Why You May Need to Speak to a Legal Malpractice Attorney – Part 2
In the previous blog post (part 1), we learned about legal malpractice lawyer and looked at some of the reasons it happens. Legal malpractice is a serious issue, resulting from errors and omissions that a lawyer makes. These types of negligent acts can damage your professional reputation or cause you to lose money personally or commercially.
Therefore, you often need the services of a legal malpractice lawyer when your own lawyer makes errors and omissions or fails to meet the standard of care expected of them professionally.
In part two of this post, we continue to review the reasons for this type of negligence.
More Reasons Why Legal Malpractice Occurs
In part one, we reviewed how certain activities lead to malpractice in the legal field. These activities may include missing deadlines, misusing funds, inadequate discovery, communication errors, failing to apply the law, a lack of the client’s consent, or fraud.
This post covers additional reasons why legal malpractice occurs. These reasons cover problems with following instructions, making strategic errors, or not working toward a client’s best interests.
Failing to Follow a Client’s Instructions
A failure to follow instructions is similar to taking legal action without a client’s consent. The client pays the attorney for their legal representation. Therefore, the attorney is also paid to follow a client’s instructions. If an attorney does not believe it is advantageous to carry out a client’s wishes, they should communicate their reasons to the client.
Even if they disagree with the client’s instructions or the type of legal action the client would like to take, the lawyer cannot refuse to follow their wishes in this regard.
Strategic or Planning Mistakes
If your lawyer makes strategic errors in outlining the plans for your case – errors that lead to financial or reputational losses, you may be able to sue them for malpractice. Negligent acts in strategy or planning are usually viewed as errors in judgment in the management of a legal claim.
Conflict of Interest
A conflict of interest simply means that your attorney placed their own interests ahead of your wishes. Also, if they placed another client’s interests ahead of yours, it is also defined as a conflict of interest. In either scenario, the attorney is guilty of malpractice.
Specific Examples
A conflict of interest may occur if the attorney does not provide full disclosure or has a personal relationship with an opposing party (a lawyer or client). Any type of intentional professional misconduct falls under this definition as well.
If a lawyer represents two parties on the same side of a dispute who have opposing interests, this can lead to a malpractice claim.
A conflict of interest is also defined by how a lawyer transacts business. For example, if they work for a certain percentage of a client’s business transactions instead of charging a fee, this can represent malpractice.
Protecting Yourself Against Legal Malpractice
An attorney’s duty is to protect their client’s best interests legally. Therefore, you have to consider this factor when choosing an attorney.
Questions to Ask
Ask yourself the following questions when choosing a malpractice lawyer:
- Is the lawyer selective about the cases they manage?
- Does the attorney handle cases that cover their specialty areas?
- Do they consult with other lawyers to ensure a case is handled well?
Put Everything in Writing
Make sure that the attorney you work with puts things in writing, providing a contract that lists their core services. The agreement should contain the most pertinent data – the retainer, terms of service, and a clear definition of the obligations of the attorney.
Discuss the Possible Outcomes
By having a solid and open relationship with your lawyer, you can set realistic expectations and maintain honest communications. It’s therefore important to discuss the possible outcomes for a case and review the best- and worst-case scenarios, or anything that develops between these two outcomes.
Remember: There Are No Guarantees in the Legal Arena
Your attorney should not make a guarantee to you, but, instead, moderate your expectations, especially in terms of the potential value of your case. The anticipated value of a claim is difficult to project with accuracy. That’s why it’s important to work with a lawyer who is realistic in this respect.
The Importance of Documentation and Correspondence
While it’s impossible, from a practical aspect, to document each detail of a case, it’s still important to make sure to record as much information as possible. For example, your client-lawyer interactions should be recorded so you have a clear understanding of how a case is proceeding or how to go forward.
Keeping meticulous records in the form of time-stamped correspondence, emails, documents, and audio recordings all lend to better communications, particularly when sensitive information is involved. These types of recordings also prevent problems with misinterpretation.
Final Thoughts:
Learning how to protect yourself against legal malpractice is just as important as consulting with an attorney who handles these types of cases. If you believe your lawyer is mishandling your legal affairs, you need to consult with an attorney who can help.
Contact a Legal Malpractice Lawyer in Los Angeles
If you are a victim of legal malpractice, contact a Los Angeles-based attorney about your claim today. To schedule a consultation, contact Jance M Weberman about your case. Contact us to learn more about your rights and to review your claim.