When you go to an attorney for legal representation, you have every right to expect that the lawyer represents your interests in a competent way. If the attorney does not act on your behalf in an effective manner, then you could have a legal malpractice case against them, depending on the circumstances. This article takes a look at some of the reasons you might seriously consider pursuing a lawsuit against your attorney.
Commingling Funds
In some instances, you might need to pay fees to your lawyer in advance. The attorney will later earn those fees and bill you for them. Your lawyer, however, is not allowed to put those upfront fees in his own account, a practice known as commingling. The attorney must keep these funds separate until such time as they are earned and billed to the client. The attorney is also obligated to maintain accurate records concerning your upfront payments. Although the specific type of records that must be kept can vary based on the rules of the relevant jurisdiction.
Conflict of Interest
Another possible reason for suing an attorney is when they have a conflict of interest. For example, if you have engaged a lawyer to deal with a legal matter in which your spouse or ex-spouse is a litigant, it would be a conflict of interest for the lawyer to represent the other person on the same matter. It would not be a conflict of interest, however, for the attorney to represent the other person on an unrelated matter. If you discover that your lawyer has a clear conflict of interest, you could have a strong legal malpractice case.
Settling Claims Without Your Consent
When you sue someone in civil court, your attorney has the obligation to keep you abreast of all the settlement offers that are received. If they do not do this, they could be guilty of malpractice.
The lawyer does not have the right to accept any settlement offer on your behalf without your consent. The only exception to this is when the attorney is not able to contact you, despite making every effort to do so. In that instance, the attorney might be justified in accepting a reasonable settlement offer to avoid having the case dropped due to the statute of limitations.
Filing a malpractice lawsuit against your attorney is something you should not do without professional assistance. For best results, contact a legal malpractice attorney.
