Five Things to Know About Legal Malpractice
- NOT EVERY MISTAKE BY A LAWYER IS LEGAL MALPRACTICE: Mistakes that don’t cause any damage to the client are not legal malpractice; they’re mistakes.
- VIOLATIONS OF RULES OF CONDUCT ARE NOT NECESSARILY LEGAL MALPRACTICE: Just because a lawyer violated a rule, that doesn’t mean there was legal malpractice. However, rule violations are sometimes evidence that the lawyer’s conduct fell below the required standard of care.
- LAWSUITS FOR LEGAL MALPRACTICE HAVE DEADLINES: Called statutes of limitation and statutes of repose, letting these deadlines pass can result in a claim for malpractice being barred. Do not delay in seeing a legal malpractice lawyer if you believe that you are the victim of legal malpractice!
- THIRD PARTY BENEFICIARIES CAN SUE A LAWYER FOR LEGAL MALPRACTICE: As long as they were intended third party beneficiaries of the lawyer’s advice, such as beneficiaries of a will, people other than the client can sue for a lawyer’s negligent representation.
- LEGAL MALPRACTICE CASES CAN BE VERY COMPLEX: They often involve underlying lawsuits, requiring the plaintiff to prove two or more lawsuits to win a suit for legal malpractice. As a result, it is advisable to consult a lawyer with experience handling legal malpractice matters.
By Thomas W. Dillon