How to Sue Your Attorney for fowler alvin malpractice law firm lawyer (vimeo.com)

To bring a lawsuit against an attorney for malpractice, you have to show that the breach of duty resulted in negative financial, legal or other implications for you. It is not enough to prove the attorney's negligence was bad and you must prove an unambiguous link between the breach and the resulting outcome.

Legal malpractice doesn't include issues of strategy. However, if you lose a case because your lawyer did not file the lawsuit in time it could be a case of negligence.

Inappropriate use of funds

One of the most frequent types of legal malpractice involves the misuse of funds by a lawyer. Lawyers are legally bound by a fiduciary responsibility to their clients and must behave with trust and fidelity when handling funds or other assets that the client has trusted them with.

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

Imagine, for instance that a client hires an attorney to represent the client in a lawsuit filed against a driver whose vehicle was struck by them as they crossed the street. The client can prove that the driver was negligent and is able to prove that the accident caused their injuries. Their lawyer, however, misses the statute and is not able to file the case in time. The lawsuit is dismissed, and the party who was injured is liable for financial loss as a result of the lawyer's mistake.

A statute of limitation limits the time you have to bring a lawsuit against a lawyer for malpractice. It can be a challenge to determine if an injury or loss is caused by negligence of the lawyer. A New York attorney who is proficient in malpractice law can explain the statute of limitation and assist you in determining whether you have a case that qualifies for a lawsuit.

Failure to adhere to the rules of professional conduct

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

Some examples of malpractice include a lawyer mixing their personal and trust account funds, failing to bring suit within the timeframe set by the statute of limitations and assuming cases in which they are not competent, failing to conduct a proper conflict check, as well as not keeping up-to-date with court proceedings or any new developments in the law that may affect the case. Lawyers must communicate with their clients in a reasonable manner. This doesn't only apply to email and fax and also includes answering phone calls promptly.

Attorneys are also able to commit fraud. This could be accomplished by lying to the client, or to anyone else involved in the case. In this case it is imperative to have the facts in the hands of the investigator to determine if the attorney was deceitful. It's also a violation of the attorney-client agreement if an attorney is assigned a case that is outside of their area of expertise and fails to inform the client about this or recommend seeking separate counsel.

Failure to Advise

If a client engages an attorney, this means they've reached a stage where their legal issue is beyond their expertise and experience and that they are unable to resolve it on their own. The lawyer's job is to inform clients about the benefits of a case as well as the risks and costs involved, as well as their rights. If an attorney does not comply with this requirement, they could be found guilty of malpractice.

Many legal malpractice claims are the result of poor communication between lawyers, and their clients. For example, an attorney might not respond to phone calls or fail to inform their clients of a decision they made on their behalf. An attorney might also not communicate important details regarding a particular case, or not disclose any known issues in transactions.

A client may sue an attorney if they've suffered financial losses as a result of the negligence of the lawyer. The losses should be documented. This requires evidence, such as client files and emails, or any other correspondence between an attorney and a client, and also bills. In cases of fraud or theft It may be necessary to engage an expert witness to review the case.

Failure to Follow the Law

Attorneys must be in compliance with the law and understand how it applies to specific circumstances. They could be found guilty of malpractice when they fail to do so. Examples include combining client funds with their own, or using settlement proceeds to pay personal expenses, and failing to perform 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 are also obligated to disclose any conflict of interest. This means they must inform clients of any personal or financial interest that could influence their judgment in representing them.

In addition, attorneys are required to follow the instructions of their clients. Attorneys must follow instructions from clients, unless it is clear that the decision is not beneficial.

To prevail in a malpractice lawsuit, the plaintiff has to show that the lawyer acted in violation of his duty of care. It isn't easy to establish that the defendant's inaction or actions caused harm. It is not enough to prove that the attorney's error caused a bad result. A malpractice claim must prove that there was a high likelihood that the plaintiff's case could have been won had the defendant had followed the standard procedure.