's negligence and the negative outcome.

Matters of strategy do not count as legal malpractice but if your lawyer fails to file a lawsuit on time and malpractice Lawsuit you lose the case that could be a form of malpractice.

Misuse of funds

One of the most popular kinds of legal malpractice is the misuse by a lawyer of funds. Lawyers are bound by a fiduciary duty to their clients and must act with trust and fidelity when handling funds or any other property that the client has entrusted them with.

If a client pays their retainer the lawyer is obligated by law to keep that money into an funds that are only specifically used for the particular case. If the lawyer co-mingles the escrow account with their personal funds or uses it for any other purpose, this is a clear breach of fiduciary duty, and could constitute legal misconduct.

Imagine, for example, that a client hired an attorney to represent the client in a lawsuit filed against a driver whose vehicle struck them when they crossed the street. The client could prove the driver's negligence, and that the accident caused their injuries. But, their lawyer violates the deadline and is unable to file the case within the timeframe. The lawsuit is dismissed and the injured party suffers a financial loss because of the lawyer's mistake.

The time to sue an attorney for negligence is governed by a statute-of-limitations that can be difficult to determine in a situation where an injury or loss occurred as the result of the attorney's negligence. A qualified New York attorney with experience in malpractice law can explain the statute of limitations to you and help you determine if your case is suitable for a legal malpractice suit.

Failure to follow the Rules of Professional Conduct

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

Some examples of malpractice are a lawyer who has a personal and trust account funds, failing to timely bring suit within the timeframe set by the statute of limitations and taking on cases where they aren't competent, not performing a conflict-check, and not keeping up-to-date with court proceedings or new developments in law that could affect the case. Lawyers have a responsibility to communicate with their clients in a reasonable manner. This doesn't only apply to email and fax and includes also responding to phone calls promptly.

Attorneys are also able to commit fraud. It can be done by lying to the client, or any other person who is involved in the investigation. It is important to know the facts so you can determine if the lawyer was deceitful. It's also a violation of the attorney-client contract if an attorney takes on an issue that is outside of their expertise and does not inform the client about this or advise them to seek separate counsel.

Inability to advise

When a client hires a lawyer, it means that their legal issue has been beyond their expertise and knowledge. They are unable solve the issue on their own. It is the job of the lawyer to advise clients on the benefits of a case, the costs and risks involved, as well as their rights. Lawyers who fail to provide this advice could be found guilty.

Many legal malpractice claims stem from of poor communication between lawyers and their clients. An attorney might not return a phone calls or fail to inform their clients of a certain decision taken on their behalf. An attorney could also fail to communicate important information regarding a case or not disclose any known issues with the transaction.

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

Inability to Follow the Law

Attorneys must abide by the law and understand what it means in specific situations. They could be found guilty of malpractice if they do not. Examples include combining client funds with their own or using settlement proceeds for personal expenses, and failing to exercise basic due diligence.

Other examples of legal malpractice include failing to file a suit within the statute of limitation and not filing the suit by the deadlines set by the court and not adhering to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Attorneys are also required to disclose any conflict of interest. This means that they have to inform clients of any financial or personal interest that could influence their decision-making process when representing them.

Attorneys are also required to adhere to the instructions of their clients. If a client asks them to take particular action then the attorney must follow those instructions unless there's an obvious reason to believe that it would not be advantageous or is not feasible.

To win a malpractice lawsuit, the plaintiff has to demonstrate that the lawyer did not fulfill his duty of care. It isn't easy to establish that the defendant's inaction or actions resulted in damage. It is not enough to prove that the attorney's error resulted in a bad outcome. A malpractice claim must prove that there was a substantial likelihood that the plaintiff's lawsuit could have been won had the defendant had followed normal procedures.