How do I Know if I Can Sue an Attorney?
Posted February 18th, 2020.
Categories: Legal Malpractice.
When people need legal assistance, they turn to attorneys. They trust that the person they hire will honestly and effectively do their job. Fortunately, in many cases, attorneys will take extreme caution and diligently work on your behalf, however, there are other scenarios where this simply does not happen. If you believe you are a victim of legal malpractice, then you must read on and reach out to our experienced New Jersey legal malpractice attorney as soon as you can. Here are some of the questions you may have regarding legal malpractice and the process going forward:
What defines legal malpractice?
Legal malpractice, as you may know, is far more than an attorney failing to achieve a positive outcome in your case. For you to have a valid legal malpractice lawsuit, you will have to hire an experienced attorney who can prove several things. First, your attorney must demonstrate that you were, in fact, the attorney’s client. From here, he will have to prove that the attorney in question breached his/her duty of care, your case was lost or significantly weakened, and that you suffered significant financial damages as a result. This is oftentimes harder than it seems, so if you are a victim of legal malpractice, you must ensure you retain the services of an experienced legal malpractice attorney as soon as you possibly can.
How can an attorney engage in legal malpractice?
Legal malpractice comes in all shapes and sizes, ranging from unintentional to downright malicious. Some of the most common types of legal malpractice are as follows:
- Misunderstanding the law and improperly applying it to the facts of the case
- Choosing to settle a case without the client’s consent
- Losing evidence, files or other relevant documents
- Improperly conducting a record search
- Failing to properly calculate damages
- Neglecting to take a settlement’s tax consequences into account
- Neglecting to advise a client about insurance
- Disregarding the client’s preferences or requests
Is an ethical violation different from legal malpractice?
Though the two are similar and often both result in harming the client in question, legal malpractice is more closely defined as insufficiently performing legal duties, harming a client as a result. Ethical violations deal primarily with dishonest or unethical acts, and these are alleged in bar complaints.
Contact our experienced New Jersey firm
The Law Offices of Mark S. Guralnick is an experienced and committed legal team for clients throughout the state of New Jersey. Our team effectively serves victims of legal malpractice. If you require the services of a dedicated attorney, please contact The Law Offices of Mark S. Guralnick today for a free consultation.
