Missed Deadlines

Missed deadlines such as failing to file a case by the statute of limitations, can cause losses of significant amounts of money and can lead to a case being thrown out of court entirely. All legal claims have statutes of limitations, and failing to file within these deadlines can result in the loss the client’s right to sue and recover for losses. Failing to file asylum cases within one year of entry into the United States is another example of a missed deadline. This can lead to immediate orders for deportation.

Another common mistake that’s related to deadlines is often referred to as a “failure to calendar” properly. This means that the attorney may have been aware of certain deadlines but failed to schedule filing deadlines and hearings. This can lead to missed hearings, missing documents, and consequentially, sometimes leads to a default judgment against the client.

 

Misuse of Finances

When a client pays a retainer, their attorney must put that money into a trust account. If the attorney puts this money into his or her personal account, this can be considered financial misuse. Of course, the most extreme example of legal malpractice occurs when an attorney steals funds from their clients.

 

Inadequate Investigation or Discovery

One professional responsibility all lawyers take on when they agree to take a case is to put in the proper amount of time and effort investigating their clients’ legal actions. This phase of the legal process is referred to as “discovery,” which is a series of legal mechanisms that attorneys use to put together evidence that will help their clients’ cases. If an attorney does not perform a sufficient investigation and fails to discover facts that are important to a particular case – such as failing to identify a key witness – they could be liable for legal malpractice.

 

Material Errors in Communication

If an attorney is not returning their clients’ calls and cannot show evidence as to why the lack of communication was warranted, a claim could be filed against them.

Failure to inform is one of the most common reasons for legal malpractice claims. This means that the attorney, did not provide information to his or her client that was considered material to a case.

Blanket authorizations to sign legal documents without permitting a client to review and approve of documents, can be legal malpractice.

 

Failure to Know and/or Apply the Law

Lawyers are expected to have a working understanding of all pertinent areas of law in which they are practicing and the know-how to apply the law correctly. If the attorney doesn’t apply a law correctly, misunderstands it, or fails to keep up with changes that have been made to laws within his or her jurisdiction and causes harm to a client, a legal malpractice claim may be warranted.

 

Lack of Consent

While attorneys are hired by clients to represent them in legal matters, that doesn’t mean that they receive carte blanche when it comes to decision making. A lawyer must always have the consent of the client before taking any legal action.

Any time an attorney acts legally without the expressed written or verbal consent of a client, that attorney opens himself or herself up to a potential legal malpractice claim.

 

Fraud

If an attorney deceives the client or anyone else involved in a legal process in order to obtain unlawful gain, there is a chance that they have committed fraud. Examples include filing completely fabricated declarations in Violence Against Women Act Claims in immigration proceedings. If a client has any reason to believe that something like this occurred, they should consult a legal malpractice attorney.

generally looked at as errors in judgment regarding how a client’s legal matter should have been handled.

 

Conflict Of Interest/Fiduciary Duties

The definition of “conflict of interest” occurs when an attorney puts his or her interests ahead of the clients’ interests. Additionally, putting one client’s interests above another client’s interests can also be considered to be a conflict of interest and an example of legal malpractice. An attorney can breach fiduciary duty by violating standards of conduct. As a fiduciary, an attorney has a duty of undivided loyalty to every client. A breach of the duty of undivided loyalty occurs when an attorney obtains a personal advantage in dealing with a client or when the attorney creates circumstances that adversely affect the client’s interests.

The Colorado Court of Appeals held that an attorney was properly found liable for both legal malpractice based on negligence and for a breach of fiduciary duty where he (1) negligently failed to advise a baby’s parents of the availability of relinquishment counseling and (2) acted with a conflict of interest during an adoption proceeding by representing both the biological parents and the adoptive parents. Boyd v. Garvert, 9 P.3d 1161, 1163 (Colo.App. 2000).

In addition to having different factual grounds, claims for professional negligence and claims for breach of fiduciary duty have important practical differences. Attorney fees can be awarded in breach of fiduciary cases that rise to the level of a breach of trust. Further, although exemplary damages can be awarded in professional negligence cases when counsel has also engaged in willful and wanton conduct. Non-economic damages are either limited or unavailable in legal malpractice cases based on negligence, such damages can be awarded in cases involving breach of fiduciary duty.

We do not take the following types of case:

 

• Medical malpractice cases. We sue lawyers not doctors.
• Cases against judges, prosecutors, governmental entities, expert witnesses, the court system, or cases against attorneys other than your former attorney.
• Cases that originated from family law cases.
• Cases that are still pending. You must already have a final judgment or settlement agreement, and no pending motions or appeals. We do not give advice on pending matters.
• Cases where you learned of your lawyer’s malpractice more than 2 years ago.