We get little direct description of the legal malpractice claim, but a guess from the decision is that Plaintiff argued that she did not get the settlement bargain that she expected, and that the attorney committed legal malpractice. The decision in Christian v Paul B. Weitz & Assoc., P.C. 2025 NY Slip Op 51001(U) Decided on June 23, 2025
Appellate Term, First Department is short.

“Order (Jessica I. Bourbon, J.), entered January 17, 2025, affirmed, with $10 costs.

Civil Court properly dismissed plaintiff’s action for legal malpractice based upon documentary evidence that conclusively established a defense to the action (see CPLR 3211 [a] [1]; Leon v Martinez, 84 NY2d 83 [1994]). Defendant submitted, among other things, email correspondence between the parties, the March 15, 2023 letter accompanying the check in settlement of plaintiff’s underlying personal injury action and plaintiff’s executed receipt of “client share” of the settlement of that underlying action. These documents flatly contradict the facts on which the claim of malpractice rests by showing that plaintiff expressly authorized defendant to settle her personal injury action for $35,000, inclusive of a one-third legal fee, with the reduced Medicare lien deducted from defendant’s fees (see Laruccia v Forchelli, Curto, Schwartz, Mineo, Carlino & Cohn, 295 AD2d 321 [2002], lv denied 98 NY2d 753 [2002]).”